Sydney United 58 book Waratah Cup final ticket with gritty win over Olympic
Sydney United 58 weathered a late resurgence from Sydney Olympic as they secured a 5-2 triumph after extra time at Belmore Sports Ground on Wednesday night to book their place in the 2026 Waratah Cup final and chance to win it for the ninth time in the club’s history.
The travellers were made to work for their semi-final win as a pair of Peter Grozos second-half stunners cancelled out Carlos De Oliveira’s spectacular brace in the first half, though they seized control in extra time to seal their spot in the final
It marks United 58’s fifth qualification to the final in the past six editions of the competition, with them on target to retain the title after winning it last year.
The defending Waratah Cup champions opened the scoring in the 29th minute via a beautiful curling long-range shot by Carlos De Oliveira that settled into the top right.
De Oliveira bagged a second in the 40th minute with another strike from distance, this time meeting the ball from the edge of the box from a corner set piece and guiding it into the bottom right.
The game truly came to life in the 75th minute when Olympic’s Peter Grozos unleashed an excellent free kick strike from outside the right side of the box that snuck into the right side of the goal.
Grozos then levelled the contest in the 84th minute with a stunner from distance, meeting Pavlesic’s clearance outside the box and releasing a remarkable strike into the top left corner.
The visitors nearly restored their lead a minute later in the 85th when Michael Krslovic was played through by Adrian Vlastelica, but the forward sent his shot just wide of the right post.
The game proceeded into extra time with United 58 regaining the lead almost immediately a Farah Koko tapped in a Nicholas Pratezina cross from close range in the 91st minute.
The travellers then won a penalty minutes later after a foul on Bailey Rule by Peter Bebonis, which Michael Krslovic converted via a chipped effort down the middle
Krslovic then put the win beyond doubt in the 113th minute after a misplaced pass from Orlovic saw him knock the ball into the top right.
United 58 coach Miro Vlastelica praised his team for the win, especially in extra time after they let Olympic back into the match.
“I thought we controlled most of the game, except for a little passage in the second half when Olympic came into the game.
“We recomposed ourselves in extra time, changed a few things and eventually got back on top which helped us in the end,” Vlastelica told Football NSW.
When asked about United 58’s excellent record in the Waratah Cup over the years, he stressed that it is part of the club’s drive to win as much silverware as possible.
“I said from day one how we want to win as many trophies as we can, make as many finals as we can, and the boys have got the same mentality. It is something that we do for the supporters as well. We love the cup run.”
Match Stats
Sydney Olympic 2 (Peter Grozos 75’, 84’)
Sydney United 58 5 (Carlos De Oliveira 29’, 40’, Farah Koko 91’, Michael Krslovic 94’ pen, 113’)
Wednesday 17 June
Belmore Sports Ground
Referee: Ethan Zvagulis
Assistant Referees: Cameron Wright and Isaac Riggs
Fourth Official: Rowan Fisher
Sydney Olympic: 1. Josip Orlovic, 3. Samuel Bosnjak, 4. Joshua Hong, 5. Ziggy Gordon, 11. Giorgos Louca (21. Sebastian Kukucka 64’), 13. Liam Saba (24. Ben Giason 46’), 14. Jacob Tresoglavic, 16. Bailey Callaghan (10. Lucas Williams 79’), 19. Anton Isaako (31. Peter Bebonis 79’), 33. Maxamillion Luburic (34. Marcus Fernandez 46’), 35. Peter Grozos
Substitutes Not Used: 40. Anthony Carreras
Yellow Cards: Nil
Red Cards: Nil
Sydney United 58: 1. Adam Pavlesic, 3. Bailey Rule (12. Gabriel Tilo 97’), 4. Adrian Vlastelica, 6. Dylan Rose (5. Anthony Tomelic 58’), 7. Leroy Jennings (22. Nicholas Pratezina 67’), 9. Kyle Cimenti (19. Michael Krslovic 76’), 10. Carlos De Oliveira, 17. Michael Glassock, 21. Koya Nakano, 23. Mason Wells (44. Farah Koko 46’), 30. Joshua Azzi (8. Tomoki Wada 58’)
Substitutes Not Used: 41. Adrian-Jamie Bazina
Yellow Cards: Dylan Rose 31’
Red Cards: Nil
-By Dimitri Kallos
