The 2021 A-League finals series was the 16th annual edition of the A-League finals series, the playoffs tournament staged to determine the champion of the 2020–21 A-League season. The series was played over three weeks culminating in the 2021 A-League Grand Final, where premiers Melbourne City won their first championship 3–1 against reigning champions Sydney FC.
| Season | 2020–21 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 12–27 June 2021 |
| Champions | Melbourne City |
| Matches played | 5 |
| Goals scored | 14 (2.8 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Tomi Juric (2 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Melbourne City 2–0 Macarthur FC (Semi-finals, 20 June 2021) Melbourne City 3–1 Sydney FC (Grand Final, 27 June 2021) |
| Biggest away win | Central Coast Mariners 0–2 Macarthur FC (Elimination-finals, 12 June 2021) |
| Highest scoring | Melbourne City 3–1 Sydney FC (Grand Final, 27 June 2021) |
| Highest attendance | 14,017 Melbourne City 3–1 Sydney FC (Grand Final, 27 June 2021) |
| Lowest attendance | 2,283 Melbourne City 2–0 Macarthur FC (Semi-finals, 20 June 2021) |
| Total attendance | 43,147 |
| Average attendance | 8,629 |
← 2020 2022 → | |
The series dates were extended due to the COVID-19 restrictions in Victoria.[1]
Qualification
editMelbourne City and Sydney FC finished in the top two spots to automatically qualify for the semi-finals. Central Coast Mariners qualified for the finals series for the first time since 2014 and Macarthur FC were confirmed their finals qualification in their inaugural season.[2] Brisbane Roar sealed their finals spot after defeating Perth Glory 2–1 to rule them out of the finals series, leaving one spot remaining.[3] Adelaide United became the last to finish in the top six and qualify for the finals series after a 2–2 draw with the Western Sydney Wanderers.[4]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne City (C) | 26 | 15 | 4 | 7 | 57 | 32 | +25 | 49 | Qualification for 2022 AFC Champions League group stage and finals series[a] |
| 2 | Sydney FC | 26 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 39 | 23 | +16 | 47 | Qualification for 2022 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs and finals series[a] |
| 3 | Central Coast Mariners | 26 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 35 | 31 | +4 | 42 | Qualification for finals series[a] |
| 4 | Brisbane Roar | 26 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 36 | 28 | +8 | 40 | |
| 5 | Adelaide United | 26 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 39 | 41 | −2 | 39 | |
| 6 | Macarthur FC | 26 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 33 | 36 | −3 | 39 | |
| 7 | Wellington Phoenix[b] | 26 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 44 | 34 | +10 | 38 | |
| 8 | Western Sydney Wanderers | 26 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 45 | 43 | +2 | 35 | |
| 9 | Perth Glory | 26 | 9 | 7 | 10 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 34 | Qualification for 2021 FFA Cup play-offs[c] |
| 10 | Western United | 26 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 30 | 47 | −17 | 28 | |
| 11 | Newcastle Jets | 26 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 24 | 38 | −14 | 21 | |
| 12 | Melbourne Victory | 26 | 5 | 4 | 17 | 31 | 60 | −29 | 19 | Qualification for 2022 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs and 2021 FFA Cup play-offs[d] |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Least red cards; 5) Least yellow cards; 6) Toss of a coin in an event of a tie of two clubs.
(C) Champions
Notes:
- ^ a b c The top two teams entered the finals series at the semi-finals, while the teams ranked third to sixth entered the finals series at the elimination-finals.
- ^ Wellington Phoenix cannot qualify for Asian Football Confederation competitions as they are based in New Zealand, which is under the Oceania Football Confederation.
- ^ The top 8 teams qualified for the round of 32, while the bottom four teams participated in a playoff round.[5]
- ^ Qualified as the 2021 FFA Cup winners.
Venues
edit| Melbourne | Sydney | |
|---|---|---|
| AAMI Park | Netstrata Jubilee Stadium | |
| Capacity: 30,050 | Capacity: 20,500 | |
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| |
| Gosford | Brisbane | |
| Industree Group Stadium | Dolphin Stadium | |
| Capacity: 20,059 | Capacity: 10,000 | |
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Bracket
editThe system used for the 2021 A-League finals series is the modified top-six play-offs by the A-Leagues. The top two teams enter the two-legged semi-finals receiving the bye for the elimination-finals in which the teams from third placed to sixth place enter the elimination-finals with "third against sixth" and "fourth against fifth". Losers for the elimination-finals are eliminated, and winners qualify for the semi-finals.
First placed team in the semi-finals plays the lowest ranked elimination-final winning team and second placed team in the semi-finals plays the highest ranked elimination-final winner. Home-state advantage goes to the team with the higher ladder position.
| Elimination-finals | Semi-finals | Grand Final | ||||||||
| 20 June – Sydney | ||||||||||
| Melbourne City | 2 | |||||||||
| 12 June – Gosford | ||||||||||
| Macarthur FC | 0 | |||||||||
| Central Coast Mariners | 0 | |||||||||
| 27 June – Melbourne | ||||||||||
| Macarthur FC | 2 | |||||||||
| Melbourne City | 3 | |||||||||
| Sydney FC | 1 | |||||||||
| 19 June – Sydney | ||||||||||
| Sydney FC | 2 | |||||||||
| 13 June – Brisbane | ||||||||||
| Adelaide United | 1 | |||||||||
| Brisbane Roar | 1 | |||||||||
| Adelaide United | 2 | |||||||||
Matches
editElimination-finals
editThird-placed Central Coast Mariners qualified for the finals series for the first time since 2014 to set up a home elimination-final against inaugural sixth-placed Macarthur FC. No goals were scored in the full 90 minutes, as the match was sent to extra time and ten-man Macarthur scoring two goals by Charles M'Mombwa and Michael Ruhs to win the match 2–0 and send them through to the semi-final against Melbourne City.[6]
Fourth-placed Brisbane Roar; an undefeated side in hosting finals at home went up against fifth-placed Adelaide United who returned to the finals series after missing out in the previous season. Tomi Juric scored two quick-fire goals in the first half and despite a goal back by Alex Parsons for Brisbane, Adelaide United won 2–1 to qualify for the semi-final against Sydney FC.[7]
| Brisbane Roar | 1–2 | Adelaide United |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
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Semi-finals
editSydney FC and Adelaide United met in the semi-finals at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium. Sydney held the advantage with two goals up at half time through Adam Le Fondre and Bobô. Adelaide in the second half scored one in the second half, but the match resulted in Sydney FC qualifying for the Grand Final for the third consecutive time.[8]
| Sydney FC | 2–1 | Adelaide United |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Initially set to be played at AAMI Park, this semi-final between Melbourne City and Macarthur FC was relocated at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in response to COVID-19 restrictions in Melbourne.[9] Melbourne City successfully booked their spot in the Grand Final, after winning 2–0 against Macarthur thanks to quick-fire goals by Stefan Colakovski and Marco Tilio to qualify for their first home Grand Final.[10]
| Melbourne City | 2–0 | Macarthur FC |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Grand Final
editThe 2021 Grand Final was the first rematch of two teams from the previous edition, of Melbourne City and Sydney FC. City won the host of this grand final; this being their first home Grand Final, played at AAMI Park. The capacity was limited to 50% due to COVID-19 restrictions in Melbourne, as all match tickets were sold out for a crowd of almost 15,000.[11] Melbourne City were looking for their first Grand Final success, while Sydney FC were on the verge of three consecutive A-League championships. Sydney opened the scoring through Kosta Barbarouses, until City immediately responded with an equalising goal by Nathaniel Atkinson. City were awarded a penalty which was converted by captain Scott Jamieson towards the end of the first half. Scott Galloway capitalised the match with a third goal to win the match 3–1 for City, winning their first A-League championship.[12]
References
edit- ^ "A-LEAGUE 2021 FINALS SERIES DATES REVEALED". A-Leagues. June 2021.
- ^ Comito, Matthew (2 June 2021). "Sixth spot still up for grabs as five teams confirmed for Finals Series". A-Leagues.
- ^ Comito, Matthew (2 June 2021). "Roar seal Finals Series berth, ending Glory's hopes of top-six finish". A-Leagues.
- ^ Green, Samuel (3 June 2021). "Goodwin strike clinches sixth spot as Adelaide draw with ten-man Wanderers". A-Leagues.
- ^ "FFA Cup to introduce Hyundai A-League play-off process from 2020". Football Federation Australia. 20 December 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2021.
- ^ Comito, Matthew (12 June 2021). "Ten-man Macarthur stun Mariners in extra time to progress to Semi Finals". A-Leagues.
- ^ Smithies, Tom (13 June 2021). "Juric at the double as Adelaide shock Brisbane". A-Leagues.
- ^ Comito, Matthew (19 June 2021). "Sky Blues hold off relentless Reds to set sights on historic three-peat". A-Leagues.
- ^ "A-League 2021 Semi Final between Melbourne City FC and Macarthur FC switched to Netstrata Jubilee Stadium". A-Leagues. June 2021.
- ^ Smithies, Tom (20 June 2021). "Melbourne City power past Macarthur into the grand final". A-Leagues.
- ^ "All tickets sold for A-League 2021 Grand Final". A-Leagues. June 2021.
- ^ Comito, Matthew (27 June 2021). "Champions at last: City dominate ten-man Sky Blues in 3-1 Grand Final triumph". A-Leagues.