Australia has its first ever Major League Soccer (MLS) Cup Champion, after Socceroo Brad Smith helped secure the Play-Off trophy with his on-loan outfit Seattle Sounders.
The Sounders, who finished second in the Western Conference, won the decider 3-1 over Canadian and Eastern Conference outfit Toronto FC.
Despite the fact a number of notable Australians have plied their trade in the MLS, none had previously reached the decider, so Smith became the first Australian to have reached the final – and becomes the first to have won the trophy.
Smith featured for 61 minutes in front of a packed CenturyLink Field, before being replaced for winger Victor Rodriguez, who scored Seattle’s second goal.
Unfortunately for the 25-year-old, Smith didn’t have the luxury of joining the post-match celebrations, with the Socceroos’ World Cup qualifier on Friday morning against Jordan beckoning.
While there was no silverware was at stake, try telling Jenna McCormick her debut for the Matildas in a friendly against Chile was not as equally rewarding.
McCormick admitted she was overwhelmed with emotion directly after her national team debut and had to hold back tears after representing the Green and Gold in the Matildas’ 2-1 win over La Roja on Saturday afternoon at a packed Parramatta Stadium.
A photo of McCormick during the pre-match national anthems, eyes closed and breathing in her surroundings, captured the moment perfectly.
“It was pretty incredible. I’m still wanting to be out there actually, I’m having to take in deep breaths and try to enjoy the moment,” McCormick said after the game.
“I was really emotional, I fought really hard to keep a lid on it and not shed a tear. I’m going to go over to my parents and bawl my eyes out.”
During A-League action on the weekend, a number of players also enjoyed notable debuts. For Perth Glory, Tony Popovic – for the second time in 2019 – handed his son a senior debut.
Tony gave his 16-year-old son Gabriel his debut, having handed Kristian his back in April. Kristian had debuted at age 17, while he also scored his first goal for the Glory in October against Western United.
Experienced defender James Meredith also made his debut for the Glory, receiving his first taste of A-League action in a 1-1 draw with Newcastle Jets.
Meredith, who had enjoyed a long and successful career in England’s lower tiers, had never previously played in Australia’s top flight.
Around the grounds, 24-year-old New Zealand midfielder Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi debuted for Wellington Phoenix, while Jake Trew made his first appearance for Western Sydney Wanderers.
Hudson-Wihongi had previously represented the All Whites and New Zealand’s U-20 and U-23 teams but had only previously represented NZ-based club sides outside of the A-League, including Auckland City, Wanderers SC and Canterbury United.
To round out this week’s milestones, Western United’s Kwabena Appiah–Kubi scored against his former club Western Sydney Wanderers on his starting debut for the expansion side in a 2-1 win.
Upcoming Milestones
- Adelaide United’s Georgia Campagnale (49 W-League appearances) is set to make her 50thW-League appearance if she starts in Round 1 away to Western Sydney Wanderers
- Michael Zullo, who is yet to feature for Sydney FC due to injury, is set to make his 200 domestic club appearance (165 A-League appearances and 34 appearances at Utrecht in the Netherlands) if he features in the Sky Blues’ Round 6 match against Melbourne Victory.
