Croatia Sydney - Sydney United
Sydney Croatia sports club emerged in 1957 and began competing as a soccer team one year later. Like most other sports clubs which emerged at that time, Croatia were formed primarily as social and community club pertaining to one ethnic group. Such clubs catered for the waves of migrants who had chosen to make Australia their new home, after travelling from their beloved homelands in Europe.
But the Croatia soccer team soon became an institute in itself. The club initially joined the NSW Soccer Football Association (NSWSFA). However after only one year in the NSWSFA - where they did not lose a match - Croatia transferred to the newly formed "rebel" NSW Soccer Federation (NSWSF). The death of the NSWSFA soon eventuated because the major clubs of the time - essentially the large mono-ethnic clubs - changed their loyalties to the NSWSF. Intolerant of non-British migrants, the Anglo-Australian based NSWSFA became defunct. And today, with millions of dollars of assets, the NSWSF remains the richest soccer federation in Australia.
After competing in the NSWSF third division in 1959, Croatia eventually won promotion to the first division in 1963. They won their first state league championship in 1977, and repeated this effort with NSW first division titles in 1978, 1979, 1981 and 1982.
The next step was to join Australia's national league. In the early 1980s Sydney Croatia were often drawing home attendances of 10,000 in the NSW state league. Yet the national league clubs of the time could only manage average crowds of 3,000. The national league was crying out for such a heavily-supported club to enter the national competition. But the national league executive had deemed it not appropriate for clubs to enter the league under nationalistic titles. Croatia were not keen to change their name. However after a massive national league shake-up in 1984, Sydney Croatia were accepted into the national league, and under that name.
Large home crowds in these early national league days ensured that Croatia soon became the most popular club in Sydney. Finals series' were reached in 1985 and 1986. And in 1987 the club reached the final of the national knock-out cup competition, then called the 'Beach Fashions Cup'. Against South Melbourne, Robbie Slater scored the winner in the first leg in Sydney.
Graham Arnold was the sole scorer in the second leg which led to a cup final 2-0 aggregate scoreline to Croatia.
In 1988 Sydney Croatia made their first and only league grand final. The score stood at 1-1 after 90 minutes, and 2-2 after 30 minutes of extra time. In front of an audience of over 17,000, the 1988 championship decider then went down to penalties. In the end Marconi came out on top. This game was Farina's last match in Australia before heading off the week after to the 1988 Olympics, and from there to Europe for seven years.
Renamed to Sydney CSC in 1992, and after the sudden departure of coach Mick Hickman, the club under the eye of ex-socceroo Manfred Schaefar, finished a respectable 7th, after leading the competition for a good part of the season. The 1992/93 Season saw the coming of age of Zeljko Kalac and Tony
Popovic and the unearthing of Ante Milicic and Ante Moric. Captain Tony Krslovc was the club top goal scorer.
Renamed to Sydney United in 1993, the 1993/1994 season saw the club again set the pace early on, and finish 3rd. It was a watershed season for Kalac, who kept 12 clean sheets in 26 games. Tony Krslovic was once again the club's top goal scorer.
The 1994/1995 season saw the appointment of Branko Cullina as coach. This corresponded the most entertaining period of soccer at the club. Especially pleasing was the fact that the squad contained in excess of 75% of locally produced players. The club finished 3rd, and Ante Milicic was the club top goal scorer.
The 1995/1996 season was a disappointment in comparison to the previous seasons with the club finishing 6th. Ante Milicic was again top goal scorer.
The 1996/1997 season was one that will be remembered for a long time. The team won the Minor Premiership in a canter, only to lose the Grand Final in front of 44,000 people at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. The season saw the unearthing of future star in Jason Cullina. David Zdrilic finished the leagues top goal scorer on 21 goals and Ante Milicic 19 goals. Kresimir Marusic won the Prestigious NSL Player of the Year award. The end season saw many departures for overseas and included; Tony Popovic, Zelko Kalac, Ante Milicic, David Zdrilic and Robert Enes.
In 1997/1998, David Mitchell took over as coach. With many departures during the off season, the team was expected to struggle. With Kalac back, after work permit problems in England, the team finished 4th after leading the competition for much of the season. The highlight of the season was Captain Paul Bilokapic's selection for the socceroos. Abbas Saad ended the season as the club leading goal scorer.
After more departures during the off season, most notably Bilokapic and Rudan to Northern Spirit, and Kalac to Holland, the club was expected to struggle in the 1998/1999 season. Instead led by the inspirational Velimir Kupresak and the unearthing of some more talent in Joel Griffiths, Jacob Burns and Mile Sterjovski, the club won the minor premiership only to go down in the Grand Final 3-2 to South Melbourne. Club top scorer for the year was Mile Sterjovski.
Controversy surrounded the club in the 1999/2000 season. David Mitchelldeparted for the newly formed Parramatta Power and took 16 players with him.
The club was decimated, and when it finished at the bottom of the ladder, it was really no surprise. The standout in an otherwise disappointing season was a 1-0 home victory, that put and end to Parramatta's final aspirations,and the performance of Tom Pondejlak.
The 2000/2001 season saw the appointment of former United player Alan Hunter as coach. While the season started brightly, it faded out, with United going on an 11 game winless streak. The highlight of the season was the guest appearance of Croatia 1998 World Cup star Alojsa Asanovic, and the performance once again of Tom Pondejlak. The club finished a respectable mid table position.
Branko Cullina returned to the club for his second stint for the 2001/2002 season. Much was expected with the return of Ante Milicic and Kresimir Marusic also to the club. The club finished a disappointing mid table position. The highlight of the season was the sale of Ante Milicic to Sydney
Olympic, for a record Australian transfer of $110,000. Despite his mid season move, Milicic still ended the season s the club's top goal scorer.
An improved United performance was expected in the 2002/2003 season.With the recruitment of there Croatian imports; Ivesa, Cacic and Pavic, and the return of Mark Rudan from China, the club was expected to be a finals contender. Unfortunately, the results did not live up to expectations, and the season saw the departure of coach Cullina, who was replaced for the rest of the season by Tony Krslovic. Under Krslovic, the club lost only 2 of the remaining 8 games and finished a respectable 7th. Brendan Santalab was top goal scorer for the season.
The 2003/2004 season saw the appointment of rookie coach Grant Lee to the helm. With the departure of the imports amongst others, the club was expected to struggle. After leading the competition early on, the club just missed the finals. The highlight of the season was the performance of Goal Keeper Liam Reddy and the Leadership performances of Captain Mark Rudan. Brendan Santalab was once again top goal scorer for the season. The 2003/2004 season was the last of the NSL, and the league was disbanded for the new A-League.
In 2004/2005, the club competed once again in the NSW Premier League after a 21 year absence. Zlatko Arambasic was appointed coach and the club finished a respectable 4th on the table. The highlight of the season was winning the Continental Tyres Cup. Top goal scorer for the season was Pablo Cardozo.
Club Honours Players Honour list "More Than The Game - 50 years of Sydney United" The 300 page book was published in 2008 to mark our 50'th anniversary. Compiled by Ivan Nimac, Sime Dusevic, Leonard Lozina and Tony Nimac, this comprehensive history of the club is compulsory reading for all football supporters. 
Old soccer, ethnics and our future By Les Murray | 2 December 2008 | As ‘new football’ was celebrating its fifth birthday last week, a manifestation of ‘old soccer’, Sydney United, was celebrating its 50th. I couldn’t help noticing the irony. I was among the guests at the celebration dinner held at the old King Tomislav Club in Sydney’s west, adjacent to the football club’s stadium which its passionate supporters built with their own hands and resources and, of course, for no personal reward. It was warming to be among such wonderful former players of Croatian heritage who were either part of the club or were produced by it. I bumped Wally Savor, Zlatko Arambasic, Ante Milicic and David Zdrilic, just some of the 14 senior Socceroos of Croatian parents the club had developed in the past 20 years. The few who were not there on the night, like Zeljko Kalac and Jason Culina, were absent for obvious reasons. Mile Jedinak’s father was at the table next to mine, reminding me that the conveyor belt of players yielded by this Croatian community club has not stopped. And then there were the other former Sydney United greats who were not of Croatian extraction. At my table was Zarko Odzakov, a towering footballer of serious box office appeal the like of whom I am still waiting to see in the A-League. In all, 58 senior Socceroos were either produced by or played at Sydney United, among them Atti Abonyi, Ron Corry, Graham Arnold, Jim Patikas, Mark Bosnich, Robbie Slater, Tim Cahill, Craig Foster, Joel Griffiths, Troy Halpin, Graham Jennings, Tony Popovic and Ned Zelic. Add on a few who went on to play for other countries, like Manis Lamond (Papua New Guinea) and Ante Seric (Croatia). All these numbers, the legacies and the memories, say an awful lot about how much we owe to the ethnic communities, and especially the Croatian community, whose role play in Australian football is thought by many to have passed and on whose grave many have been quick to dance. The fact is that the role play of the ‘ethnics’ is still alive, still vibrant and pulsates through almost every facet of ‘new football’. The A-League tribunes are full of them, the player rosters of the clubs crawl with them and our representative teams, Socceroos, Young Socceroos and Joeys, are still riddled with them. For example, there are still 32 functioning football clubs in Australia backed by the Croatian community. Clubs like HNK O’Connor Knights in Canberra, Rocklea United in Queensland, Prospect Knights FC in Tasmania and Fremantle Croatia in WA. What these clubs continue to do is maintain a lifeline to their cultural heritage through football. These days only a few hundred attend their games on weekends but they remain alive and solvent through the many more members they have, families who share a common bond through language and custom. They usher their kids to play football, drilling into them a need to wear the shirt colour of the old country and propagate, through the game, the values of their heritage. And they do this in their own image, coaching their kids according to the technical values of their own football heritage, which is more often than not a good thing. Some might think this stuff to be passé and from whence we should move on. But that’s a mistake. Move on where? On the contrary, the ethnic communities and their lingering passion for football, ‘old soccer’, are prized assets ‘new football’ cannot afford to ignore and squander. They remain as much a future of the game as they are of its past. They have real estate, memberships, junior development schemes and academies, passion and football knowledge. Their affection for football burns and continues to burn. It would be extremely bad business to ignore it. Frank Lowy, himself an ‘ethnic’, was astutely aware of this when, in 2005 at the launch of the A-League, he begged the supporters of the old NSL to patronise its ‘new football’ replacement. They did and do. All the so called ethnic clubs, and their communities, made a rich contribution to Australia’s football development. But in terms of the numbers of quality players they developed, ultimately for the honour of being clad in green and gold, the Croatian community is the undoubted champion. Forty of their number went on to play for Australia at senior level, from Vojtek to Spiranovic, from Arambasic to Zdrilic. Fifteen of the 40 came through Sydney United: Zlatko Arambasic, Mark Babic, Zeljko Babic, Paul Bilokapic, Mark Bosnich, Jason Culina, Mile Jedinek, Zeljko Kalac, Tony Krslovic, Ante Milicic, Ante Moric, Tony Popovic, Wally Savor, David Zdrilic and Ned Zelic. The Socceroos squad of Germany 2006 contained seven players of Croatian heritage: Bresciano (who has a Croatian mother), Covic, Culina, Kalac, Popovic, Skoko and Viduka. Three of those were former Sydney United players. And you can add to them Mile Sterjovski, of Macedonian stock, but who also got his break at Edensor Park. No singular migrant community, in a sport that continues to rely on the migrant communities, has made such a telling contribution to our player development. Who is Mark Viduka if not the son of first generation Croatian immigrants, whose father instructed him to choose football and to play it in the way his Croatian heritage programmed him to play it? That is why Dooks, ‘for such a big man’, has such delicate skill. It was his father, not the AIS, that made him. Sure, in some instances in the past the migrant heritage factor over-powered some young minds and the kids ended up playing for another country. So what? If for every Simunic there are five or six sons of immigrants who end up playing for Australia in a World Cup, that will do me. This reality in our football make-up, thankfully, remains strong. The migrant-backed clubs around the country, even though they have slipped from the elite, by and large still exist and are still functioning. Remarkably, in my travels I have found none who whinges and whines about being sidelined and none expects, in all reality, to be part of the A-League in some future. All, to the contrary, are just trying to find their place in the new landscape which, for the most part, is producing young footballers for the new elite. And they are doing it. The ‘wogs’ are still delivering. See Kantarovski, Patafta, Gojec, Zullo, Jesic, Tsattalios etc. Far from forgotten, demonised and humiliated (as David Hill did to them when, despicably, he forced Sydney United to change its emblem and its home venue), they should be left alone and their contribution recognised, embraced, encouraged and treasured. And let’s not lose a sight of this with memories of flares and pocket riots beaten up by the tabloids. For every one of those there will be six Vidukas banging in goals for Australia. Those with a tendency to tremble in horror at the thought of some kind of revisionism need not get nervous. ‘Wogball’ is not about to make a comeback. Yet the ‘wogs’ remain very much part of our football future, if now on a different level. Indeed it’s probable that there wouldn’t be much of a future without them. | 
