AUCKLAND – Waitakere United’s Head coach Chris Milicich is calling on his side’s professionalism and big game mentality to turn around a 3-1 deficit in the return leg of the Oceania Champions League final against Kossa FC at Trusts Stadium on Sunday.
Over the summer the West Auckland side won everything on offer domestically – an NZFC grand final win and minor premiership to go along with a Youth League title for the club’s academy – and Milicich is relying on the professional attitude of his semi-pro and amateur players to retain the Oceania trophy they won last year.
“Yes, we’ve been successful this season but the irony is it’s because when the big games come round we’ve been able to put everything else aside and do the job in front of us,” Milicich said.
“Now it comes down to one huge game.”
“It’s about getting out there and doing our job. We could have made excuses about the heat and conditions in the Solomons but we just didn’t play well enough and have got to go out on Sunday and play well.”
With the two-legged final delicately poised after Kossa’s stunning victory in Honiara and Waitakere fully aware that a 2-0 win would get them through on away goals, Milicich is out to grab the early initiative in Sunday’s decider.
“We’ll get onto the front foot as quick as we can, but will be dictated to slightly by the way they set up.”
“If you chase something really hard from the outset you can open yourself up to the counterattack but we’ll definitely be out to control the game early.”
Waitakere were met by hostile conditions in the Solomon Islands a fortnight ago – the soaring mid-afternoon temperatures matched by a vocal 20,000 strong home crowd – and Waitakere hope to turn the tables with a Trusts Stadium crowd boosted by the offer of free entry for members of football clubs or parents with children.
“A lot of kiwi fans don’t realise that when our teams play in the islands it’s a true away game – 20,000 people dead silent when your team does something but a roar of absolute noise if it’s their team,” Milicich said.
“Kossa now have to come and confront us at our place, and we want as many people there as we can, making plenty of noise. Kiwi crowds can be a little too nice at times but when you’re up there you certainly know you’re not the one they want to win.”
Should Waitakere retain their O-League title and claim Oceania’s spot alongside other continental champions at the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, New Zealand’s wider footballing community also stands to benefit with the US$500,000 prize spread across the eight NZFC clubs and New Zealand Football.
O-League final return leg
Waitakere United v Kossa FC
Sunday 11 May
Kick off: 2pm
Douglas Field, Trusts Stadium
Henderson
Kossa FC lead 3-1 from the first leg
Live coverage of the O-League final return leg is available on Sky Sport and Radio Sport, with text updates available from www.oceaniafootball.com
Story – NZF Media, for more information visit www.nzsoccer.com