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          Sydney win bragging rights over 10-man Macarthur as Dwight Yorke loses for first time

          • Joey Lynch, Australia Correspondent
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              Joey Lynch is a Melbourne-based sports journalist, AYA Cancer advocate, cynical centre-half and Zack Ryder mark. Primarily working on football, he has covered the Socceroos, Matildas, A-League, W-League, Y-League, the Australian grassroots and beyond.
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          Oct 29, 2022, 11:45 AM

          SYDNEY, Australia -- Dwight Yorke suffered his first competitive defeat in management as Sydney FC soothed some of their early-season nerves with a 3-2 win in A-League Men (ALM) over local rivals Macarthur FC at Campbelltown Stadium.

          Both sides exchanging haymakers in the opening exchanges, Patrick Wood followed up a Robert Mak penalty miss and fired home to give Sydney the lead in the 14th minute only for the Bulls to peg one back through Matt Millar, who had given away the spot kick two minutes earlier.

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          But with Jonathan Aspropotamitis seeing red in the 37th minute, the visitors were able to grab the ascendency and took the lead through Mak moments before half-time.

          Adrian Segecic then gave his side a 3-1 buffer in the 83rd minute, before Anthony Carter's 87th-minute consolation effort hit the bar.

          JUMP TO: Player ratings | Best/worst performers | Highlights and notable moments | Postmatch quotes | Key stats | Upcoming fixtures

          Rapid Reaction

          1. Mak and Lolley make waves

          Sydney entered Matchday Four as the competition's most free-scoring team and the Bulls as its second-most defensively resolute outfit, meaning something had to give. And while the red card handed out to Aspropotamitis inevitably means that long-term takeaways may be suspect, for one night at least, it was the former that claimed the victory.

          In what is becoming a theme, it was the play of wingers Mak and Joe Lolley that represented Sydney's alpha and omega moving forward, with the Slovakian grabbing his third goal in four games -- trailing only Melbourne City and Socceroo striker Jamie Maclaren in the Golden Boot race. The duo's positivity in possession and eye for goal look increasingly like the wagon their side rides to any success.

          Having emphasised the importance the two would play in his new-look approach this season, that the pair have adjusted to life in Australia with ease will likely be a comfort to coach Steve Corica, especially given that he's potentially set to have a few headaches surrounding who partners them in the weeks ahead. With Adam Le Fondre injured, Wood has received a rare run of starts at the tip of the Sydney spear and has asked the question if it is he, and not the English veteran, that is a better fit in the 4-3-3.

          Defeated by his teammate in Sydney's championship-winning 2005 side, Yorke, likewise, will face a conundrum in the coming days. Forced to deal with the disappointment of defeat for the first time in his coaching career (a loss to Barcelona at the helm of an A-League All-Stars side in an exhibition contest notwithstanding), how the 50-year-old former Man United striker learns from the defeat, adjusts, and picks his side off the canvas will be key.

          2. VAR in the spotlight again

          It seems that no matter what it does, the ALM just can't escape some form of refereeing controversy. For the third time in as many ALM games that day, VAR intervened to upgrade a sanction in Saturday evening's contest; Aspropotamitis dismissed after being adjudged to have denied Wood a clear goal-scoring opportunity as he broke through on goal after the Macarthur defender messed up an attempted clearance.

          Given how innocuous the initial contact was and just how far from goal the Sydney attacker was at the time of the incident, it didn't go down well with pretty much anyone that isn't a Sky Blue fan.

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          Earlier in the half, Sydney had again been on the good side of a contentious call when Mak played a one-two with Anthony Caceres and after colliding with Millar in the penalty area, was awarded a penalty that was cleared by VAR despite its suspect nature. Wood's opening goal resulted.

          Short of the A-Leagues opting to release the audio of conversation that take place between officials during these deliberations, how they were reached will remain opaque, which is unfortunate. Communication and education on why these decisions are reached is the only thing preventing further alienation of fans.

          3. Arzani's World Cup ramifications

          With just one round of the ALM remaining until the announcement of Graham Arnold's Socceroos' squad for the World Cup on Nov. 8, the stakes associated with Saturday night's contest -- as well as every other game across the country -- involving players on the fringes of the squad were enormous.

          For the Bulls, this largely meant Daniel Arzani. Given Jason Cummings' star turn in the Mariners' come-from-behind win over Western United earlier in the day, as well as Garang Kuol's impressive cameo off the bench, the pressure was on for the winger to put in a signature performance in response.

          But as was the case the week prior against Western United, the 23-year-old wasn't able to grab the game by the scruff of the neck. Yet again, his performance was hardly catastrophic -- attracting multiple defenders when on the ball, delivering some sharp-looking set pieces, and again demonstrating a willingness to take his man on -- but it was without a signature moment to demand the attention of the Socceroos' coach.

          Player ratings

          Macarthur: Kurto 8, Vujica 5, Aspropotamitis 4, Uskok 6, Millar 7, Skotadis 5, Arzani 6, De Silva 6, Baccus 6, Noone 6, Rose 6

          Sydney FC: Redmayne 6, Caballo 7, Gurd 6, Donachie 6, Grant 6, Caceres 7, Brattan 6, Yazbek 5, Mak 8, Wood 7, Lolley 7

          Best and worst performers

          BEST: Robert Mak

          The Slovakia international has quickly established himself as the Harboursiders' most important attacking player in his four games in Australia. And, after another strong performance against the Bulls, he and fellow winger Lolley are perhaps shaping up as a Johnny Warren Medal contender.

          WORST: Jonathan Aspropotamitis

          This designation obviously changes if his red card is overturned, like Adelaide United's Hiroshi Ibusuki's was last week, but the defender's dismissal undoubtedly served to change the game. And if his initial attempt to control the ball doesn't ricochet away and open the door for Wood, it's redundant anyway.

          Highlights and notable moments

          Wood was quickest to react to Filip Kurto's penalty save and gave Sydney the lead.

          Aspropotamitis controversially saw red.

          Mak then made it 2-1 to Sydney.

          After the match: What the managers, players said

          Sydney FC legend Alex Brosque's view of Aspropotamitis red card on Network Ten: "There's something wrong in the VAR at the moment. You can understand the referee getting it wrong but here, Patrick Wood has still got 30 minutes to go, he still doesn't have the ball under control -- there's a lot to happen from there. It's almost like a coming together of bodies."

          Sydney FC's Luke Bratten to Network Ten: "Very important [win]. When they had 11 men we still dominated, we had a lot of the ball and started really well. It was that little danger period where as soon as we score, we switch off. So we have to look at ourselves and change that.

          Macarthur's Tomislav Uskok to Network Ten: "I don't know if I should say it or not. Probably better not to say anything but I think it's clear, in my opinion anyway, it's clear for everyone to see what the penalty decision was and what the red card was. I can't say if [the red card] ruined the game or not. It is what it is. In my opinion, it's a hard call but referees get paid to do their job."

          Key Stats

          - With the win, Sydney ensured that five of the last six ALM games between themselves and Macarthur have been won by the visiting team. Sydney are now on a three-game winning run in Campbelltown.

          - The 3-2 loss is Macarthur's first defeat of the season across all competitions and the first competitive defeat of Yorke's managerial career, after starting with an eight-game unbeaten run.

          - It was Sydney's first win in New South Wales in five games, their previous four games resulting in three losses and one draw.

          Up next

          Macarthur FC: Just two games of the ALM campaign remain before it pauses for the World Cup break. The Bulls will hit the road to take on Wellington Phoenix next Sunday, before then heading to Gosford to take on the Mariners.

          Sydney FC: Sydney's last two games before the World Cup break sees them travel to Brisbane to take on the Roar next Sunday, before then returning home for a Sydney Derby against Western Sydney Wanderers.