1989–90 Sydney Croatia FC season

Sydney Croatia
1989-1990 season
ChairmanFranjo Bušić
ManagerRon Corry (Rd 1-9), Graham Arnold (Rd 10-11), Tony Vržina (Rd 12-26)
StadiumSydney Croatian Sports Centre
National Soccer League7th
1989-90 NSL CupSecond Round
Top goalscorerDavid Seal (15)
Highest home attendance5,452 vs. Marconi Fairfield
(29 December 1989)
National Soccer League
Lowest home attendance710 vs. Wollongong City
(18 April 1990)
National Soccer League
Average home league attendance3,938
Biggest win4-0
vs. Wollongong City
(18 April 1990)
National Soccer League
Biggest defeat0–4
vs. South Melbourne
(5 November 1989)
National Soccer League

The 1989-90 season saw Sydney Croatia embark on its seventh campaign in the NSL. Ultimately, they finished 7th out of 14 teams.

The team commenced the season with former player Ron Corry at the helm, but his tenure was short-lived, as he was let go after Round 9 due to disappointing results. In response, Graham Arnold stepped into a player-coach role for Rounds 10-11, before Tony Vržina took the reins for the remainder of the season.[1]

Meanwhile, Sydney Croatia's young striker, 18-year-old David Seal, made a significant impact, finishing as the league's top goal scorer in the 1989-1990 NSL season with 15 goals.[2]

At the end of the season, on June 17th 1990, Sydney United hosted the touring Hajduk Split, a team that featured the likes of Slaven Bilic and Mladen Pralija. In front of over 10,000 spectators, Hajduk Split ran out 2–0 winners. [3]

Players

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— FW  AUS Graham Arnold (Captain)
— DF  AUS Mark Babic
— FW  AUS David Batten
— GK  AUS Tony Franken
— MF  AUS Andrew French
— MF  AUS Steve Gojević
— DF  AUS Mike Grbevski
— DF  AUS Alan Hunter
— DF  AUS Mark Jones
— DF  CRO Željko Jurin
— GK  AUS Zeljko Kalac
— GK  AUS John Krajnović
No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF  CRO Velimir Kuprešak
— FW  PNG Manis Lamond
— MF  CRO Ivan Petković
— MF  AUS Tony Popovic
— MF  AUS Pedro Ricoy
— DF  CRO Ante Rumora
— GK  AUS John Russell
— MF  AUS Wally Savor
— FW  AUS David Seal
— MF  AUS Ned Zelic
— DF  AUS Ante Žižić (Youth)



Transfers in

No.
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 Moving from
 Type
 Transfer
window 		Ends
 Transfer
fee 		Source
DF Mike Grbevski 23 St George-Budapest Transfer Pre-season $25,000 [4][5]
MF Pedro Ricoy 22 APIA Leichhardt Transfer Pre-season [6][7]
FW Steve Gojević 24 Heidelberg United Transfer Pre-season $12,000 [8]
DF Velimir Kuprešak 26 St Albans Dinamo Transfer Pre-season $12,000 [9]
GK John Russell 18 West Wallsend Transfer Pre-season [10][11]

Transfers out

No.
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 Moving to
 Type
 Transfer
window 		Transfer
fee 		Source
FW Robbie Slater 24 Anderlecht Transfer Pre-season [12][13]
DF Graham Jennings 29 APIA Leichhardt Transfer Pre-season [14][15]
DF Shane Clinch 25 APIA Leichhardt Transfer Pre-season [16][17]
MF Craig Foster 20 Sunshine George Cross End of Contract Pre-season [18]
FW Tony Krslovic 20 St George-Budapest End of Contract Pre-season Free [19]
MF Blago Miličević 18 St George-Budapest End of Contract Pre-season Free [20][21]
MF David Rezo 27 Free Agency End of Contract Pre-season Free [22]
DF Burim Zajmi 29 Canterbury Marrickville End of Contract Pre-season Free [23][24]

Mid-Season Transfers

No.
 Pos.
 Nat.
 Name
 Age
 Moving from
 Type
 Transfer
window 		Ends
 Transfer
fee 		Source
FW David Batten 25 Wollongong City Transfer Mid-season Undisclosed [25][26]
DF Željko Jurin 29 Brunswick Juventus Transfer Mid-season Undisclosed [27][28]

Overview

Competition First match Last match Starting round Final position Record
Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
National Soccer League 5 November 1989 22 April 1990 Matchday 1 7th 26 10 6 10 40 39 +1 038.46
NSL Cup 14 February 1990 14 March 1990 First Round Second Round 2 1 0 1 4 3 +1 050.00
Total 28 11 6 11 44 42 +2 039.29

Last updated: complete
Source: Competitions

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
5 Sydney Olympic (C) 26 12 7 7 40 25 +15 31 Qualification for the Finals series
6 APIA Leichhardt 26 11 9 6 36 25 +11 31
7 Sydney Croatia 26 10 6 10 40 39 +1 26
8 Parramatta Eagles 26 10 6 10 31 31 0 26
9 Preston Makedonia 26 9 5 12 33 35 −2 23
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Matches

5 November 1989 1 South Melbourne 4-0 Sydney Croatia Melbourne
  • Taliadoros 19'
  • Trimboli 47'
  • Tsolakis 59'
  • Wade 86'
 Report Stadium: Middle Park
Attendance: 4,800
Referee: John Lorenc
11 November 1989 2 Sydney Croatia 1-2 St George-Budapest Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,692
Referee: Gary Power
18 November 1989 3 Sydney Croatia 3-1 Sunshine George Cross Sydney
 Report
  • Latif 18'
 Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 2,652
Referee: Peter Spiers
25 November 1989 4 Adelaide City 3–1 Sydney Croatia Adelaide
 Report
  • Ricoy 65'
 Stadium: Hindmarsh Stadium
Attendance: 3,450
Referee: Jim Rossis
2 December 1989 5 Sydney Croatia 0-0 APIA Leichhardt Sydney
Report Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,104
Referee: Jim Reeves
10 December 1989 6 Preston Makedonia 2-1 Sydney Croatia Melbourne
  • Woodall 39', 87'
 Report
Stadium: BT Connor Reserve
Attendance: 3,486
Referee: Jim Rossis
16 December 1989 7 Sydney Croatia 1–2 Sydney Olympic Sydney
 Report
  • Plataniotis 44'
  • Saad 88'
 Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 5,172
Referee: Richard Lorenc
23 December 1989 8 Blacktown City Demons 1-2 Sydney Croatia Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Gabbie Stadium
Attendance: 3,124
Referee: Peter Spiers
29 December 1989 9 Sydney Croatia 1-3 Marconi Fairfield Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 5,452
Referee: Dennis Voutsinas
7 January 1990 10 Melbourne Croatia 0-3 Sydney Croatia Melbourne
Report
Stadium: Somers Street Stadium
Attendance: 8,000
Referee: Jim Reeves
14 January 1990 11 Sydney Croatia 0-2 West Adelaide Hellas Sydney
Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,862
Referee: Bill Monteverde
21 January 1990 12 Wollongong City 1-3 Sydney Croatia Wollongong
  • Brodnik 80'
 Report
Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,344
Referee: John McConnell
26 January 1990 13 Sydney Croatia 1-1 Melita Eagles Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 4,835
Referee: Gary Power
28 January 1990 14 Sydney Croatia 3-1 South Melbourne Sydney
 Report
  • Tsolakis 76'
 Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,486
Referee: Rob Davies
21 February 1990 15 St George-Budapest 1-2 Sydney Croatia Sydney
 Report
Stadium: St George Stadium
Attendance: 1,121
Referee: Gary Power
9 February 1990 16 Sunshine George Cross 1-2 Sydney Croatia Melbourne
 Report
Stadium: Skinner Reserve
Attendance: 1,500
Referee: John Santa Isabel
18 February 1990 17 Sydney Croatia 1-1 Adelaide City Sydney
  • Petkovic 2'
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 5,114
Referee: John Fraser
25 February 1990 18 APIA Leichhardt 1-1 Sydney Croatia Wollongong
  • Murray 79'
 Report
Stadium: Lambert Park
Attendance: 5,156
Referee: John Santa Isabel
4 March 1990 19 Sydney Croatia 1-1 Preston Makedonia Sydney
 Report
  • Woodall 15'
 Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 4,986
Referee: John McConnell
11 March 1990 20 Sydney Olympic 3-2 Sydney Croatia Sydney
  • Perinovic 11'
  • Plataniotis 58'
  • Hristodoulou 61'
 Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Stadium: St George Stadium
Attendance: 5,343
Referee: John Santa Isabel
March 18 1990 21 Sydney Croatia 2-0 Blacktown City Demons Sydney
 Report Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 2,870
Referee: Manny Loupis
25 March 1990 22 Marconi Fairfield 2-0 Sydney Croatia Sydney
 Report Stadium: Marconi Stadium
Attendance: 6,752
Referee: Chris Bambridge
1 April 1990 23 Sydney Croatia 3-3 Melbourne Croatia Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 4,859
Referee: Jim Rossis
6 April 1990 24 West Adelaide Hellas 0-1 Sydney Croatia Adelaide
Report
Stadium: Hindmarsh Stadium
Attendance: 3,600
Referee: Jim McConnell
28 April 1990 25 Sydney Croatia 4-0 Wollongong City Sydney
  • Seal 25', 60', 77'
  • Ricoy 80'
 Report Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 710
Referee: Dennis Voutsinas
22 April 1990 26 Sydney Croatia 1-3 Melita Eagles Sydney
 Report
Stadium: Sydney Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 5,196
Referee: John Fraser

NSL Cup

14 February 1990 First round St George-Budapest 0-3 Sydney Croatia Sydney
Report
Stadium: St George Stadium
Attendance: 1,523
Referee: Richard Lorenc
14 March 1990 Second round Sydney Olympic 3-1 Sydney Croatia Sydney
 Report
  • Kupresak 38'
 Stadium: St George Stadium
Attendance: 2,475
Referee: John McConnell

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Players with no appearances not included in the list.[29][30]

No. Pos. Nat. Name National Soccer League NSL Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
— FW Graham Arnold 25 5 0 0 25 5
— DF Mark Babic 15 0 2 0 17 0
— FW David Batten 3 0 2 1 5 1
— GK Tony Franken 14 0 2 0 16 0
— MF Andrew French 5 0 0 0 5 0
— DF Mike Grbevski 25 2 2 1 27 3
— MF Steve Gojević 18 0 2 0 20 0
— DF Alan Hunter 22 2 2 0 24 2
— DF Mark Jones 26 4 1 0 27 4
— DF Željko Jurin 8 1 1 0 9 1
— GK Zeljko Kalac 11 0 1 0 12 0
— GK John Krajnović 1 0 0 0 1 0
— DF Velimir Kuprešak 18 0 2 1 20 1
— FW Manis Lamond 23 3 2 0 25 3
— MF Eddie Pervan 1 0 0 0 1 0
— MF Ivan Petković 12 1 1 0 13 1
— MF Tony Popovic 13 0 1 0 14 0
— MF Pedro Ricoy 22 3 2 1 23 4
— DF Ante Rumora 18 0 2 0 20 0
— MF Wally Savor 17 0 1 0 18 0
— FW David Seal 26 15 2 0 28 15
— MF Ned Zelic 2 0 0 0 2 0
— DF Ante Žižić 1 0 0 0 1 0

References

  1. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. pp. 166–168. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  2. ^ Stock, Greg. "1989/90 National Soccer League Top Goalscorers". ozfootball. Retrieved 19 March 2025.
  3. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). pp. 168–170.
  4. ^ Gauter, Lou. "A transition season for Sydney Croatia". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  5. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  6. ^ Gauter, Lou. "A transition season for Sydney Croatia". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  7. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  8. ^ Soccer Weekly, Australian. "Chit Chat...Chit Chat...Chit Chat...". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 399. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  9. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  10. ^ Gauter, Lou. "A transition season for Sydney Croatia". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  11. ^ Soccer Weekly, Australian. "Chit Chat...Chit Chat...Chit Chat...". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 397. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  12. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  13. ^ Gautier, Lou. "A transition season for Sydney Croatia". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  14. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  15. ^ Simmons, Ted. "Huge task for Schaefer's APIA". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  16. ^ Nimac, Ivan; Dusevic, Sime; Lozina, Leonard; Nimac, Tony (2008). More Than The Game: 50 Years of Sydney United (First Edition 2008 ed.). Sydney, NSW, Australia: Sydney United. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-646-50046-1.
  17. ^ Simmons, Ted. "Huge task for Schaefer's Apia". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  18. ^ Blake, Greg. "Another struggle for George Cross". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  19. ^ Economos, John. "Can Saints do it again?". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  20. ^ Footballers, Aussie. "Blago Milicevic". Australia's Premier Football Player Archive. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  21. ^ Economos, John. "Can Saints do it again?". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 403. Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  22. ^ Footballers, Aussie. "David Rezo". Australian Premier Football Player Archive. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  23. ^ Footballers, Aussie. "Burim Zajmi". Australian Premier Football Player Archive. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  24. ^ Dowling, Andrew (March 1994). "Canterbury Marrickville - The Berries". Super Soccer. No. 1. Ideas Media Services.
  25. ^ Soccer, Aussie (1990). Aussie Soccer (8 ed.). Melbourne, Australia: Derwent Lane Pty Ltd. p. 39.
  26. ^ Footballers, Aussie. "David Batten". Australia's Premier Football Player Archive. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  27. ^ Soccer Weekly, Australian. "Chit Chat... Chit Chat... Chit Chat...". Australian Soccer Weekly. No. 420). Foreign Language Publications Pty. Ltd.
  28. ^ Footballers, Aussie. "Zeljko Jurin". Australia's Premier Football Player Archive. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  29. ^ "The 1989/90 Season". ozfootball.net.
  30. ^ "1989/90 National League Cup Results". ozfootball.net. Retrieved 20 March 2025.
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