¤ 07 March 2006: Sydney FC players Jacob Timpano, Ruben Zadkovich, Mark Milligan, Wade Oostendorp, Justin Pasfield and Tolgay Ozbey are all called into a 3-day Olyroos camp in Canberra in preparation for 2008 Olympic qualifying.[A-L]
¤ 07 March 2006: The FFA’s bid to have Sydney FC and Adelaide United included in the 2006 AFC Champions League is unsuccessful, despite two Thai and two Vietnamese clubs being excluded from the competition for failing to adhere to player registration regulations.[SMH][AFC]
¤ 13 March 2006: The A-League awards night is held in Sydney, with Sydney FC’s Dwight Yorke finishing second by 11 points in Johnny Warren Medal voting, behind Perth Glory’s Bobby Despotovski.[A-L]
¤ 17 March 2006: Sydney FC announce the signing of All Whites international Jeremy Brockie (New Zealand Knights) for two seasons.[SFC]
¤ 17 March 2006: Five Sydney FC players – Jacob Timpano, Mark Milligan, Ruben Zadkovich, Justin Pasfield and Tolgay Ozbey – are selected in a 27-man squad to go into camp in preparation for the Olyroos’ upcoming four-nation tournament in Vietnam.[A-L]
¤ 18 March 2006: The Sydney FC awards for season 2005-06 are announced. Player of the year: Clint Bolton; Defender of the year: Alvin Ceccoli; Midfielder of the year: David Carney; Forward of the year: Dwight Yorke; Members’ player of the year: David Carney; Chairman’s award: Mark Rudan; Player of the finals series: Steve Corica; Goal of the year: Alvin Ceccoli; Golden boot: Sasho Petrovski.[SFC]
¤ 19 March 2006: Rumours spread that Sydney FC CEO Walter Bugno is being forced out by a ‘faction’ within the boardroom, which also seeks to remove coach Pierre Littbarski and marquee player Dwight Yorke.[TWG][SFCU]
¤ 22 March 2006: Walter Bugno responds to rumours of his imminent dumping in an open letter to fans, in which he insists there is “unanimous support” within the boardroom for him to continue.[Age][F]
¤ 23 March 2006: Defender Andrew Packer is released by Sydney FC to sign with Queensland Roar.[SFC]
¤ 31 March 2006: David Carney departs for Germany to meet with Borussia Dortmund, Borussia Moenchengladbach and Alemannia Aachen.[DT]
¤ 13 April 2006: Sydney FC announce that manager Pierre Littbarski has agreed to continue with the club for 2006-07. Sydney FC initially appeared reluctant to re-sign the German, who eventually agreed to a reported 30% pay cut in order to continue in the job.[SFC][TWG][TWG]
¤ 26 April 2006: Businessman Frank Lowy confirms his intention to increase his 25% stake in Sydney FC, reportedly to a controlling 51%. He describes the move as a ‘rescue mission’, after Sydney suffer reported losses of over $3 million in season one.[SMH]
¤ 28 April 2006: FFA Head of Operations Matt Carroll confirms that Frank Lowy has increased his holding in Sydney FC, and insists that “there is no favouritism, there never has been, there never will be.”[SMH]
¤ 01 May 2006: The draw for the 2006-07 A-League season is released, with Sydney FC set to play a rematch of the 2005-06 Grand Final against Central Coast in round 1.[A-L]
¤ 01 May 2006: The FFA announces that Australia’s AFC Champions League positions will go to the Champions and Premiers of the upcoming season, meaning that Sydney FC and Adelaide United will not automatically qualify.[SMH]
¤ 03 May 2006: Pierre Littbarski leaves Sydney FC, rejecting a reported $250,000 pay cut to his $700,000 season one salary, but says “It is not just the financial side, if people are lying to me, it is a point I can’t accept.”[TWG][Age]
¤ 10 May 2006: The 23-man Socceroos squad for the upcoming FIFA World Cup is named, with Sydney FC defender Mark Milligan the youngest member and one of two A-League players selected.[A-L]
¤ 17 May 2006: Sydney FC confirms that Englishman Terry Butcher (Motherwell) has signed as manager for two seasons.[SFC]
¤ 21 May 2006: Marquee player Dwight Yorke insists that he will remain with Sydney FC for the remainder of his contract, despite reportedly being told by the club in March that he could move on.[SFC][TWG]
¤ 26 May 2006: Sydney FC announce the venues for their home matches during the 2006 Pre-Season Cup: WIN Stadium (Wollongong) and Canberra Stadium, with Campbelltown Sports Ground set to host the final match if Sydney qualify to host it.[SFC]
¤ 07 June 2006: Jacob Timpano undergoes surgery for a hernia and groin strain, which will put him out of action for an estimated ten weeks.[TWG]
¤ 08 June 2006: Sydney FC defender Mark Milligan makes his Socceroos debut, coming on in the 84th minute of the World Cup warmup match against Leichtenstein.[FFA]
¤ 12 June 2006: Olyroos defender Nikolai Topor-Stanley (Manly United) agrees to terms for a short-term deal with Sydney FC, replacing the injured Jacob Timpano.[TWG]
¤ 19 June 2006: David Carney re-signs with Sydney FC for another season, despite reportedly receiving offers from England, Germany and four other A-League clubs.[SFC]
¤ 13 July 2006: Two new sponsors, GraysOnline Auctions and Business Print Australia, join Sydney FC, both investing “six figure sums” into the club.[SFC]
¤ 15 July 2006: Sydney FC vs Queensland Roar FC, Carrara Stadium, 7:00pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – Group stage)
The first game of the new season and Sydney’s first game under Terry Butcher brings victory, with Alex Brosque scoring the winner against his old club. Reserve goalkeeper Justin Pasfield plays his first competitive minutes for Sydney.[A-L][QRFC][TWG]
Sydney FC 2 (Petrovski 16′, Brosque 87′) def. Queensland Roar 1 (Smits 31′)
Sydney FC: 1 Clint Bolton (gk; 20 Justin Pasfield 62′), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Alvin Ceccoli (21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley 77′), 4 Mark Rudan (c), 6 Ufuk Talay, 10 Steve Corica, 11 Sasho Petrovski (7 Robbie Middleby 58′), 12 David Carney, 14 Alex Brosque, 15 Terry McFlynn, 16 Mark Milligan
Queensland Roar: 20 Liam Reddy (gk), 2 Andrew Packer, 3 Remo Buess, 5 Josh McCloughan (c), 6 Stuart McLaren, 8 Massimo Murdocca, 10 Ante Milicic (4 Chad Gibson 71′), 15 Matt McKay, 16 Seo Hyuk-Su, 19 Sasa Ognenovski, 21 Timothy Smits (14 Ben Griffin 74′)
Cautions: Fyfe, Milligan
Sent off: Ognenovski 36′
¤ 22 July 2006: Sydney FC vs Newcastle United Jets FC, Canberra Stadium, 2:00pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – Group stage)
Sydney’s first ever win against the Newcastle Jets, done reasonably comfortably despite a Terry McFlynn own goal. Mark Rudan, Ruben Zadkovich, Jacob Timpano and Jeremy Brockie were all unavailable due to injury.[A-L][TWG]
Sydney FC 2 (Topor-Stanley 3′, Middleby 25′) def. Newcastle United Jets 1 (McFlynn 68′ og)
Sydney FC: 1 Clint Bolton (gk; 20 Justin Pasfield 46′), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Alvin Ceccoli, 6 Ufuk Talay, 9 David Zdrilic (11 Sasho Petrovski 67′), 10 Steve Corica (c), 14 Alex Brosque (12 David Carney 76′), 15 Ter
ry McFlynn, 16 Mark Milligan (18 Wade Oostendorp 76′), 21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley
Newcastle Jets: 20 Ben Kennedy (gk), 3 Jade North, 6 Andrew Durante (21 Troy Hearfield 90′), 8 Matt Thompson, 9 Vaughan Coveny, 10 Nick Carle, 12 Paul Okon (c; 17 Tolgay Ozbey 78′), 13 Adam D’Apuzzo (15 Stuart Musialik 46′), 14 Jobe Wheelhouse, 16 Labinot Haliti, 19 Mark Bridge
Cautions: D’Apuzzo 2′, Thompson 73′, Corica 90′
¤ 26 July 2006: Promoter Paul Dainty joins the Sydney FC board as an independent director.[SSN]
¤ 29 July 2006: Sydney FC vs New Zealand Knights FC, North Harbour Stadium, 2:00pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – Group stage)
Sydney FC maintain their unbeaten run in the Pre-Season Cup, all but confirming a place in the semi-finals with one match still to play. Zdrilic had a shot cleared off the line in the 14th minute, while Bolton kept a clean sheet with a save in the dying minutes off Dani Rodrigues.[A-L][TWG]
Sydney FC 0 drew New Zealand Knights 0
Sydney FC: 1 Clint Bolton (gk), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Alvin Ceccoli, 4 Mark Rudan (c), 6 Ufuk Talay (21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley 78′), 7 Robbie Middleby (10 Steve Corica 70′), 9 David Zdrilic (11 Sasho Petrovski 61′), 12 David Carney, 14 Alex Brosque, 15 Terry McFlynn, 16 Mark Milligan
New Zealand Knights; 1 Danny Milosevic (gk), 2 Darren Bazeley (c), 3 Gregory Duruz, 7 Richard Johnson, 9 Dani Rodrigues, 11 Jonti Richter (15 Adam Casey 85′), 13 Jonas Salley, 14 Malik Buari, 16 Noah Hickey (10 Sean Devine 90′), 17 Frank van Eijs, 19 Sime Kovacevic
Cautions: Rudan 35′, Johnson 53′, Salley 80′
¤ 02 August 2006: Socceroos coach Graham Arnold names a 22-man squad in preparation for the upcoming Asian Cup qualifying match against Kuwait in Sydney. Eight Sydney FC players make the list: Clint Bolton, Alex Brosque, David Carney, Alvin Ceccoli, Iain Fyfe, Mark Milligan and Sasho Petrovski.[A-L]
¤ 05 August 2006: Dwight Yorke‘s return is delayed further, as he is ruled out of the match against Perth Glory with a groin strain.[SFC]
¤ 06 August 2006: Sydney FC vs Perth Glory FC, WIN Stadium, 5:00pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – Bonus round)
Oft-cited as Sydney FC’s best match under Terry Butcher, a quick-fire Alex Brosque double in the first half confirms Sydney’s place on top of Group B and sets up a semi-final meeting with Adelaide United.[TWG]
Sydney FC 3 (Brosque 26′, 27′, Petrovski 57′) def. Perth Glory 0
Sydney FC: 1 Clint Bolton (gk), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Alvin Ceccoli, 4 Mark Rudan (c), 10 Steve Corica (9 David Zdrilic 61′), 11 Sasho Petrovski (13 Jeremy Brockie 82′), 12 David Carney, 14 Alex Brosque (7 Robbie Middleby 75′), 15 Terry McFlynn, 16 Mark Milligan, 21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley
Perth Glory: 30 Andrew Crews (gk), 2 Ryan Townsend, 3 David Tarka, 5 Jamie Harnwell (c), 8 David Micevski, 12 Leo Bertos, 13 Ante Kovacevic, 15 Mark Robertson (18 Josip Magdic 68′), 16 Adrian Webster (10 Bobby Despotovski 68′), 17 Stuart Young, 19 Naum Sekulovski
Cautions: Webster 53′
¤ 11 August 2006: Sydney FC vs Adelaide United FC, WIN Stadium, 7:30pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – SF)
Sydney’s return to Wollongong was controversial, with Alvin Ceccoli being sent off after the half-time whistle for an argument with referee Mark Shield. Adelaide’s winner came in the last minute of the match, with Clint Bolton appearing to claim he was impeded at an Adelaide set piece.[A-L][TWG]
Adelaide United 2 (Dodd 16′, Rees 90′) def. Sydney FC 1 (Carney 43′)
Sydney FC: 1 Clint Bolton (gk), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Alvin Ceccoli, 4 Mark Rudan (c), 10 Steve Corica (9 David Zdrilic 90+2′), 11 Sasho Petrovski (13 Jeremy Brockie 62′), 12 David Carney (7 Robbie Middleby 81′), 14 Alex Brosque, 15 Terry McFlynn, 16 Mark Milligan, 21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley
Adelaide United: 20 Robert Bajic (gk), 2 Richie Alagich (9 Mathew Kemp 46′), 4 Angelo Costanzo, 5 Michael Valkanis, 6 Ross Aloisi (c; 3 Kristian Rees 76′), 8 Carl Veart, 12 Greg Owens, 13 Travis Dodd, 14 Aaron Goulding, 18 Robert Cornthwaite, 21 Jason Spagnuolo (17 Adam van Dommele 90+3′)
Cautions: Carney 57′
Sent off: Ceccoli 45+0′
¤ 16 August 2006: A record seven Sydney FC players appear in Australia’s 2-0 win over Kuwait which seals a place in the 2007 Asian Cup. Mark Milligan won man of the match honours on his starting debut, Steve Corica and Clint Bolton made their first appearances in five years, whilst striker Sasho Petrovski sealed the match with a goal in the 86th minute. David Carney and Alex Brosque also both appeared.[FFA][TWG]
¤ 19 August 2006: Sydney FC vs Newcastle United Jets FC, Campbelltown Sports Ground, 7:30pm (A-League Pre-Season Cup – 3rd place playoff)
A rather comfortable win for Sydney in the west, taking third place in the Pre-Season Cup in front of a crowd of 5,326. Tolgay Ozbey plays for Newcastle against his former club, while Sydney have three debutants.[TWG]
Sydney FC 2 (Petrovski 40′, Rudan 68′) def
. Newcastle United Jets 0
Sydney FC: 20 Justin Pasfield (gk), 2 Iain Fyfe, 3 Mark Rudan (c; 26 Steven Bozinovski 70′), 6 Ufuk Talay, 7 Robbie Middleby, 9 David Zdrilic, 11 Sasho Petrovski, 13 Jeremy Brockie, 15 Terry McFlynn, 21 Nikolai Topor-Stanley, 25 Nikolas Tsattalios (24 Jason Naidovski 83′)
Newcastle United Jets: 20 Ben Kennedy (gk), 8 Matt Thompson, 9 Vaughan Coveny (17 Tolgay Ozbey 79′), 10 Nick Carle, 12 Paul Okon (c), 13 Adam D’Apuzzo, 14 Jobe Wheelhouse, 15 Stuart Musialik (11 Tarek Elrich 81′), 16 Labinot Haliti, 18 Joel Griffiths, 19 Mark Bridge
Cautions: Talay 16′