Australian Cup glory is on the line this weekend as Melbourne Victory and Macarthur FC face-off at AAMI Park on Sunday, September 29.
For experienced defender Brendan Hamill, it could potentially be a second Australia Cup win after he won the trophy with Melbourne Victory back in 2021 (Final played in February 2022 due COVID-19 delays).
Speaking ahead of the Final, he made it clear that he wants to add another Australia Cup to his trophy collection, as do his teammates to theirs.
“It's the reason we play football to win trophies, well for me anyway, so it's huge that we've gotten this far, and we've made it to a Final, but we've got to go one step further,” he said.
“We’ve got to do everything that we can to make sure that we lift the Cup and qualify for Champions League football and give the fans what they deserve and that’s silverware.”
Although just three years ago, he added that it is tough to compare this cup run to that of 2021 because of the differences at the club, from management to playing staff, there has been a lot of change at Victory according to Hamill.
“It's difficult to compare, it’s three years ago and a change of personnel, change of coach, change of coaching staff for me personally, so it's always difficult to compare,” he said.
“But hopefully, we can compare one thing that is the same and that'll be us being crowned champions of the Australia Cup.”
He isn’t the only current Victory player who was a part of the victorious Australia Cup squad of 2021.
Both Jason Geria and Nishan Velupillay were a part of the 2021 Final squad, and their experience, and the experience of some of the other senior players will be important going into this Sunday’s Final.
“There are a lot of experienced guys within the squad that were also here a couple of years ago, like Roddy (Roderick Miranda who did not play in the 2021 Final), Nish (Nishan Velupillay) and Jase (Jason Geria) just to name three,” Hamill said.
“It's a great occasion and these are the games everyone wants to play in, so we’ve just got to enjoy it and give everything we’ve got.”
Velupillay was an 82nd minute substitute in the 2021 Final against Central Coast, and in 2024 finds himself the top scorer in the Australia Cup going into Sunday's showpiece.
Hamill reserved special praise for the winger as a crucial player for the Victory.
“He's so important for us, he's so effective, on the ball he is so confident and dynamic, and he's fast and can run in behind, he can press well and defensively, he does his role,” he said.
“He's had a pretty good Cup run. I think he's scored in three out of four games, so he's going to be key for us along with a lot of our front three and midfield, everyone's important, you can't just point out one player.”
Looking at the opposition, Hamill said Macarthur are an experienced side but the focus on training this week is internal.
“(They’ve got) a lot of experience, a strong squad, very disciplined, we'll be analysing them this week, but I think the focus is on us,” he said.
“We respect them, and it's a Final, we know that they're going to be energetic, they're going to be up for it, and they're going to be wanting to come here and put a spoiler on our home ground.
“But it's on us with the fans behind us, the 12th man, we've got to take it to them, it's our home and a huge opportunity for us to do something special.”
Australia Cup Final 2024 Details
Melbourne Victory FC vs Macarthur FC
Date: Sunday, 29 September 2024
Venue: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Kick-off: 7.10pm AEST
Gates Open: 5.45pm AEST
Broadcast: 10 Bold and 10 Play
