Top five: Adelaide United’s best season-openers ahead of round-one A-League date with Sydney FC
From landmark goals and red cards, to gritty wins and memorable debuts, Adelaide United’s season-openers have had it all. We countdown the Reds’ top five round-one clashes ahead of Friday’s meeting with champion Sydney FC.
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History-making goals, contentious red cards and wins against the odds, Adelaide United’s season-opening fixtures have had them all over the past 16 years.
Kicking off with a loss does not guarantee failure for the campaign ahead, as the double-winning Reds demonstrated in 2015/16 when they went winless in their first eight games.
But United has gone on to make the finals in all but one of the seven terms it has emerged triumphant from its round-one fixture.
As Adelaide prepares to start the A-League season at home to reigning champion Sydney FC on Friday night, we countdown the club’s top-five campaign openers.
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5. Adelaide United 1 Perth Glory 0, Hindmarsh Stadium, August 17, 2008
Reds captain Travis Dodd settled the contest with a cracking near-post finish in the 41st minute of his 100th game for the club.
The only goal of the clash was the result of a slick one-two with Brazilian striker Cristiano, one of four United debutants alongside Scott Jamieson, Alemao and Paul Reid.
While not a vintage display, it gave Adelaide the belief to lose just two of its opening nine fixtures having missed the playoffs the previous campaign.
It also led to a second-place finish, level on points with premier Melbourne Victory, which would go on to defeat the Reds in a heated grand final.
4. Newcastle Jets 0 Adelaide United 1, McDonald Jones Stadium, August 26, 2005
The first goal in the first match of the inaugural A-League season landed Adelaide the fledgling competition’s maiden points.
Current assistant coach Carl Veart headed past then Jets goalkeeper Liam Reddy from a Ross Aloisi delivery midway through the opening period, to set the visitors on the road to victory.
But United needed a pair of Daniel Beltrame saves and an Adam van Dommele goal line clearance to deny the host’s Mark Bridge, Matt Thompson and Ante Milicic.
The initial triumph was a sign of things to come, as the Reds stormed to the Premier’s Plate only to fall in a shock preliminary final loss to Central Coast Mariners.
3. Brisbane Roar 1 Adelaide United 2, Suncorp Stadium, October 12, 2014
Adelaide travelled to the Sunshine State with the odds stacked heavily against it in a round-one clash with reigning champion Brisbane Roar.
The signs were ominous when dual-Johnny Warren Medallist Thomas Broich fired in a freak free kick from near the touchline to hand the home side a 20th-minute advantage.
But the Reds’ record goal scorer and now director of football Bruce Djite silenced the partisan 16,195 crowd with a thumping equaliser from outside the box.
The Roar’s James Donachie inadvertently diverted Sergio Cirio’s cross into his own net to put United in front, before Brisbane’s misery was compounded by Matt McKay’s late dismissal.
2. Adelaide United 3 Perth Glory 1, Hindmarsh Stadium, October 13, 2013
Two red cards and 10 yellows punctuated a forgettable debut for a Reds legend and a typically dramatic triumph for his newly-installed coach.
Future captain Isaias received his marching orders for a second booking 65 minutes into the first match of his 158-game United career, while defender Nigel Boogaard was sent off.
By that stage the hosts had raced to a matchwinning buffer, thanks to an opportunist brace by Argentinian hitman Jeronimo Neumann and a sublime Fabio Ferreira backheel finish.
The rollercoaster ride in Josep Gombau’s first outing in charge was indicative of the Spanish boss’ reign, as Adelaide’s thrilling brand of football secured FFA Cup glory a year later.
1. Adelaide United 1 Brisbane Strikers 0, Hindmarsh Stadium, October 17, 2003
Carl Veart’s strike from an expert Richie Alagich assist sealed a tense triumph for John Kosmina’s team, which was thrown together in just five weeks following Adelaide City’s exit.
A 15,568-capacity crowd, believed to have been swollen by a few thousand more after droves of fans were turned away at the gate, highlighted the sport’s untapped potential in the state.
It also built the platform for the passionate support which carried United to a third-place finish in its foundation campaign and five major honours since.