Wanderers defender Tarek Elrich hits out at abuse he’s copping from some supporters

Western Sydney Wanderers defender Tarek Elrich is fuming at a minority of vile abuse being hurled from the stands while echoing his chairman’s call for unity.

Western Sydney Wanderers defender Tarek Elrich says all the players are feeling the pain of the club’s predicament.

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Tarek Elrich is fuming at a minority of Western Sydney fans who have hurled vile abuse at him during matches.

He also echoed Wanderers chairman Paul Lederer’s call for unity at the club.

The experienced Wanderers defender is adamant there is a line that shouldn’t be crossed when expressing anger and frustration and he will not be afraid to call it out.

The 32-year-old says abuse directed towards him has been ‘graphic’ in nature and made with his family in earshot. He says it is not just a case of frustrated fans telling him to “lift his game”.

Wanderers will look to bounce back from a 2-0 defeat against Melbourne City on New Year’s Day with a tough-looking assignment against Melbourne Victory on Saturday night.

Lederer penned a letter to supporters this week, saying it was time to regroup and to fight. And as a club “we must come together and drive forward with purpose and belief,” he wrote.

It came after a section of the Wanderers support unloaded on the players at halftime against City and then walked out.

Western Sydney Wanderers defender Tarek Elrich says all the players are feeling the pain of the club’s predicament.

Like his chairman, Elrich believes that you need to work together during the tough times but he does not accept that people should be free to unload their frustrations in an offensive manner.

“We’re in this together,” Elrich told The Saturday Telegraph. “I’m a Western Sydney boy. I go home and I can’t sleep at night because I’m thinking about the game. I don’t know any player who goes out there and doesn’t care if they lose.

“It’s not on (the type of abuse). There’s my family there and kids at games.

“I don’t want to be repeating what has been said.

“It hurts at the end of the day. We’re the ones losing the games, so imagine how we’re feeling. It’s hurting me and my teammates more than anyone else.”

Elrich said he was touched by the support he’s received from those who have heard the comments hurled in his direction.

The Western Sydney Wanderers lost to Melbourne City on New Year’s Day to continue their poor start to the season. Picture: Getty Images

“The whole conversation we’ve been having is about sticking together through the bad times,” he said. “In life, you speak to anyone, I guarantee there’s something going on in their life that’s not good. What’s the best thing for it? Support. Family support. Friend support.

“I’ve received some messages on Instagram and Twitter from some great people. I’ll focus on those people. I’ve received messages from people saying ‘sorry’ for what people are saying to you. There are people who understand.

“In football, things can turn quickly. When I was at Adelaide United, eight rounds in we were last. We went on and won the league.

“Two or three wins and you’re back in the race. Wellington Phoenix this season are a good example of that.”

Three points against Victory would be a massive boost but Wanderers’ record is awful against Kevin Muscat’s men with the last meeting ending in a 4-0 drubbing.

“We’re creating chances and we’re working hard to try and put them away,” Elrich said.

“A lot of people are writing us off, writing our season off, but if you come to our changing room you’ll know these boys are still hungry to succeed and we’ll keep working as hard as we can.

“We’ve a big game against a quality team in Melbourne Victory. We’re not going to sit back. We’re going to go at them.

“It’s about going out there, doing what we know we can do and hopefully that ‘curse’ around the goal will leave us alone and we can get some goals.”

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