Avondale boss confident his team is mentally ready to take on might of Sydney FC in FFA Cup showdown
HIS players are ready for the biggest week of their club’s history, but Avondale coach Anthony Barbieri is confident stage fright won’t be an issue.
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HIS players are ready for the biggest week of their club’s history, but Avondale coach Anthony Barbieri is confident stage fright won’t be an issue.
Hosting Sydney FC on Wednesday night, Avondale are looking to claim the biggest possible scalp as well as a place in the FFA Cup semifinals, before taking on Heidelberg United in the Victorian NPL Grand Final.
The FFA Cup quarterfinal gives Avondale’s semi-pro squad the chance to knock off a side that has dominated the A-League in the past two years, winning one championship and two Premier’s Plates.
The tie brings national attention and a live TV broadcast to Avondale’s ABD Stadium, but after defeating Bentleigh Greens on Friday night in the NPL semifinal – triumphing on penalties after being 3-1 down – Barbieri was relaxed about his players’ readiness to face down Sydney.
“It can go both ways – on such an occasion players can rise above and beyond their usual median performance because of the opportunity and coming up against prestige opponents,” Barbieri said.
“You can get players lifting, or they can go into their shell it’s true. But knowing my players, knowing their attitude and their work ethic, I’m not concerned about the occasion getting to them.
“The boys are excited more than anything, it’s a good position to be in. We’ve had a pretty good season, and we can go into this game and then the grand final with confidence.”
Barbieri has overseen a remarkable rise through the tiers of the Victorian state league over recent seasons, but this season has brought unique challenges thanks to the club’s success.
“Everything is coming thick and fast at the moment, so it’s all a bit of a blur,” he said. “It’s been a long season, we started preparing back in November so from the point of view of the coaching staff it’s a bit exhausting by this stage.
“But we’ve got two games to go, and we’ll give everything right to the end.”
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