Macarthur FC dedicate Australia Cup trophy to grieving captain Davila

Macarthur FC have dedicated their Australia Cup triumph to their grieving skipper Ulises Davila, who won the Mark Viduka Medal for best afield in Saturday night’s final just four months after the sudden death of his wife - and then gave it straight to the club as a gesture of appreciation.

Davila changed out of his own jersey to wear one with his late wife Lily Pacheco’s name on the back as the Bulls celebrated their 2-0 win over Sydney United 58, ending the former National Soccer League side’s historic run to the final.

Ulises Davila won the Mark Viduka Medal on Saturday night.Credit: Getty

The 31-year-old was named the Viduka Medal winner after an imperious performance in attacking midfield, winning the first and then scoring the second of the two penalties the Bulls scored at a heaving CommBank Stadium. But immediately after receiving it during the post-match ceremony, Davila handed it to Macarthur chairman Gino Marra, and insisted the club keep it as a gift.

He later explained he would have retired were it not for their support four months ago, when Lily passed away suddenly while their family, including their young son, were home in Mexico during the off-season. The Bulls immediately sent several members of their coaching staff to assist Davila and his family with whatever they needed.

“It’s been very hard times, but what I received from this team, from the gaffer, from the board, I cannot be more grateful,” he said.

“They’ve been amazing. I just tried to give something back to the club. That’s why I say [the reason I decided to keep playing] was because of this group, all these people around – they make me feel like I have a family here.

“Maybe if it was in another team, or I didn’t feel that, I wouldn’t come back. That’s why I’m very grateful. They just take care of me and my family.”

Teammate Al Hassan Toure was holding back tears when he spoke post-match about how they were motivated to win for Davila.

“I think our captain needed it, with everything going on in his life. I think this is more for him and his
family. He has been going through a hard time - this is just for him,” Toure said on Network 10.

Daniel Arzani, another one of Macarthur’s best on the night, said Davila told the team the final had a “special meaning” for him.

Daniel Arzani pulled the strings in Macarthur FC’s Australia Cup final victory.Credit: Getty

“He kind of mentioned to us before the game, in the pre-match talk, that this game had a special meaning for him. All the boys got a little bit emotional,” he said. “Personally, I got goosebumps because he’s such an incredible guy ... he never lets it come to the surface. To know that it meant so much for him and that we could do that for him, it was a really special feeling.”

As expected, Sydney United had the vast majority of support among the 16,416-strong crowd at CommBank Stadium – the second-biggest for a final in the tournament’s short history.

Thousands of the most hardcore fans packed into the northern end to provide a raucous, intimidatory atmosphere that, at times, threatened to boil over. At the other end, roughly 100 Macarthur fans attempted in vain to provide some sort of vocal response.

On the pitch, the Croatian-backed side gave as much as they could, but more than a month on from their last league outing in the NSW NPL, it was inevitable that Macarthur’s superior fitness and skill would shine through – and so it proved.

Arzani led the charge for the Bulls from the outset, earning a nasty spray from former Sydney FC striker Chris Payne after being clearly fouled in the opening minute.

Arzani is preparing to use the opening rounds of the A-League Men, which begins next weekend, to mount a case for Socceroos selection.

Four years since starring for the Socceroos at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Arzani’s career has clearly not gone to plan.

The talent that once had Australia buzzing is still there, now matched with a level of maturity and fitness that wasn’t previously – and national team coach Graham Arnold, a former United player, was there to watch it first-hand.

The 23-year-old delivered the corner that almost gave Macarthur the lead 13 minutes in, when Jonathan Aspropotamitis’ deflected header was saved by United’s goalkeeper Danijel Nizic, but they didn’t have to wait much longer for the breakthrough.

Just after the half-hour mark, Anthony Tomelic brought down the lively Davila in the box, prompting referee Daniel Elder to point straight to the spot.

Toure, who starred for Adelaide United in the final when they won the then-FFA Cup in 2019, had to fight off Davila and Arzani for the right to take the resultant penalty, but stood over the ball with confidence and dispatched it into the back of the net – then strode straight towards Sydney United’s hostile support, put his hands around his ears and taunted them.

That made Toure, like Arzani, a target for boos for the remainder of the match, but neither player – nor any of the Bulls – allowed the treatment to get under their skin.

“I’m used to getting a bit of sticking out from the opposition fans. It’s no problem. If anything, I like it - it gets me going,” Toure said.

The Bulls had plenty of chances to extend their advantage, but were invariably foiled by Nizic, the woodwork – in the case of attempts by Lachie Rose and substitute Anthony Carter – or by their own hand, like when Tomislav Uskok’s second-half header went wide.

Their failure to finish off United, who twice came from behind in their wins over Western and Brisbane, meant there was always a chance the underdogs could come back late. But when Cristian Gonzalez fouled Craig Noone in Macarthur’s box in the dying minutes, that was that – Davila stepped up, took the penalty, and got the celebrations started early.

Watch every match of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League on Stan Sport.

Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.