A-League grand final: Sydney FC coach Steve Corica has defied the doubters

Steve Corica has learned to live with the doubters for much of his football career, first as a player, now as a coach.

Sydney FC coach Steve Corica watches his players training for tomorrow’s grand final against Perth Glory. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Steve Corica has learned to live with the doubters for much of his football career, first as a player, now as a coach.

Even allowing for the gift of his speed and technical skills, the ill-informed perception as he set out on the road to a professional career as a 16-year-old was that his slight frame would not cope with the rigours of senior football.

However, the boy from Cairns, known as Bimbi because of his fresh-faced looks, was never going to let the critics stand in his way. He went on to forge a wonderful career playing in the rough and tumble of the second-tier English Championship with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Sanfrecce Hiroshima in Japan’s J-League, Sydney FC in the early days of the A-League and 32 caps with the Socceroos.

When Corica was given the job as senior coach of Sydney FC exactly 12 months ago, the sceptics were out in force again, doubting the decision to hand the keys to a rookie who had never had charge of a senior side.

Worse still, he was following in the footsteps of the club’s most successful coach, Graham Arnold who, in four seasons, led them to two grand finals, two Premiers Plates, a championship, an inaugural FFA Cup and a host of records.

Arnold was confident, aggressive, never afraid to speak his mind, especially when taking on officialdom or jousting with journalists.

In contrast Corica, who was involved on the coaching staff under Arnold, was the quiet one, the “Mr Nice Guy”, always quick with a glowing smile; everyone’s friend.

Given that persona, questions were raised about his suitability to handle one of the toughest jobs in Australian soccer.

But as he did in his playing career, Corica is having the last laugh, having led the Sky Blues to an FFA Cup final, second spot on the A-League table and now the grand final against Perth Glory at Optus Stadium tomorrow.

Corica holds no grudges against his detractors.

“Yes, I have had those doubts shoved on to me since I was a kid, but I learned very quickly that I had to deal with it,” Corica tells The Weekend Australian.

“There was no use getting upset over it and I just moved on.

“What was important was that I had a strong belief in my ability and nothing was going to stop me.

“When it came to coaching Sydney FC, it was just another challenge but I never doubted myself.

“I knew I could do the job otherwise I wouldn’t have wasted mine or the club’s time by taking it.”

Corica, 46, says he has grown into the role with the Sky Blues.

“The season has gone pretty well. I know what I am like, I grow into things as it goes along but I’m also still learning,” he says.

“Coaching now is different to the old days because players react differently to different situations, there is a lot more communication with the players and I kind of like that side of things. I like the man-management aspect.

“The key to success it to try and keep everyone happy, which can be very difficult because they all want to play. But the balance is right here and I think you see they are very happy.

“You can see how the boys are playing well, playing good football and you can see how they are getting used to me more and more.”

Following in the footsteps of Arnold was never going to be an easy task. The problem for Corica was that a poor season would lead to the blame being laid at his feet, and a successful season to suggestions “it was Arnold’s team”.

It isn’t something that bothers Corica, who remains proud of what the club has achieved this season whether they win or lose tomorrow.

“It would mean a lot to win the grand final, it’s a trophy and that was the goal at the start of the year,” he says. “Everyone kept saying how big a job it would be taking it on after Arnie.

“Of course it was a big job but I couldn’t be happier with what we have done, even without winning a trophy at the moment, because we made the Cup final and, normally, finishing second on 52 points … that would be enough to win the league.

“But forget about me. I would be more happy for the boys.

“We had a lot of changes this year, coaching staff, players, stadium changes, and there have been no excuses, they just dealt with it and got on with the job.

“I see them at their best and I see them at their worst at training, but they just work hard.”