Tony Sage sees Premiers Plate as springboard to greater Glory

After 12 years of trying, Perth Glory owner Tony Sage can finally celebrate some silverware.

Perth Glory owner Tony Sage hoists the Premiers Plate high after his club beat Newcastle in Perth on Sunday night. Picture: AAP

If you had mentioned the name Tony Sage to any Perth Glory fan four years ago, you would have been left in no doubt he was one of the most despised men in the state.

Having seen their club, which at the time was on the way to finals, stripped of competition points, demoted to seventh spot and fined $269,000 for having committed the largest breach of the salary cap in the competition’s history, the fans were in no mood to show the owner any mercy.

Sage, who has ploughed almost $30 million into the club since taking sole ownership in 2009, took the criticism personally. They were tough times for a man who had invested his heart, soul and cash into the club.

Fast forward to Sunday night and there would not have been a single person who would have begrudged Sage his moment in the spotlight after Glory clinched their first trophy in the A-League era by claiming the Premiers Plate.

Sage was so emotional and overjoyed he revealed he actually dropped the trophy at one stage, though, thankfully, “it was on the grass so there was no damage,” he laughed.

“As I walked down from my spot in the grandstand on to the pitch the emotion hit me and took me awhile to gather myself,” Sage said.

“It was a huge relief for me personally after 12 years of trying.

The club has been through six grand finals … three W-League lost, two FFA Cup finals lost and an A-League grand final in 2012 lost.

“So, to actually win a bit of silverware meant a lot to me.”

It also meant that the shadows of 2015 can now be cast aside.

“I copped lot of criticism and flak for that and I took it personally, but I didn’t give up,” he said. “The last three years have been a personal relief for me to be able to do this for the fans, which we disappointed in 2015.”

Importantly, the Plate success has guaranteed Glory will compete in the Asian Champions League next season, something that Sage says has been a long-term goal for him.

“It has been a dream of mine from day one and it is going to be huge. We will have a big advantage in travel compared to the other A-League clubs who have played in the ACL because we are used to the travel and we will be three and four hours closer to the Asian venues,” he said.

Another bonus is the fact it will give Glory the chance to put themselves in the Asian shop front, not just for sponsorship dollars but possible investor interest.

Sage has struggled being the sole owner of the club and makes no secret of the fact he is looking to bring in some partners to ease the financial burden.

“The dollars are very expensive to run a club. We do need to find a partner. You know that seven other clubs in the A-League have several owners who are very wealthy,” Sage said. “To succeed in the future, we need to link up with a partner.

“I don’t want to relinquishing control of the club … I have never wanted to do that, but we have to be realistic in this day and age, and it is clear one individual can’t support an A-League franchise.”