‘Looks like he went 15 rounds with Mike Tyson’: Leckie leads City to title despite horror injury

Melbourne City star Mathew Leckie put his body on the line to lead his side to the A-League championship and he won the Joe Marston Medal as best player because of it.

Leckie had his nose taped to his face and he played in that condition for the bulk of the second half, making a host of vital plays in the unexpected role of a midfielder.

City’s Mathew Leckie with his nose injury.Credit: Getty Images

City won the grand final 1-0 on a first-half goal from Israeli international Yonatan Cohen in front of more than 29,000 fans at AAMI Park.

Leckie spent much of the post-game in the team’s medical room after opting to play on after having his nose slashed open after an accidental boot to the face.

He also played through a hamstring injury, which will now keep him out of the Socceroos’ crunch World Cup qualifiers against Japan in Perth on June 5 and against Saudi Arabia in Jeddah five days later. Leckie confirmed he had been called up to the national set-up, but his injury status means his green-and-gold absence will extend beyond a year.

Leckie wasn’t named in the Socceroos squad announced on Sunday. While teammates Aziz Behich, Kai Trewin and Marco Tilio flew to Perth on Sunday morning, Leckie was at City’s championship celebrations at AAMI Park. He hasn’t played for Australia since the June 2024 win over Palestine, when Graham Arnold was still coach.

“I want to be there. I really do,” Leckie said.

“I’ve always said that I love the national team – I love representing Australia. But obviously over the last two years, my body’s just been a lot of dramas with injuries and as much as I would like to be there, what’s happening now with this and recently with my leg, I really, really think I do need just a really good break, and hopefully it all works out for next season.

“I need a good pre-season – not just [a] stop-start [one]. Because I was back four or five times this year.

“I need consistency. My body needs game time, and hopefully with a really good break that’ll happen.”

Leckie was able to celebrate with his teammates and accept his medal and the A-League’s “golden toilet seat” trophy on Saturday night, but City coach Aurelio Vidmar and City officials both said once he removed the tape, his nose “blew up” and is potentially broken.

Leckie put on a fearless display, blocking a goal-bound shot from Victory’s Zinedine Machach in the first half and giving his side a speedy, physical presence in midfield.

Melbourne City’s Marco Tilio and Mathew Leckie embrace after winning the A-League grand final.Credit: Getty Images

“I didn’t feel dizzy or get that sort of concussion feel,” Leckie told Channel 10 post-game.

“I didn’t see the replay, so I don’t know, but I’ve heard I will probably look like a different person tomorrow, but if we came away from this game with a loss and I look like this it would sting a bit, but it is all worth it now.

“I have probably got two hours in a doctor’s room now, but we will see how it goes.”

Victory trio Daniel Arzani, Kasey Bos and Ryan Teague were also called up for national duty.

Following Saturday night’s A-League decider, Vidmar said of Leckie: “He looked better before. I think he has gone 15 rounds with Mike Tyson – he’s pretty banged up.

“I don’t think it is concussion. He got studded on the face, he’s got cuts and he may have even broken his nose, but I don’t know at this stage.

“He was enormous tonight for us. We let the Ferrari out of the garage, and he just played an incredible game.”

Mathew Leckie holds up the A-League championship trophy.Credit: Getty Images

Leckie had a horror season battling hamstring and calf injuries, which kept him to just 15 games, and he made his only start of the finals series in the grand final.

City hoped to get between 45 to 60 minutes from him, given the additional running involved in his midfield role, but he played the full game.

City captain and Socceroos left-back Behich is a friend and long-time teammate of Leckie, and he heaped praise on his fearless display.

“I’ve known him for a long time and it doesn’t surprise me he stayed out there,” Behich said.

“I know what type of character he is, and what he’s done tonight. To, literally, put your whole body on the line for the boys and this football club – we couldn’t have done this without him, and it’s a credit to him.”

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That’s all we have for you tonight everyone.

Thanks so much for joining us and please check back later in the week for more Socceroos and Matildas coverage as both national teams will be in action.

Please have a lovely evening and bye for now.

Melbourne City star Mathew Leckie put his body on the line to lead his side to the A-League championship and he won the Joe Marston Medal as best player because of it.

Leckie had his nose taped to his face and he played in that condition for the bulk of the second half, making a host of vital plays in the unexpected role of a midfielder.

City’s Mathew Leckie with his nose injury.Credit: Getty Images

City won the grand final 1-0 on a first-half goal from Israeli international Yonatan Cohen in front of more than 29,000 fans at AAMI Park.

Leckie spent much of the post-game in the team’s medical room after opting to play on after having his nose slashed open after an accidental boot to the face.

He also played through a hamstring injury, which will now keep him out of the Socceroos’ crunch World Cup qualifiers against Japan in Perth on June 5 and against Saudi Arabia in Jeddah five days later. Leckie confirmed he had been called up to the national set-up, but his injury status means his green-and-gold absence will extend beyond a year.

Leckie wasn’t named in the Socceroos squad announced on Sunday. While teammates Aziz Behich, Kai Trewin and Marco Tilio flew to Perth on Sunday morning, Leckie was at City’s championship celebrations at AAMI Park. He hasn’t played for Australia since the June 2024 win over Palestine, when Graham Arnold was still coach.

“I want to be there. I really do,” Leckie said.

“I’ve always said that I love the national team – I love representing Australia. But obviously over the last two years, my body’s just been a lot of dramas with injuries and as much as I would like to be there, what’s happening now with this and recently with my leg, I really, really think I do need just a really good break, and hopefully it all works out for next season.

“I need a good pre-season – not just [a] stop-start [one]. Because I was back four or five times this year.

“I need consistency. My body needs game time, and hopefully with a really good break that’ll happen.”

Leckie was able to celebrate with his teammates and accept his medal and the A-League’s “golden toilet seat” trophy on Saturday night, but City coach Aurelio Vidmar and City officials both said once he removed the tape, his nose “blew up” and is potentially broken.

Leckie put on a fearless display, blocking a goal-bound shot from Victory’s Zinedine Machach in the first half and giving his side a speedy, physical presence in midfield.

Melbourne City’s Marco Tilio and Mathew Leckie embrace after winning the A-League grand final.Credit: Getty Images

“I didn’t feel dizzy or get that sort of concussion feel,” Leckie told Channel 10 post-game.

“I didn’t see the replay, so I don’t know, but I’ve heard I will probably look like a different person tomorrow, but if we came away from this game with a loss and I look like this it would sting a bit, but it is all worth it now.

“I have probably got two hours in a doctor’s room now, but we will see how it goes.”

Victory trio Daniel Arzani, Kasey Bos and Ryan Teague were also called up for national duty.

Following Saturday night’s A-League decider, Vidmar said of Leckie: “He looked better before. I think he has gone 15 rounds with Mike Tyson – he’s pretty banged up.

“I don’t think it is concussion. He got studded on the face, he’s got cuts and he may have even broken his nose, but I don’t know at this stage.

“He was enormous tonight for us. We let the Ferrari out of the garage, and he just played an incredible game.”

Mathew Leckie holds up the A-League championship trophy.Credit: Getty Images

Leckie had a horror season battling hamstring and calf injuries, which kept him to just 15 games, and he made his only start of the finals series in the grand final.

City hoped to get between 45 to 60 minutes from him, given the additional running involved in his midfield role, but he played the full game.

City captain and Socceroos left-back Behich is a friend and long-time teammate of Leckie, and he heaped praise on his fearless display.

“I’ve known him for a long time and it doesn’t surprise me he stayed out there,” Behich said.

“I know what type of character he is, and what he’s done tonight. To, literally, put your whole body on the line for the boys and this football club – we couldn’t have done this without him, and it’s a credit to him.”

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Victory coach Arthur Diles admitted City’s defence was too good on the night but he also hit out at the decision not to give a handball penalty late in the game.

“They defended like their lives depended on it,” Diles said of City.

Victory coach Arthur Diles.Credit: Getty Images

In the 80th minute City cleared the ball and it hit the out-stretched hand of German Ferreyra in the box, who was falling backwards at the time.

Referee Adam Kersey quickly dismissed Victory protests for handball and the VAR backed up his decision, but Diles believed it should have been a penalty for his side.

“It’s a clear handball, but apparently it is not a handball if it comes off his own player [teammate],” Diles said.

“That’s the ruling that the fourth official gave me at the time. I don’t understand it. I don’t get it, but that’s their job. They’re the refs.”

Diles praised his players and staff and declared the season a success.

He hopes to keep the bulk of the squad together but expects to lose some players due to the good form shown by several players this season.

Led by a bloodied Mathew Leckie, Melbourne City have out-scrapped fierce rivals Melbourne Victory to claim a 1-0 triumph in the A-League Men’s grand final and their second championship.

In the first-ever Melbourne derby grand final, winger Yonatan Cohen handed City the lead in the 10th minute in front of a sellout, largely pro-Victory crowd at AAMI Park.

Aziz Behich of the City lifts the trophy as Melbourne City players celebrate after winning the A-League men grand final.Credit: Getty Images

The crowd of 29,902 was a sporting record crowd at the venue.

Victory unsuccessfully appealed for a handball penalty off German Ferreyra in the 80th minute, but referee Adam Kersey wasn’t swayed and they were unable to manufacture an equaliser.

Coach Aurelio Vidmar’s surprise decision to play Leckie in defensive midfield paid off as the Socceroo turned in a commanding performance to win the Joe Marston Medal as player of the match.

In his first start since returning from injury Leckie had his nose split open by an accidental boot from Zinedine Machach in the 49th minute but played on admirably with a massive bandage around his face.

“My teammates are just so strong,” skipper Aziz Behich told Channel Ten.

“You see Leckie leading by example today, can’t even see out of that strapping band, but what I am so proud of this team is everyone contributed this season.”

This season, City overcame multiple horror runs with injury to just finish second behind Auckland FC, before earning a home grand final.

It was Vidmar’s first championship and just his second win over Victory in 18 attempts as coach of either Adelaide or City.

City’s defence were superb as they condemned Victory to a second consecutive grand final defeat and extended their championship drought to seven years.

Trewin and Germain Ferreyra completely shut down Bruno Fornaroli while full-backs Nathaniel Atkinson and Behich were aggressive, with Cohen a constant threat.

Victory’s star winger Nishan Velupillay (ankle) failed to prove his fitness and was clearly missed while Victory’s Daniel Arzani and Machach were lively without an end product.

Arthur Diles’s charges started hot but City scored off their first touch in Victory’s box.

Behich nutmegged Josh Rawlins with a wonderful backheel to find Andreas Kuen.

The Austrian cut back the ball for Max Caputo, whose shot hit the bar before Israeli winger Cohen drove home the rebound.

In the 20th minute, Leckie desperately blocked Machach’s close-range shot.

Jack Duncan made a wonderful diving save off Leckie in the 23rd minute before Patrick Beach denied Machach up the other end.

A minute into the second half, Duncan made a terrific fingertip save to stop Cohen curling a second goal into the top corner.

Max Caputo and Cohen both spurned chances to make it 2-0 before the Victory handball call.

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City fans may have been outnumbered at tonight’s game, but for the Perus family, securing a grand final win against their long-time rivals made the victory all the more satisfying.

“We were nervous but after the first goal I was pretty confident,” said Kat Perus, a passionate City member.

Kat, Archie and Aaron Perus celebrate Melbourne City’s win.Credit: Hannah Hammoud

As the match neared its end, Perus described how the second half seemed to drag on, with the family anxiously perched on the edge of their seats, waiting for that final whistle to confirm the championship was City’s again.

“The derby is really amazing. Where are they [Victory fans] now? Where are the flares?” Perus laughed as she waved her club flag at onlookers.

Large parts of AAMI Park are empty as the Victory fans have cleared out.

This has left the City fans to take charge and they are lapping it up while holding aloft their toilet seats (imitating the unique shape of the championship trophy).

Aziz Behich and Kai Trewin celebrate victory.Credit: Getty Images

They booed the Victory players as they received their medals and chanted “wave goodbye” to them.

Now they are cheering on their heroes.

City fans celebrate after winning the A-League men grand final.Credit: Getty Images

City star Mathew Leckie has won the Joe Marston Medal as the best player on the pitch.

It’s a fitting honour considering the drive he gave his side and the toughness he showed in playing through a gruesome nose gash.

Mathew Leckie of the City celebrates winning the A-League championship.Credit: Getty Images

City skipper Aziz Behich spoke to Channel 10 post-game.

I have the captain of a championship winning team, how does that sound to you?
Unreal. I don’t have words, other than to thank this group of players and staff in the club. We worked hard for a long time and, you know, it hasn’t sunk in just yet but, that feels great – championship winners, that’s for sure.

Mathew Leckie and Alessandro Lopane of the City celebrate.Credit: Getty Images

I can see how much this means to you, you were here from the very start. [I] remember seeing you in a game in Albury, [it was] 40 degrees, your mum and dad were there, they travelled all over the world to see you. What does this mean to you and your family?
I’ve said it many times, this club means so much to me, they threw me a lifeline when I was pretty much dead and buried for professional football, and when I came back last year, the only goal I head was to bring a trophy to this football club and, look, like I said, I can’t thank this group of players and staff enough. It has been a team effort, that’s for sure, but this one feels so good, that is for sure.

You set it up, went on the run, [showed] a bit offensive work – you have been so good in that position all year. What was the instruction tonight?
We knew that was gonna be a tough game – they [the Victory] are good side, but we knew, in these games, it’s a one-off game and you will have moments where you have to ride the wave, the pressure, and my teammates are just so strong. You see [Mathew] Leckie leading by example today – [he] can’t even see out of that strapping band, but what I am so proud of this team is everyone contributed this season. We have had and so many players come in and out, [and] a lot of boys who missed out that have played the majority of the season.

Melbourne City players have sprinted onto the field after winning the club’s second A-League Men’s championship.

They scored first and then hung on grimly but, in truth, they were the best team on the night.

Melbourne City captain Aziz Behich runs down the sideline.Credit: Getty Images

Victory had a lot of opportunities, but City snuffed them out at every turn.

Cohen has run around the ground, taking a lap of honour. He had a flag in hand, waving to the fans.

Victory’s players slumped on the turf. They are shattered.