The 1996 National Soccer League Grand Final was the first grand final to be held under the A-League name after the short-lived rebranding of the National Soccer League (NSL) began before the 1995–96 season. Melbourne Knights defeated Marconi-Fairfield 2–1 to win their second consecutive grand final.[1][2]
| Event | 1995–96 National Soccer League | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Date | 26 May 1996 | ||||||
| Venue | Olympic Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Andrew Marth (Joe Marston Medal) | ||||||
| Referee | Eddie Lennie | ||||||
| Attendance | 14,256 | ||||||
Route to the final
Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights were the first team into the grand final defeating Marconi-Fairfield 3–2 over two legs in the major semi-final.[3]
Marconi-Fairfield
After losing the major semi-final to the Knights, Marconi-Fairfield followed up with a 4–1 win over Adelaide City in the preliminary final to book their place in the grand final.[3][4][5]
Pre-match
Venue selection
With Melbourne Knights the first into the final, there was speculation that the Knights would host the match at Somers Street, however Soccer Australia announced on 12 May that the match would be played at Olympic Park.[3]
Match
Details
| 26 May 1996 Grand final | Melbourne Knights | 2–1 | Marconi-Fairfield | Melbourne, Australia |
| 15:00 | Andrew Marth 58' Adrian Cervinski 74' | Report | Andy Harper 78' | Stadium: Olympic Park Attendance: 14,256 Referee: Eddie Lennie |
| GK |  Bob Catlin | ||
| Brendan Renaud | |||
| Eric Hristodoulou | |||
| Vlado Zoric | |||
| Paul Souris | |||
| Matthew Bingley | |||
| Andy Harper | |||
| Brad Maloney | |||
| Robert Stanton | |||
| Gary van Egmond |  65' | ||
| Dominic Longo | |||
| Substitutes: | |||
| Jon Angelucci |  65' | ||
| Head coach: | |||
| Manfred Schaefer | |||
Match rules
|