The 1999 National Soccer League Grand Final, also known as the 1999 Ericsson Cup Grand Final, was held on 30 May 1999 between South Melbourne and Sydney United at Olympic Park Stadium. South Melbourne gained home advantage as although Sydney United finished higher in the regular season, South Melbourne won the major semi-final against them two weeks prior. Mile Sterjovski scored first for United as they went up 1–0 at the half time break, however, a goal from Paul Trimboli and a brace from John Anastasiadis sealed South Melbourne's second consecutive championship and fourth overall. Goran Lozanovski won the Joe Marston Medal.[1][2]
| Event | 1998–99 National Soccer League | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Date | 30 May 1999 | ||||||
| Venue | Olympic Park Stadium, Melbourne, Australia | ||||||
| Man of the Match | Goran Lozanovski (Joe Marston Medal) | ||||||
| Referee | Simon Michallef | ||||||
| Attendance | 15,194 | ||||||
Background
Sydney United finished the season with the minor premiership through a 3–1 win over the Adelaide Sharks on the final day of the season. South Melbourne finished one point from first place.[3][4]
Route to the final
League Standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney United | 28 | 18 | 4 | 6 | 53 | 33 | +20 | 58 | 1999 National Soccer League Finals |
| 2 | South Melbourne (C) | 28 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 50 | 26 | +24 | 57 | 1999 Oceania Club Championship |
| 3 | Perth Glory | 28 | 16 | 5 | 7 | 62 | 37 | +25 | 53 | 1999 National Soccer League Finals |
| 4 | Marconi Stallions | 28 | 15 | 3 | 10 | 53 | 47 | +6 | 48 | |
| 5 | Northern Spirit | 28 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 36 | 35 | +1 | 46 | |
| 6 | Adelaide City | 28 | 13 | 6 | 9 | 39 | 26 | +13 | 45 | |
| 7 | Sydney Olympic | 28 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 46 | 36 | +10 | 43 | |
| 8 | Newcastle Breakers | 28 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 29 | 33 | −4 | 40 | |
| 9 | Brisbane Strikers | 28 | 11 | 6 | 11 | 41 | 47 | −6 | 39 | |
| 10 | Wollongong Wolves | 28 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 45 | 52 | −7 | 32 | |
| 11 | Carlton SC | 28 | 9 | 4 | 15 | 47 | 47 | 0 | 31 | |
| 12 | Melbourne Knights | 28 | 8 | 5 | 15 | 32 | 43 | −11 | 29 | |
| 13 | West Adelaide (R) | 28 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 36 | 46 | −10 | 27 | Disbanded at end of season |
| 14 | Gippsland Falcons | 28 | 5 | 10 | 13 | 17 | 44 | −27 | 25 | |
| 15 | Canberra Cosmos | 28 | 4 | 3 | 21 | 21 | 55 | −34 | 15 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Finals Bracket
| Elimination Finals | Major/Minor Semifinals | Preliminary Final | Grand Final | |||||||||||||||||||
| 9 & 16 May 1999 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | South Melbourne | 2 | 0 | 2 | South Melbourne | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Sydney United | 1 | 0 | 1 | 23 May 1999 | Sydney United | 2 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | Sydney United | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Adelaide City | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 15 May 1999 | 3 | Perth Glory | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Perth Glory | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Perth Glory | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Marconi Stallions | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Northern Spirit | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Marconi Stallions | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
Match
Details
| South Melbourne | 3 – 2 | Sydney United |
|---|---|---|
Trimboli  53' Anastasiadis 63', 87' | Reports[5] | Sterjovski 8' Townsend 90+' |
| GK | 30 |  Mike Gibson | ||
| DF | 2 | David Barrett | ||
| DF | 4 | Velimir Kupresak (c) | ||
| DF | 5 | Richard Plesa | ||
| DF | 6 | Joe Vrkic | ||
| MF | 7 | Jacob Burns |  88' | |
| FW | 9 | Mile Sterjovski | ||
| FW | 10 | Nathan Day | 64' | |
| MF | 11 | Steve Berry | ||
| DF | 17 | Michael Santalab | 68' | |
| MF | 28 | Peter Bennett | ||
| Substitutes: | ||||
| GK | 20 | Barney Smith | ||
| DF | 8 | Walter Ardone |  88' | |
| MF | 15 | Danny Townsend | 68' | |
| FW | 19 | Joel Griffiths | 64' | |
| MF | 25 | Ante Moric | ||
| Manager: | ||||
| David Mitchell[6] | ||||
Match rules
|
Post-match
The match served as a qualifier for the 1999 Oceania Club Championship.[7] South Melbourne qualified easily for the championship final, conceding just one goal in the group stage and defeating Tahitian club A.S. Vénus 3–0 in the semifinal. They qualified for the 2000 FIFA Club World Championship with a 5–0 win in the final. At the Club World Championship, South Melbourne finished fourth in their group, eighth overall, without recording a win and scoring one goal.