Macarthur FC enjoyed a perfect finish to their 2025/26 Isuzu UTE A-League Men season, thumping Wellington Phoenix 4-0 at Campbelltown Stadium with plenty to celebrate on Friday night.
The crushing win was just the tip of the iceberg as the Campbelltown crowd celebrated Damien De Silva’s career and witnessed magic on the pitch as Luke Brattan scored a stunner and brothers Henrique and Bernardo combined to wrap up the campaign in style.
It took little more than half an hour for the bulk of the damage to be done as Macarthur were unrelenting right from the opening whistle, bursting out of the blocks and taking the lead five minutes in.
A string of set pieces and balls in the box put the pressure right on and Wellington couldn’t handle the heat as Bill Tuiloma bundled Matt Jurman’s volley into his own net.
Still seeking to punch his ticket to North America for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Mitch Duke was heavily involved and almost had a goal for himself as Macarthur made it two.
Initially stepping over the ball with a cool dummy, Duke charged into the box and very nearly converted from Luke Vickery’s superb delivery, but instead the ball fell kindly for Dean Bosnjak to finish from inside the six-yard box.
Ifeanyi Eze came close as he sought to draw level with Sam Cosgrove in the golden boot race but he and his Wellington teammates continued to be upstaged as Brattan scored the goal of the night just past the half hour mark, sending the ball dipping and swerving into the top left corner from long range.
Chris Greenacre made two changes at the interval and they helped get his side have some joy as Ramy Najjarine and Luke Brooke-Smith looked to get on the ball and create.
But not even those alterations were enough for the Phoenix to get meaningfully back into the game with Macarthur coasting to a final day victory in front of their home fans – Sarpreet Singh’s free-kick thumping against the crossbar the closest they came all night.
There was still time for more special moments for Macarthur when substitutes and brothers combined 10 minutes from time. Henrique Oliveira, with his first touch of the ball, set up brother Bernardo to convert with a deflected strike that looped into the net.
The sentimental feeling continued a couple of minutes later when Harry Politidis made a long-awaited return from injury and De Silva took his leave, drawing the curtain on an excellent 20-year career which included three fine seasons in the Isuzu UTE A-League. A two-time Melbourne Victory Player of the Year and one-time member of the PFA Team of the Season, the Frenchman hangs the boots up after 63 appearances and five goals in Australia.
At the end of a wonderful night on home soil, Macarthur boss Mile Sterjovski would be forgiven for leaving with thoughts of what might have been, his side made to rue a streaky run of form in 2026 – this just their fifth win in 16 league games since the turn of the year – that ultimately took them out of the finals.
Despite the disappointment of this result, and indeed the performance that enabled it, Wellington will be able to lean on the positives of four wins in their final six outings as Chris Greenacre took interim charge of the side following Giancarlo Italiano’s resignation.
For both sides, despite the disappointment of missing out on finals football, sights will quickly turn to preparing for 2026/27 with plenty of positives to draw on and big ambitions in either camp.
MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
WHAT THEY SAID
Macarthur FC attacker Bernardo.
Wellington Phoenix midfielder Paulo Retre.
