Milestone man Rhyan Grant says the football stars aligned last week when Sydney FC responded to one of their worst A-League performances in recent memory.
The Sky Blues have a spring back in their stride following the 3-1 derby win over Western Sydney Wanderers, consigning the previous week’s home shocker to the dustbin, when they succumbed by the same scoreline to Wellington Phoenix.
In-form right-back Grant believes they will travel west with an inner confidence for Friday’s showdown with leaders Perth Glory.
Grant says playing a derby last week was the perfect scenario as they sought to silence those who believed Sydney’s dominance of recent seasons may be on the wane.
An early red card to Western Sydney goalkeeper Vedran Janjetovic was the icing on the cake, Grant said, opening space for the third-placed Sydneysiders to unearth their attacking mojo.
“Coming off a loss it’s always difficult but you want to turn it around pretty quick and I think it was great timing being against the Wanderers, it was pretty easy for us to get up for that game,” Grant said.
“Having the man sent off made it easier for us too … it kicked us back into shape and prepared us for this week.
“Perth are unbeaten so they’ve going to be up for it.”
The match falls exactly 10 years to the day since Grant made his Sydney FC debut, as a 17-year-old, also against Perth. He came off the bench in a 4-1 home loss.
Grant will become the first player to represent the powerhouse club for an unbroken decade when he runs out for a 155th A-League match.
The Canowindra-born defender is as important to them as ever, having played 90 minutes in all eight games this season, serving up two assists and providing an excellent attacking outlet.
His form was rewarded with a long-awaited Socceroos debut in their last-start 3-0 win over Lebanon and an assured display has put him in the Asian Cup selection frame.
Grant says the high-quality Sydney FC campaigns under Graham Arnold in recent seasons had been memorable.
A personal highlight was his equalising goal in the 2016-17 Grand Final at Allianz Stadium before his team went on to beat Melbourne Victory on penalties.
“Just the atmosphere at the ground and being a Grand Final is pretty special so that was No. 1,” he said.