Rampaging Bulls claim their first piece of silverware

Macarthur FC were last night crowned national champions after their 2-0 victory over Sydney United in the final of the 2022 Australia Cup.

Their first piece of silverware was won in front of almost 17,000 fans in Commbank Stadium, although most were barracking for the state league team that is based at Edensor Park.

The Bulls, now coached by former Manchester United legend Dwight Yorke, were by far the better side for the entire 90 minutes and would have won by a much bigger margin had they shown a little more composure in front of goal.

By comparison, the semi professional Sydney United players relied on an aggressively physical game in a bid to rattle their A-League opponents.

But a game plan like that is very risky, especially when defending, so it was no surprise that both goals for the Bulls resulted from penalty shots.

The first came just after half an hour had passed in the first stanza when Bulls skipper Ulises Davila was brought down inside the box and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the penalty spot.

Winger Al Hassan Toure calmly beat the goalkeeper to give the Bulls a deserved 1-0 lead.

Toure was having one of his best games for Macarthur FC, but man causing Sydney United major defensive headaches was Socceroo Daniel Arzani on the other wing.

Every time he received the ball Arzani would be too fast for the United defenders, beating several of them to reach the byline before crossing the ball hoping to find Lachie Rose.

There was a small period before half time when Sydney United started playing football and they actually looked likely to score.

But the Bulls defence held firm and when the teams returned from the half time break Macarthur immediately dominated possession and created several opportunities for scoring.

When they were brought down once again inside the box with just minutes left on the clock, it was their captain, Ulises Davila, who stepped up to the penalty spot.

Davila sent the United goalie the wrong way to make it 2-0 and clinch a historic victory for Macarthur FC.

The small contingent of Bulls fans went wild and for the first time all night were able to silence the noise made by the fans of the losing side.

And then the celebrations were on for young and old Bulls fans, and why not – their team was now the champions of Australia.