We are the champions: Bulls lift 2024 Australia Cup

Macarthur FC were given next to no chance of winning the 2024 Australia Cup final against Melbourne Victory last night.

They went into the match in a depleted state thanks to a stack of injuries throughout their squad.

And their inspirational leader, Valere Germain, was also out, serving a one match suspension.

But here we are now, with the Bulls having emerged victorious, thanks to a goal from their new signing Marin Jakolis.

Much of the credit for the goal has to go to another Bulls forward, Jed Drew, whose blinding speed caused the Melbourne team palpitations every time he took off down the right hand edge.

Drew, who’s poised for his biggest A-League season yet with Macarthur FC, easily outran a Melbourne defender 57 minutes into the game to control the ball.

The young speedster looked up and saw Jakolis moving into clear space on the left, and that’s exactly where the pass went.

Jakolis punched the ball past the goalie and into the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.

Naturally, Jed Drew and the rest of the team celebrated like it was New Year’s Eve 1999 (pictured above).

There was a different scene though among the Victory players, whose shoulders suddenly dropped.

In fairness, the home side dominated so much of the match up to that point it was easy to see why they would be so disappointed.

But back to our boy Jed Drew, who had a whale of a game.

Man of the match honours however went to his goalkeeper, Filip Kurto, who saved three, maybe four goals, with his acrobatic efforts.

Kurto, pictured above with his medals, has saved the Bulls so many times since his arrival in Campbelltown there were calls – maybe tongue in cheek – for a statue in his honour down the main street.

But Drew wasn’t far behind Kurto, and it’s a shame there wasn’t some kind of medal for the speedster.

Jake Hollman was another who had an outstanding match for the Bulls, controlling the midfield like a general.

The Bulls defence really came into its own in the last 20 minutes when Victory threw everything but the kitchen sink at them.

But the likes of Uskok and Vujica led the way with some incredible defensive work.

How they avoided giving a penalty away is anybody’s guess.

The last five minutes of the match were edge of your seat stuff for Bulls fans, as their team gallantly repelled attack after attack from Victory.

This was a win for the ages, but it also means the Bulls have won two Australia Cup finals now.