Canberra Olympic coach Frank Cachia believes that the tight bonds between his players have been crucial to their success in the FFA Cup.
A 95th minute penalty from goalkeeper Angelo Konstantinou sealed Canberra’s spot in the semi-finals last night, beating Green Gully 1-0 in memorable fashion after midfielder Adam Rogic was earlier sent off.
The coach claims that the mental toughness his side displayed was typical of the trust the players have with each other.
“They are a bunch of mates. When we bought this team together a couple of years ago we picked boys that had good connections with other players,” Cachia said to Fox Sports.
“It’s built around friendship and they are a really close-knit group. We’ve really forged a culture here and it’s a very accepting and accommodating culture.
“Anyone that comes in is really a friend as well as a team-mate and you can see it.
“Even when Adam [Rogic] got sent off, they stuck to their guns and they didn’t give up. We’ve gone three games in the FFA Cup without conceding yet.”
Canberra will now look to continue their fairytale run against Sydney FC in the final four and Cachia expects that a similar performance could cause an upset.
“I think [our players] will fancy themselves,” the Olympic coach added.
“Look, they [Sydney FC] are not A-League for nothing. We’ll give it our best shot and if we play with the same fortitude and bravery we did tonight then the players will give a good account of themselves and they’ll do the club proud.
“You can dream about it all you like but I don’t think anyone thought we would get as far as we have.
“Winning a treble here in Canberra and doing what we did here [against Green Gully], it’s just unbelievable.”
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