Sydney Football Club Youth is the

youth system In sporting terminology, a youth system (or youth academy) is a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team if they show en ...

of Sydney Football Club based in Moore Park,

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, Australia. The team referred to as Sydney Youth play in the

Y-League A-League Youth, formerly known as the National Youth League and Y-League is a defunct Australian national soccer youth developmental and under-21s league, founded by Football Federation Australia and later run by the Australian Professional Le ...

(November to February) and consists of u23 players, the highest level of youth

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

in Australia. The club also competes in the

National Premier Leagues NSW The National Premier Leagues NSW is a semi-professional soccer competition in New South Wales, Australia. The competition is conducted by Football NSW, one of the two organising bodies in New South Wales (the other being the National Premier L ...

(March to August), the top competition of Football in NSW, however this team is known as Sydney U21, and is not to be confused with Sydney Youth which is a completely different team, involving different team selection and age group. The youth setup also features under-20s and under-18s teams that both play in the

in their age group.

Youth team history

Early years (2008–2009)

The youth team was founded in 2008, as a

Sydney FC Sydney Football Club, commonly known as Sydney FC, is a professional association football, soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. They compete in the top-tier men's league in Australia, the A-League Men. Established in 2004, ...

representative team for the National Youth League (NYL) competition. The team consisted of twelve contracted youth positions with four overage players (from the senior squad) allowed to participate in games. The side had initially contracted Football Superstar winner, Adam Hett, but had to be replaced for the campaign due to a season ending knee injury. In its first season Sydney FC Youth won the 2008–09 NYL Championship, with former Socceroo & NSL stalwart, Steve O'Connor as the coach. Throughout the season the side dominated many games and finished the regular season on top of the ladder with 13 wins, 2 draws, 3 losses and 6 points clear of second-placed Adelaide United Youth. The pair then went straight to a Grand Final match, of which Sydney FC Youth emphatically took out the tournament with a 2–0 victory at

Hindmarsh Stadium Hindmarsh Stadium (also known as Coopers Brewery, Coopers Stadium under naming rights) is a multi-purpose stadium in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Hindmarsh, an inner western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is the home of the Australian ...

, Adelaide. The goalscorers were Ibrahim Haydar and Robbie Mileski. Many of the Sydney FC Youth players in the Grand Final went on to have success for the senior squad or found a home elsewhere. They included Vedran Janjetovic,

Rhyan Grant Rhyan Bert Grant (born 26 February 1991) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays for and captains A-League Men club Sydney FC and the Australia men's national soccer team, Australia national team. Born in Canowindra, New South W ...

, Matt Jurman,

Antony Golec Antony Paul Golec (; born 29 May 1990) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a centre back. Golec is now a real estate agent after his retirement from professional football. Club career Sydney FC Golec was a member of ...

and Brendan Gan. Sydney FC Youth were unable to follow it up the following year, finishing fifth on the ladder and missing out on the finals series due to goal difference (behind Gold Coast United FC Youth, who went on to win the Championship).

Managers success (2009–2015)

After the second season, club legend

Steve Corica Stephen Christopher Corica (; born 24 March 1973) is an Australian soccer manager and former player. In December 2023, Corica was announced as the inaugural manager of A-League expansion club Auckland FC. A technically gifted and skillful att ...

replaced Steve O'Connor as head coach. The team had mixed success finishing fourth on the standings with 30 points behind Gold Coast United FC Youth on 41 points. The competition did not have a finals series for the first time. A few players from this cohort went on to play for the first team, including

Dimitri Petratos Dimitrios Petratos (born 10 November 1992) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Indian Super League club Mohun Bagan. Petratos has played for four different A-League clubs, winning one championship with Brisb ...

, Nathan Sherlock,

Joel Chianese Joel Joseph Chianese (born 15 February 1990) is an Australian semi-professional footballer currently playing for Perth RedStar, in the NPL WA competition. Career Sydney FC Chianese made his senior debut in the first game of the 2011 Asian Ch ...

and Blake Powell. To take up a more senior assistant role with the first team, Corica relinquished the head coach position for the 2011–12 season. He was replaced by

Ian Crook Ian Stuart Crook (born 18 January 1963) is an English football manager and former professional player. As a player, he was a midfielder who began his career with Tottenham Hotspur. before making 418 appearances for Norwich City where he notably ...

. Again Sydney FC Youth were mid-table, finishing sixth. Crook himself went on to bigger things the following year, taking over head coach duties for the first team. Brian Dene came in as coach of the Youth team. The season became Sydney FC Youth's worst performance in the team's five-year history, finishing ninth. With the first team also struggling with performance and injuries, many of the Youth team played up in the first's team, which did not help the cause. Some of these players included Christopher Naumoff,

Hagi Gligor Christopher Josif Hagi Gligor (born 8 April 1995) is a former Australian soccer player, who last played as a central midfielder for Sydney Olympic. Early life He is the son of former Romanian footballer, Tiberiu Gligor, who emigrated to Austra ...

Peter Triantis Peter Triantis (born 17 January 1992) is an Australian soccer player who plays as a central midfielder for Bankstown City. Club career Youth career Triantis' youth career began in 2009 at APIA Leichhardt Tigers before moving a year later to S ...

and Aaron Calver. Steve Corica then returned as head coach for Sydney FC Youth with immediate success. The side won the Foxtel National Youth League Championship for the 2013–14 season. Unable to repeat this performance the following year, Corica again relinquished his duties as head coach to focus on his role within the senior squad.

Entry into National Premier Leagues (2014–present)

In early 2015, it was confirmed that Sydney FC would compete in the NPL NSW 2 competition from the 2016 season onwards. This followed a competition review by

Football NSW Football NSW is the governing body for soccer in the Australian state of New South Wales, with the exception of the northern regions of NSW (the governing body for which is Northern New South Wales Football). Football NSW is a member of the nat ...

that recommended the youth teams of Sydney FC,

Western Sydney Wanderers Western Sydney Wanderers Football Club (colloquially known as Western Sydney, Wanderers, or simply as WSW) is an Australian professional association football club based in the Western Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in t ...

and

Central Coast Mariners Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Mar ...

join the

National Premier Leagues The National Premier Leagues (NPL) is a men's national association football competition in Australia which acts as the second tier of the sport in the country below the A-League. The NPL consists of the highest level state league in each state- ...

. Along with a team playing first grade, an under-20 and under-18 team would also compete in their appropriate age groups. The team forms the top level of the Sydney FC academy, unveiled in January 2016. Rob Stanton took over the reins as head coach due to the heavily increased workload of the new competition. In the new National Youth League format with a shortened season, Sydney FC Youth started out of the block early recording three consecutive wins. Through the ten round campaign, the team lost only two games, both against Newcastle Jets Youth. The team sat two points clear of Newcastle to end the regular season in first place for Conference B. As Conference B winners, Sydney FC Youth played Adelaide United Youth for the premiership in a curtain raiser to A-League Round 16 match between

and

on 23 January 2016. Sydney FC Youth were convincing winners, taking out the premiership with a scoreline of 5–2. Many influential faces returned for the debut of the team in the National Premier Leagues setup for Sydney U21. These included, Spyrakis, Timotheou, Araujo, Burgess, Lokolingoy and Antoniou. Notable exceptions included Anthony Bouzanis, Aaron Calver and

George Blackwood George Henry Raymond Blackwood (born 4 June 1997) is an Australian footballer who plays as a striker for West Torrens Birkalla. Born in Sydney, Blackwood played youth football for APIA Leichhardt Tigers before making his professional debut for ...

as they had also signed senior contracts and were ineligible for the tournament. The team's debut match did not go according to plan, losing to Mounties FC 2–0 at home (Lambert Park). The side then went on a thrilling ten-game winning streak, that included some big wins (7–0 against Macarthur Rams and 7–4 against Bankstown Berries). The streak ended in somewhat unfortunate circumstances against Marconi Stallions as Sydney FC U21, after leading 1–0, allowed in two goals in last five minutes of the Round 12 clash to lose 2–1. The following game saw another defeat for the Sky Blues, suffering defeat in the "mini derby" against rivals Western Sydney Wanderers U21. A win, then a draw to Mounties FC in the Round 14 make-up game, then two more losses, meant Sydney FC U21 only picked up four points out of a possible 24, with title hopes looking shaky. However, Sydney FC U21 would get back on track with wins against Bankstown City Lions FC and St George FC. Sydney FC U21 remained undefeated in the final four rounds of the regular season to win the Premiers Plate, two points ahead of Western Sydney Wanderers U21. In fact, the final day was a very tense affair, as the two clubs were matched up against each other. The Wanderers, who were trailing by 3 points and −10 points differential needed a very large win to leap-frog the Sky Blues. However, the sides played out a 4–all draw at Popondetta Park and Sydney FC U21 were declared premiers.

Under-23s current squad

''These players can also play with the senior squad and are all Young Professionals.''

Out on loan

''(on loan to

Kotkan Työväen Palloilijat Kotkan Työväen Palloilijat (abbreviated as KTP) is a Finnish association football, football club based in Kotka, and currently competing in Finland's top-tier, the Veikkausliiga. The club was founded in 1927 and its colours are green and whi ...

until December 30 2025)''

Under-20s current squad

''These players can also play with the senior squad and the Under-23s''.

Second years

First years

Schoolboys

Stadium

The team's home grounds for NYL matches are

Leichhardt Oval Leichhardt Oval is a rugby league and soccer stadium in Lilyfield, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently one of three home grounds for the Wests Tigers National Rugby League (NRL) team, along with Campbelltown Stadium and Western Syd ...

and Netstrata Jubilee Stadium. The team’s two home ground is

Valentine Sports Park Valentine Sports Park is an Australian football stadium in Glenwood, a suburb of Sydney. It is the home of Football NSW. The venue received a $22 million transformation and was officially re-opened in March 2015. The impressive facility featu ...

in the suburb of Glenwood and

Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre was located on the grounds of ''Barton Park'' in Arncliffe, New South Wales in Australia. It was the home ground of the Rockdale Ilinden Football Club, who played in the New South Wales Super League. A new Ro ...

for NPL matches. The teams also shares Sydney FC's club's training base at

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a Public university, public research university in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the Sydney metropolitan area. ...

North Ryde North Ryde is a suburb located in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. North Ryde is located 15 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Ryde. One of ...

. Also the team’s previous play out Lambert Park in the suburb of Leichhardt for NPL matches.

Club officials

Current staff

First team coaches (NPL/NYL)

Seasons

¹ Top scorer only includes goals scored from league matches ( National Youth League and NYL Finals or

Honours

Domestic

;Youth * NSW NPL 2/NSW League One Premiership ** Premiers (1):

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

* NSW NPL 2/NSW League One Championship ** Champions (1):

* Y-League/A-League Youth Premiership ** Winners (4): 2008–09, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2019–20 ** Runners-up (2): 2017–18, 2018–19 * Y-League/A-League Youth Championship ** Winners (2): 2008–09, 2015–16, 2019–20 ** Runners-up (1): 2016–17 ;Academy *

U-20 Premiership ** Runners-up (1):

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

U-20 Championship ** Winners (1):

** Runners-up (1):

National Premier Leagues NSW 2 The Football NSW League is an Australian soccer league based in New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It b ...

U-20 Premiership ** Winners (1):

U-18 Premiership ** Winners (2):

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

U-18 Premiership ** Runners-up (1):

U-18 Championship ** Winners (2):

** Runners-up (1):

International

;Youth *

International U-21 Thanh Niên Newspaper Cup International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

** Runners-Up (1): 2013 ** Third-place (1): 2012 * Free Trade Port trophy ** Winners (1): 2018 ''(representing Team Australia along with

Newcastle Jets Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from the Australi ...

)'' ;Under-20s *

Future Cup The Future Cup (officially known as the ABN AMRO Future Cup, and previously known as the AEGON Future Cup) is an annual friendly international youth tournament which is organized by the Dutch football club AFC Ajax. The tournament is created for ...

(U-17 Tournament) ** ''Fifth Place (1)'': 2018

Other

; Youth * NPL Fair Play Award (3):

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

; Individual * NPL First team Player of the Year: Jaiden Kucharski (

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

) * NPL U-20's Player of the Year: Luka Smyth (

)

References

External links

* {{Sydney Sports Teams Sydney FC National Premier Leagues clubs National Premier Leagues NSW Soccer clubs in Sydney Association football clubs established in 2008 2008 establishments in Australia A-League Youth teams Soccer academies in Australia