Men's State Cup final: Olympic, Stirling renew rivalry

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Ago Mujic
Ago Mujic wants to be on the right side of the celebrations today. Photo by football West/FotoEnzo

The celebrations have been flying thick and fast around Ago Mujic – now the Stirling Macedonia head coach wants some of his own.

Mujic and his team will take part in one of the biggest games of the season on Saturday afternoon when they renew their rivalry with Olympic Kingsway at the Sam Kerr Football Centre.

The Men’s State Cup final is a repeat of the 2024 Top Four Cup decider, when Mujic was in the dugout as Olympic equalised with virtually the last kick, then came from behind again in extra time to complete the third leg of a memorable treble.

WOMEN'S STATE CUP FINAL PREVIEW

At the start of this season, Mujic’s side were bridesmaids once more as they went down to Sorrento FC in the Night Series final. And earlier this month, Stirling were the opponents as Bayswater City struck late in proceedings to get the point they needed for the NPLWA – Men’s title.  

“Seeing these other teams celebrating will give us some extra motivation. It does give us a lot of drive. I want to be on the other side,” Mujic said.

“Last year in the Top Four Cup, Olympic scored in the 94th minute when we had one hand on the trophy. Then we lost the Night Series final, and even the other week we had to watch as Bayswater celebrated their league title, which of course they deserved.”
 

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The Top Four Cup is out of reach for Stirling this year, having left their charge too late. “The first five or six rounds killed us, we lost a lot of points,” Mujic said after his side ended the campaign in fifth.

“I made a few changes. We moved some players out and brought in Callum McKenzie, Leigh Griffiths and Riley Warland.

“Leigh Griffiths brings so much, his experience (with Celtic and Scotland), of playing in cup finals. On and off the pitch, he is such a good person to have. He’s a massive part of the club and will be staying another year. Callum as well. It’s massive to have those two guys locked in.”

Looking ahead to another showdown with Olympic, Mujic added: “After that bad start to the season, the cup final is really something good to win.

“The two clubs have a big rivalry but the games are played in a good spirit. The supporters are nice and fair and the teams are nice and competitive. I also have a good relationship with (Olympic head coach) David Tough. We couldn’t wish for a better game than playing Kingsway in a final.

“The atmosphere will be terrific.”

One player learning all about the sides’ rivalry is another mid-season recruit, Olympic midfielder Will Richards.

The Englishman was playing and coaching full-time in Dubai before signing for Kingsway.
 

Will Richards
Will Richards is looking forward to another big game with Olympic. Photo by Football West/FotoEnzo 

“I contacted them (Olympic), told them I was looking for an opportunity to come over and play here, and they got back to me,” Richards said.

“I knew people who had been here and what the standard was like, and thought I’d give it a try.

“Olympic are a great club. The people behind the scenes, the volunteers, have been brilliant, and the same for the lads. And I’ve been hearing a lot of people speak about the rivalry with Stirling, so Saturday should be a great occasion.”

If there's one thing Richards has experienced in his short time at Olympic, it’s big games. He helped his side win a top-of-the-table clash at Bayswater, was a part of the incredible Australia Cup victory over Melbourne Victory, and opened the scoring in the Round of 16 tie at Brisbane City before Kingsway eventually went out on penalties.

“Against Bayswater, we still had a chance of the league and played really well. Unfortunately, we couldn’t repeat it against Balcatta, which meant the title slipped away.

“Melbourne Victory was a brilliant night. I probably didn’t really grasp what the Australia Cup was about until that night, which people say was the biggest game in the club’s history. Then against Brisbane City, I thought we were unfortunate not to go through. It was great to score. I wish it was enough for us to go through, but still.

“These games are why I joined the club and Saturday is another big one.

“The lads deserve something for the season that they’ve had, and hopefully we get that on Saturday.

“It’ll be great to go back-to-back after winning the State Cup last year. I can’t see why we can’t do it, so bring it on.”

Saturday’s final kicks off at 3pm and will go to extra-time then penalties if required.

State Cup Final

 

  • The first game of the day is the U18s State Cup final between Bayswater City and Perth RedStar at 10.30am.

This will be followed by the Reserve State Cup final at 12.45pm, as Dianella White Eagles face holders Perth Glory.

The last game of the day is the Women's State Cup final with Fremantle City meeting Balcatta Etna (5.15pm).

All four games will be shown live and free on Streamer.