# 2012–13 A-League

The 2012–13 A-League was the 36th season of top-flight soccer in Australia, and the eighth season of the Australian A-League since its establishment in 2004. The 2012–13 season saw the introduction of a new Western Sydney-based team, the return of Newcastle Jets FC after their A-League licence was returned by FFA, and the end of Gold Coast United after they were removed from the competition at the end of the previous season. This season was also the last A-League season to be broadcast exclusively on paid television, after SBS obtained the rights to a live Friday night game each week of the A-League season, and all A-League finals games on a one-hour delay, on a $160 million four-year broadcast deal, effective from the 2013–14 A-League season onwards.

## Clubs

| Team | City | Home ground | Capacity |
| Adelaide United | Adelaide | Hindmarsh Stadium | 17,000 |
| Brisbane Roar | Brisbane | Suncorp Stadium | 52,500 |
| Central Coast Mariners | Gosford | Bluetongue Stadium | 20,119 |
| Melbourne Heart | Melbourne | AAMI Park | 30,050 |
| Melbourne Victory | Melbourne | Etihad Stadium AAMI Park | 56,347 30,050 |
| Newcastle Jets | Newcastle | Hunter Stadium | 33,000 |
| Perth Glory | Perth | NIB Stadium Patersons Stadium | 20,500 43,500 |
| Sydney FC | Sydney | Allianz Stadium | 45,500 |
| Wellington Phoenix | Wellington | Westpac Stadium | 36,000 |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | Sydney | Parramatta Stadium | 21,487 |

### Personnel and kit specifications

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Kit partner |
| Adelaide United | Michael Valkanis | Eugene Galeković | Kappa | Unleash Solar |
| Brisbane Roar | Mike Mulvey | Matt Smith | Puma | The Coffee Club |
| Central Coast Mariners | Graham Arnold | John Hutchinson | Kappa | Masterfoods |
| Melbourne Heart | John Aloisi | Fred | Kappa | Westpac |
| Melbourne Victory | Ange Postecoglou | Adrian Leijer | Adidas | Adecco |
| Newcastle Jets | Gary van Egmond | Ruben Zadkovich | ISC | Hunter Ports |
| Perth Glory | Alistair Edwards | Jacob Burns | X-blades | QBE Insurance |
| Sydney FC | Frank Farina | Terry McFlynn | Adidas | Webjet |
| Wellington Phoenix | Chris Greenacre | Andrew Durante | Adidas | Sony |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | Tony Popovic | Michael Beauchamp | Nike | NRMA Insurance |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Melbourne Heart | John van 't Schip | Mutual termination | 1 February 2012 | Pre-season | John Aloisi | 8 May 2012 |
| Sydney FC | Vitezslav Lavicka | Contract expired | 3 February 2012 | Pre-season | Ian Crook | 14 May 2012 |
| Melbourne Victory | Jim Magilton | Contract expired | 1 April 2012 | Pre-season | Ange Postecoglou | 26 April 2012 |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | Inaugural | Inaugural | 4 April 2012 | Pre-season | Tony Popovic | 17 May 2012 |
| Brisbane Roar | Ange Postecoglou | Resigned | 24 April 2012 | Pre-season | Rado Vidošić | 25 April 2012 |
| Sydney FC | Ian Crook | Resigned | 11 November 2012 | 8th | Frank Farina | 28 November 2012 |
| Brisbane Roar | Rado Vidošić | Mutual Consent | 19 December 2012 | 9th | Mike Mulvey | 19 December 2012 |
| Adelaide United | John Kosmina | Resigned | 28 January 2013 | 4th | Michael Valkanis | 28 January 2013 |
| Perth Glory | Ian Ferguson | Termination | 11 February 2013 | 10th | Alistair Edwards | 11 February 2013 |
| Wellington Phoenix | Ricki Herbert | Resigned | 26 February 2013 | 10th | Chris Greenacre | 26 February 2013 |

### Foreign players

| Club | Visa 1 | Visa 2 | Visa 3 | Visa 4 | Visa 5 | Non-Visa foreigner(s) | Former player(s) |
| Adelaide United | Marcelo Carrusca | Jerónimo | Sergio van Dijk | Fábio Ferreira | | Cássio$^1$ | Sergio van Dijk |
| Brisbane Roar | Besart Berisha | Henrique | Thomas Broich | Stef Nijland | Do Dong-Hyun | Jack Hingert$^2$ | |
| Central Coast Mariners | Patrick Zwaanswijk | Michael McGlinchey | Nick Montgomery | | | John Hutchinson$^2$ Brad McDonald$^2$ | |
| Melbourne Heart | Jonatan Germano | Fred | Josip Tadic | Patrick Gerhardt | Marcel Meeuwis | | |
| Melbourne Victory | Marcos Flores | Guilherme Finkler | Adama Traore | Jonathan Bru | Marco Rojas | | |
| Newcastle Jets | Bernardo Ribeiro | Michael Bridges | Emile Heskey | Dominik Ritter | | | Tiago |
| Perth Glory | Matías Córdoba | Liam Miller | Ryo Nagai | Steven McGarry | | Storm Roux$^2$ Shane Smeltz$^2$ Ndumba Makeche$^1$ | Billy Mehmet |
| Sydney FC | Fabio | Kruno Lovrek | Alessandro Del Piero | Pascal Bosschaart | Yairo Yau | Tiago$^3$ Vedran Janjetović$^1$ Ali Abbas$^1$ Terry McFlynn$^1$ | |
| Wellington Phoenix | Paul Ifill | Stein Huysegems | Benjamin Totori | Dani Sánchez | Alex Smith | Manny Muscat$^2$ | |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | Dino Kresinger | Mateo Poljak | Jérome Polenz | Iacopo La Rocca | Youssouf Hersi | Shinji Ono$^5$ Kwabena Appiah$^2$ | |
The following do not fill a Visa position: $^1$Those players who were born and started their professional career abroad but have since gained Australian Residency (and New Zealand Residency, in the case of Wellington Phoenix); $^2$Australian residents (and New Zealand residents, in the case of Wellington Phoenix) who have chosen to represent another national team; $^3$Injury Replacement Players, or National Team Replacement Players; $^4$Guest Players (eligible to play a maximum of ten games)
$^5$Additional Expansion Club Visa Player

### Salary cap exemptions and captains

| Club | Australian Marquee | International Marquee | Captain | Vice-Captain |
| Adelaide United | Dario Vidosic | Sergio van Dijk | Eugene Galekovic | Cássio |
| Brisbane Roar | None | Thomas Broich | Matt Smith | Shane Stefanutto |
| Central Coast Mariners | None | None | John Hutchinson | Patrick Zwaanswijk |
| Melbourne Heart | None | Fred | Fred | Matt Thompson |
| Melbourne Victory | Archie Thompson | Marcos Flores | Adrian Leijer | Mark Milligan |
| Newcastle Jets | None | Emile Heskey | Jobe Wheelhouse Ruben Zadkovich | Ryan Griffiths |
| Perth Glory | None | Shane Smeltz | Jacob Burns | Michael Thwaite |
| Sydney FC | Brett Emerton | Alessandro Del Piero | Terry McFlynn | Alessandro Del Piero Brett Emerton |
| Wellington Phoenix | None | None | Andrew Durante | Ben Sigmund |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | None | Shinji Ono | Michael Beauchamp | Tarek Elrich Nikolai Topor-Stanley |

## Regular season
### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Western Sydney Wanderers | 27 | 18 | 3 | 6 | 41 | 21 | +20 | 57 | Qualification for 2014 AFC Champions League group stage and finals series |
| 2 | Central Coast Mariners (C) | 27 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 48 | 22 | +26 | 54 | Qualification for 2014 AFC Champions League group stage and finals series |
| 3 | Melbourne Victory | 27 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 48 | 45 | +3 | 44 | Qualification for 2014 AFC Champions League qualifying play-off and finals series |
| 4 | Adelaide United | 27 | 12 | 5 | 10 | 38 | 37 | +1 | 41 | Qualification for Finals series |
| 5 | Brisbane Roar | 27 | 10 | 5 | 12 | 33 | 29 | +4 | 35 | Qualification for Finals series |
| 6 | Perth Glory | 27 | 9 | 5 | 13 | 29 | 31 | −2 | 32 | Qualification for Finals series |
| 7 | Sydney FC | 27 | 9 | 5 | 13 | 41 | 51 | −10 | 32 | |
| 8 | Newcastle Jets | 27 | 8 | 7 | 12 | 30 | 45 | −15 | 31 | |
| 9 | Melbourne Heart | 27 | 8 | 3 | 16 | 31 | 40 | −9 | 27 | |
| 10 | Wellington Phoenix | 27 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 31 | 49 | −18 | 27 | |
* ↑ Since the winner of 2013 A-League Grand Final (Central Coast Mariners) qualified for the 2014 AFC Champions League group stage, the 3rd placed team qualified for the qualifying play-off of 2014 AFC Champions League.
* ↑ Wellington Phoenix cannot qualify for the AFC Champions League as they are not recognised as an AFC club.

### Home and away season

The 2012–13 season sees each team play 27 games, kicking off on 5 October 2012, and concluding on 31 March 2013.

#### Week 27
### Table of results

Abbreviation and Colour Key:
Adelaide United – AU
Brisbane Roar – BR
Central Coast Mariners – CCM
Melbourne Heart – MH
Melbourne Victory – MV
Newcastle Jets – NJ
Perth Glory – PG
Sydney FC – SFC
Wellington Phoenix – WP
Western Sydney Wanderers – WSW
Win
Loss
Draw
Home :
| Club | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match | Match |
| Club | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| Adelaide United | NUJ | WSW | MV | WP | BR | PG | MH | SFC | CCM | MV | WP | WSW | BR | SFC | NUJ | PG | MH | CCM | WSW | MV | SFC | WP | BR | MH | NUJ | CCM | PG | | | |
| Adelaide United | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 6–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | | | | | | |
| Brisbane Roar | PG | MV | WP | WSW | AU | MH | SFC | CCM | NUJ | WSW | MV | PG | AU | WP | MH | NUJ | WSW | PG | CCM | SFC | WP | NUJ | AU | MV | CCM | MH | SFC | | | |
| Brisbane Roar | 1–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | | | | | | |
| Central Coast Mariners | WSW | PG | NUJ | MH | SFC | WP | MV | BR | AU | NUJ | MH | WP | SFC | PG | WSW | MV | NUJ | AU | BR | WP | PG | MV | WSW | SFC | BR | AU | MH | | | |
| Central Coast Mariners | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 7–2 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 6–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–1 | | | | | | |
| Melbourne Heart | MV | WP | PG | CCM | WSW | BR | AU | NUJ | SFC | PG | CCM | MV | WP | NUJ | BR | SFC | AU | WSW | MV | PG | NUJ | SFC | WP | AU | WSW | BR | CCM | | | |
| Melbourne Heart | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | | | | | | |
| Melbourne Victory | MH | BR | AU | NUJ | WP | SFC | CCM | WSW | PG | AU | BR | MH | NUJ | WSW | WP | CCM | PG | SFC | MH | AU | WSW | CCM | NUJ | BR | SFC | PG | WP | | | |
| Melbourne Victory | 1–2 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 6–2 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–3 | | | | | | |
| Newcastle Jets | AU | SFC | CCM | MV | PG | WSW | WP | MH | BR | CCM | PG | SFC | MV | MH | AU | BR | CCM | WP | SFC | WSW | MH | BR | WP | MV | PG | AU | WSW | | | |
| Newcastle Jets | 0–2 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 3–3 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 5–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–3 | | | | | | |
| Perth Glory | BR | CCM | MH | SFC | NUJ | AU | WSW | WP | MV | MH | NUJ | BR | WSW | CCM | SFC | AU | MV | BR | WP | MH | CCM | WSW | SFC | NUJ | WP | MV | AU | | | |
| Perth Glory | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | | | | | | |
| Sydney FC | WP | NUJ | WSW | PG | CCM | MV | BR | AU | MH | WP | WSW | NUJ | CCM | AU | PG | MH | WP | MV | NUJ | BR | AU | MH | PG | CCM | MV | WSW | BR | | | |
| Sydney FC | 2–0 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 7–2 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 7–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | | | | | | |
| Wellington Phoenix | SFC | MH | BR | AU | MV | CCM | NUJ | PG | WSW | SFC | AU | CCM | MH | BR | MV | WSW | SFC | NUJ | PG | CCM | BR | AU | NUJ | MH | WSW | PG | MV | | | |
| Wellington Phoenix | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 7–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 5–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–3 | | | | | | |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | CCM | AU | SFC | BR | MH | NUJ | PG | MV | WP | BR | SFC | AU | PG | MV | CCM | WP | BR | MH | AU | NUJ | MV | PG | CCM | WP | MH | SFC | NUJ | | | |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 6–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–3 | | | | | | |

## Finals series

In its eighth season the A-League has adopted a new knock-out format for the finals with six teams competing over a three-week series climaxing in the decider. As a result, the play-offs have been reduced from four to three weeks and the top two teams no longer receive a double chance. Instead they will get the opening week of the final series off and will only need to win one game to make the grand final.
| Elimination-finals | Elimination-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| | | Western Sydney Wanderers | 2 | | |
| Adelaide United | 1 | Brisbane Roar | 0 | | |
| Brisbane Roar | 2 | | | Western Sydney Wanderers | 0 |
| | | | | Central Coast Mariners | 2 |
| | | Central Coast Mariners | 1 | | |
| Melbourne Victory (a.e.t.) | 2 | Melbourne Victory | 0 | | |
| Perth Glory | 1 | | | | |

### Grand Final
## Season statistics
### Top scorers

    As of matches played on 31 March 2013
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Daniel McBreen | Central Coast Mariners | 17 |
| 2 | Jeremy Brockie | Wellington Phoenix | 16 |
| 3 | Marco Rojas | Melbourne Victory | 15 |
| 4 | Besart Berisha | Brisbane Roar | 14 |
| 4 | Alessandro Del Piero | Sydney FC | 14 |
| 6 | Mark Bridge | Western Sydney Wanderers | 11 |
| 7 | Ryan Griffiths | Newcastle Jets | 9 |
| 7 | Emile Heskey | Newcastle Jets | 9 |
| 7 | Dario Vidošić | Adelaide United | 9 |
| 10 | Mark Milligan | Melbourne Victory | 8 |
| 10 | Archie Thompson | Melbourne Victory | 8 |

#### Own goals

| Player | Team | Against | Week |
| Patrick Gerhardt | Melbourne Heart | Western Sydney Wanderers | 5 |
| Sebastian Ryall | Sydney FC | Central Coast Mariners | 5 |
| Michael Beauchamp | Western Sydney Wanderers | Melbourne Victory | 8 |
| Andrew Durante | Wellington Phoenix | Melbourne Heart | 13 |
| Scott Jamieson | Perth Glory | Melbourne Victory | 17 |
| Sebastian Ryall | Sydney FC | Melbourne Victory | 18 |
| Trent Sainsbury | Central Coast Mariners | Melbourne Victory | 22 |

### Attendances

These are the attendance records of each of the teams at the end of the home and away season. The table does not include finals series attendances.
| Team | Hosted | Average | High | Low | Total |
| Melbourne Victory | 14 | 21,885 | 42,032 | 16,839 | 306,396 |
| Sydney FC | 13 | 18,637 | 35,419 | 12,425 | 242,278 |
| Brisbane Roar | 13 | 13,417 | 22,970 | 9,282 | 174,415 |
| Newcastle Jets | 13 | 13,388 | 22,518 | 8,310 | 174,043 |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | 14 | 12,466 | 19,585 | 6,755 | 174,520 |
| Central Coast Mariners | 13 | 9,921 | 18,721 | 6,081 | 128,974 |
| Adelaide United | 14 | 9,592 | 14,115 | 6,878 | 134,287 |
| Perth Glory | 14 | 8,819 | 16,707 | 4,821 | 123,466 |
| Melbourne Heart | 13 | 8,560 | 26,457 | 4,505 | 111,284 |
| Wellington Phoenix | 14 | 6,882 | 12,057 | 3,060 | 96,342 |
| {{{T11}}} | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| {{{T12}}} | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| League total | 135 | 12,341 | 42,032 | 3,060 | 1,666,005 |
Updated to 3 February 2013

#### Top 10 Season Attendances

| Attendance | Round | Date | Home | Score | Away | Venue | Weekday | Time of Day |
| 42,102 | GF | 21 April 2013 | Western Sydney Wanderers | 0–2 | Central Coast Mariners | Allianz Stadium | Sunday | Afternoon |
| 42,032 | 1 | 5 October 2012 | Melbourne Victory | 1–2 | Melbourne Heart | Etihad Stadium | Friday | Night |
| 41,203 | 19 | 2 February 2013 | Melbourne Victory | 2–1 | Melbourne Heart | Etihad Stadium | Saturday | Night |
| 35,419 | 2 | 13 October 2012 | Sydney FC | 2–3 | Newcastle Jets | Allianz Stadium | Saturday | Dusk |
| 26,882 | 18 | 26 January 2013 | Melbourne Victory | 3–1 | Sydney FC | AAMI Park | Saturday | Dusk |
| 26,457 | 12 | 22 December 2012 | Melbourne Heart | 1–2 | Melbourne Victory | AAMI Park | Saturday | Night |
| 26,176 | 11 | 15 December 2012 | Sydney FC | 0–2 | Western Sydney Wanderers | Allianz Stadium | Saturday | Night |
| 22,970 | 7 | 16 November 2012 | Brisbane Roar | 4–2 | Sydney FC | Suncorp Stadium | Friday | Night |
| 22,902 | EF | 5 April 2013 | Melbourne Victory | 2–1 | Perth Glory | Etihad Stadium | Friday | Night |
| 22,518 | 27 | 29 March 2013 | Newcastle Jets | 0–3 | Western Sydney Wanderers | Hunter Stadium | Friday | Dusk |

### Discipline

The Fair Play Award will go to the team with the lowest points on the fair play ladder at the conclusion of the home and away season.
| 1 point | Yellow Card |
| 2 points | Second Caution Red Card |
| 3 points | Direct Red Card |
| Team | | | | Points |
| Adelaide United | 32 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
| Brisbane Roar | 30 | 1 | 0 | 32 |
| Central Coast Mariners | 30 | 2 | 1 | 37 |
| Melbourne Heart | 37 | 0 | 1 | 40 |
| Melbourne Victory | 43 | 1 | 1 | 48 |
| Newcastle Jets | 44 | 2 | 1 | 51 |
| Perth Glory | 40 | 2 | 1 | 47 |
| Sydney FC | 45 | 1 | 0 | 47 |
| Wellington Phoenix | 29 | 1 | 1 | 34 |
| Western Sydney Wanderers | 35 | 1 | 2 | 43 |
| Melbourne Heart | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sydney Rovers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 365 | 11 | 8 | |
Current as of 5 January 2013

#### Notes

* Brisbane Roar's Thomas Broich was given a straight red card that was later rescinded by the Match Review Panel.

## Awards
### End-of-season awards

* Johnny Warren Medal – Marco Rojas, Melbourne Victory
* NAB Young Footballer of the Year – Marco Rojas, Melbourne Victory
* Nike Golden Boot Award – Daniel McBreen, Central Coast Mariners, 17 Goals
* Goalkeeper of the Year – Ante Covic, Western Sydney Wanderers
* Manager of the Year – Tony Popovic, Western Sydney Wanderers
* Fair Play Award – Brisbane Roar
* Referee of the Year – Peter Green
* Goal of the Year – Marcos Flores, Melbourne Victory (Melbourne Victory v Wellington Phoenix, 05-Nov-12)

### Team of the season

Formation: 4–3–3