St George junior Teresa Polias has described Saturday’s W-League grand final as a “dream come true”.
Polias captained Sydney FC to the W-League title with a 4-2 win over Perth Glory.
A record crowd for a W-League final poured into Jubilee Stadium, Kogarah to see the Sky Blues win their third championship and first in five years.
But for Polias it was even more special.
A Carss Park and Ramsgate junior in the St George Football Association who grew up a football mad girl from Brighton-Le-Sands, Polias was able to celebrate something that a handful of players ever get to experience – captaining their local club to a title on their home ground.
“Honestly, it still hasn’t set in yet. I think [Sunday] I'll use as a day to reflect and hopefully it’ll set in a bit later. But it’s a wonderful feeling,” Polias said.
“It was our best game of the season and Perth brought it as well. And what fantastic entertainment for our fans.
“I love the club. I adore the club.
“To win the championship as captain is a dream come true.
“It’s been a long time coming since our last one.
“Every year we’ve been so close and after the heartbreak of last year to get the job done this year just means the world to not just me but all of us including the club as well.”
Polias has captained Sydney FC for a number of seasons and has 10 international caps for Australia.
New Matildas coach Ante Milicic will announce his first squad this week for the upcoming Cup of Nations tournament that will feature Australia, New Zealand, Argentina and Korea.
And, while Polias was keen to focus on her team’s achievement rather than herself, if the diminutive midfielder were to earn a recall it would be fine reward.
Jubilee Stadium will host the opening double-header of the competition, a warm-up tournament for the women’s World Cup in June, on February 28.