The portents were there but we failed to read them. Brisbane? Check. Pre-match precipitation? Check. Early home goal? Check. Kogarah Stadium? Close enough.

In an eerie repeat of a backs-to-the-wall win in the suburbs more than a year back, the Sky Blues played their finest match of the season to burst into the Top 6, once again defying pre-match predictions.

Best performance of the season? Most certainly. Unlike the woeful Phoenix three weeks ago, Brisbane tested us in all departments and each component of the Sydney line up exerted dominance over its opposition.

Vedran Janjetovic was first class, comfortable in the air and unbeatable on the ground. The backline was solid and let little through, with Fabio once again a major contributor in attack. We may finally have settled on a back four, injury and suspension permitting.

Is there anything Rhyan Grant can’t do? Finding himself in central midfield, his workrate and distribution were excellent, and his was an all-round midfield performance of the highest quality. On that performance he may just win that Young Player of the Month award for which he was recently nominated. Is he too versatile for his own good?

His midfield partner showed that a defensive midfielder need not be built like Erik Paartalu to be effective. The number of one-on-one contests Peter Triantis won was incredible, dispossessing his opponents with clean, effective sliding tackles time and again. His distribution could do with some work but all that is swept aside by his match winner – a grass-cutter on a greasy surface from the edge of the box that gave Michael Theo no chance.

Out wide Brett Emerton was superb on the right, linking with Ryall and Grant with ease and dictating the game when electing to move infield. The skilful Ali Abbas once again combined well with Fabio on the left and gave his absolute all.

Up front Blake Powell was excellent once again, involved in most of Sydney’s good attacking moves and providing the assist for Del Piero’s much needed opener. He is unlikely to keep his spot once Joel Griffiths serves out his ban, but it has been a pleasure watching him grow and develop into a most effective contributor up front.

And then there’s Del Piero. Five minutes into the match I recall thinking “he’s hardly touched the ball!” and not minding it one bit. We began strongly and it was great to see that it was not off the back of the Italian great’s individual brilliance.

A minute later he had his goal, turning Brisbane inside out and finishing with class.

It was another magical night for the Sydney FC #10. Contributing to the team effort rather than single-handedly dragging his teammates behind him, he passed earlier than in previous weeks, as a result opening up space for himself and his teammates as the Sky Blues had Brisbane on the run time and again.

There are not enough superlatives to describe the little Italian’s performance on the night. Camping out on the left, he handed poor Ivan Franjic a footballing lesson the likes of which the quality defender has never encountered, and unlikely to again.

Will he stay or will he go? Sydney or Rio de Janeiro? J-League?

Who knows? But whatever happens, he has won new fans in the land Down Under, not solely with his array of skills but also with his professionalism, genuine humility and a workrate that belies the legs of a 38 year old. Del Piero is looking the fittest he has all season and I am certain his 11th goal, a club season record, will not be his last for the Sky Blues. 

Off the bench, Joel Chianese was excellent, his pace troubling the Brisbane backline and giving Theo nightmares. Terry Antonis once again put in a good shift, coupling his skills with dogged determination. Both young substitutes showed a few signs of rustiness but contributed strongly nevertheless.

Tactically, Frank Farina won by a knockout, his side’s dominance out wide forcing the Brisbane fullbacks to sit deep and restricting the Roar’s usual attacking options. Generally, Farina has been great for the club, and while a one year deal isn’t the long-term offer I was hoping for, it is a step in the right direction and allows him to feel certain of himself and his decisions.

Which is just as well, for his stewardship passed a test with flying colours on the eve of the match. I will not buy into the Jason Culina saga, except to say this – there can only ever be one winner in a battle of wills between player and coach.

I hope that the situation resolves itself, with a contrite Culina coming back to work and playing out the season. The club has given him much and he, in turn, has given the Sky Blues a terrific boost out on the pitch. I hope he is not lost to Sydney FC, but it has to be on Farina’s terms. There can be no other way.

It feels great to discuss a referee’s performance with three points in the pocket as in this way the writer does not appear to be suffering a case of sour grapes. Ben Williams was truly awful, Breeze-esque dare I say it, and could have cost Sydney plenty. He still may, as his completely unwarranted yellow card flashed at Emerton robs the club of the marquee’s services next weekend. While his decision to award the penalty was understandable – Stefan Nijland may have dived spectacularly, arms up in Superman fashion, but Fabio did have his leg out – Williams’ refereeing in general play was both baffling and one-sided.

And how Luke Brattan failed to receive a red card for his two-footed flying challenge on Del Piero is beyond me. Instead, Brattan got away without so much as being booked. Was Williams conscious of not favouring the home crowd? If so, his performance was a complete success.

The fifteen thousand-strong crowd made plenty of noise and deserves a share of the spoils. There was deafening support for the home side throughout the match and no doubt the players appreciated it.

The visitors, for their part, gave us a torrid time on occasions and some of their passing was a joy to behold, Ange Postecoglou’s work not entirely undone just yet. Berisha was unlucky to only finish with one goal while Mitch Nichols was quality once again. And in Nijland they have bought a very good all-round footballer who has the capacity to offer them hope in the eight remaining matches of the regular season. On the minus side, Thomas Broich isn’t a patch on the player who took the league by storm in 2010, while Brattan does not adequately replace Paartalu.

Looking ahead, Adelaide United come to town on Saturday - our Moore Park home once again becoming something of a fortress. No one knows which Adelaide will turn up – the basket case of the past few weeks or the dominant Reds of the first sixteen rounds or so, but one thing is for certain, tackles will be flying and many will be aimed at the legs of Alessandro Del Piero. They are just that kind of team and Melbourne Victory have the scars to prove it. I would hope that an experienced referee is appointed for the match.

Can we beat Adelaide? I believe we can. If Del Piero releases early once again the Sky Blues can have a field day against the likes of Malik and McKain. Should Sydney minimise the influence of Carrusca and Vidosic, the home side can take another three points and make an even stronger case for fifth spot. For mine, Vidosic has been among the best three A-League players all season, and once again looms as the danger man for the Reds.

In all, a wonderful night and an example of how well Sydney can play when we put it all together. Let’s hope the boys do themselves proud once again on Saturday night. And in the meantime, there is a little midweek game at the Santiago Bernabeu to keep us entertained.