Marched: Vitor Saba (L) of the Wanderers scuffles with Sebastian Ryall after he was sent off. Credit:Getty Images The coach questioned whether Griffiths-Jones - something of a polarising figure among players and fans - should have been selected to officiate the occasion. "I thought the officiating was poor throughout. You know, they're big games. We need officials who can handle that," Popovic said. "There was a lack of consistency throughout and that's all we ask for. I just want consistency. I don't ask for anything else. I'm not one to blame officials but there was poor officiating tonight." Refereeing decisions aside, Popovic declared his side were "our own worst enemies" as they let a comfortable lead slip away. "We got a player [Vitor Saba] sent off, which I'll have to have a closer look at, and then we had another player [Brendan Santalab] come off injured," he said. "It just went from bad to worse after that."

Under fire: referee Kris Griffiths-Jones. Credit:Getty Images Sydney FC coach Graham Arnold was brimming with delight after recording his first A-League win as Sydney coach. "Over 90 minutes we only had 15 bad minutes and that was when they scored the two goals. We gifted them those two goals," he said. "In the other 75 minutes, it was all us. I thought we played some really good stuff. When we went down 2-0, I changed the system to a 4-2-3-1, because we needed an extra midfielder, and thankfully we got that goal before half-time to give us that belief at half-time." Arnold said he could feel the game turning as soon as his players emerged from the tunnel after the main break. "I thought the second half was a barrage - we had probably 10 corners and we were down their end the whole time," he said. "But I think we can get much better because it's still taking time for the new players to gel."

Austrian striker Marc Janko, the club's new marquee player, made his debut for the Sky Blues and Arnold felt the striker would only improve. "We've got to learn when to give him the ball at the right time, and when he wants crosses put in the box," Arnold said. "And Bernie Ibini has to get used to playing with different players. It's a different system to what this team played last year and it will take time but tonight was a point in the right direction." Alex Brosque, who scored the goal which clinched the victory for Sydney, declared it a "fantastic night in our history". After spending the past few years away from the club where he is the all-time leading scorer, Brosque said his first derby experience would remain with him forever. "It was unbelievable. I've been looking forward to this for a long time. I've heard about it from players and fans and it definitely lived up to it," he said. "It was very difficult out there, which is what you expect in a derby match, when both sides are competing for bragging rights to the city and it was like that for the whole 90 minutes."