 Corica playing forSydney FC in 2008 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stephen Christopher Corica | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1973-03-24)24 March 1973 (age 51) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Innisfail,Queensland, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Innisfail United | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990 | AIS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1995 | Marconi Stallions | 103 | (14) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | Leicester City | 16 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–2000 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 100 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 43 | (14) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Walsall | 73 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2010 | Sydney FC | 106 | (23) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 441 | (67) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1989 | Australia U-17 | 2 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1991 | Australia U-20 | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1996 | Australia U-23 | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–2006 | Australia | 32 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Sydney FC Youth | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 | Sydney FC (caretaker) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2023 | Sydney FC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Auckland FC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stephen Christopher Corica (/ˈkɒrɪkə/; born 24 March 1973) is an Australiansoccer manager and former player. In December 2023, Corica was announced as the inaugural manager of A-League expansion clubAuckland FC.[2]
A technically gifted and skillful attackingmidfielder during his playing career, he representedAustralia more than thirty times and captainedSydney FC to a domestic double. Since retiring in 2010, he was an assistant and youth coach at Sydney FC, before being appointed Head Coach in May 2018. During his managing tenure, Corica was Sydney FC's longest-serving manager, winning one A-League premiership, two championships, and one Australia Cup.[3]
Corica started playing football in his home town ofInnisfail, in Far North Queensland and joining theelite player program at theAustralian Institute of Sport in 1990.[4]
On completion of the scholarship Corica signed withMarconi-Fairfield in the now defunctNational Soccer League. In his first NSL season he made just three starts, but developed to a regular selection in following years. In 1992–93 he helped Marconi to a grand final win and was namedUnder 21 Player of the Year.[5] The next two years were less successful for the Marconi and in 1995, Corica sought a career move to Europe.
Corica signed withLeicester City in theEnglish First Division (now theEFL Championship). He debuted for the club on 12 August 1995 and scored in a 2–1 win.[6] Adding to his tally was harder to come by for following games, and in February, Corica and fellow AustralianZeljko Kalac were signed by their former Leicester managerMark McGhee forWolverhampton Wanderers in a joint £1.75 million deal (the component for Corica was £1.1 million).[7] Kalac was unable to gain a work permit for Wolves and returned to Australia, but Corica remained. In four-and-a-half seasons at Wolves, Corica made over 100 appearances, although hampered by a series of knee injuries.[8][9]
Corica leftWolves in 2000, moving to Japan withJ1 League sideSanfrecce Hiroshima for two seasons, then returning to England atWalsall. In September 2004, unable to work his way into the first team, Walsall agreed to release him.[10]
Corica finally decided to return home to Australia after spending 10 years abroad, joining new A-League clubSydney FC. It was a shaky start to the new competition for Corica, sent off in Sydney's third A-League match againstNewcastle for a dangerous foul.[11] After serving a one match suspension, he repaid the club scoring just five minutes in againstQueensland Roar, and following up with a second goal later in the match. Corica retained a place in the side for much of the year as Sydney progressed to the Grand Final. A set-up fromDwight Yorke in the second half, gave Corica the only goal inSydney FC's 1–0 victory over theCentral Coast Mariners to help the team win the inauguralA-League Championship.
He remained with the club in 2006–07 and 2007–08 seasons, playing a key role in Sydney's2007 Asian Champions League campaign, scoring four goals in six matches. On 1 April 2008, he signed a one-year contract to remain at Sydney, and given his age is possible he will retire afterward. Corica had a great start to the2008–09 A-League Season after scoring a double in the Round 2 match againstCentral Coast Mariners.[12]
He became Sydney's highest goalscorer after overtakingSasho Petrovski's former record of 14, with a Penalty in Sydney's 5–2 thrashing ofPerth Glory. He became Sydney's 3rd player to reach 100 professional games for the club, with their 2–1 loss toPerth Glory on 19 November 2008 atMembers Equity Stadium. On 11 February 2010, he announced his retirement at the end of the season.[13]
On the final day of the regular season in the2009–10 season against Melbourne Victory, Corica limped off in the 20th minute due to hamstring problems. Sydney went on to win the game 2–0 and claimed the Premiership. After later examination of his injury, it was discovered that he had torn his hamstring muscle off the bone and required surgery thus ending his season.[14] He then announced his full retirement from professional football.[15]
Corica represented Australia at all youth (U17, U20, U23) and atnational team level,[4] the first Australian to achieve the feat.[16]
He represented Australia at theFIFA U-17 World Championship in Scotland in 1989. Although his team finished last in a very tough group, he did have his moments, such as scoring againstBrazil in a 3–1 loss. In 1991, he was selected for theFIFA World Youth Championship in Portugal, where Australia performed remarkably well and reached the semi-finals before losing to the hosts. He then went on to play in two Olympic Games football tournament, the first being the1992 Olympics in Barcelona, where Australia made another impressive run to the semi-finals, this time falling to Poland at the penultimate stage. Four years later, he was part of the1996 Olympics team inAtlanta. He was part of a generation of Australian players (includingPaul Okon,Ned Zelic,Mark Bosnich andZeljko Kalac) dubbed the "Golden Generation".
On 16 April 1993, Corica was given his full national team debut byEddie Thomson (former national coach) againstKuwait in a friendly match in Singapore.[17] He then went on to play for the national team, earning over 40 caps (some in non-'A' internationals) and scoring 6 goals including appearances at the 1997 and 2001 Confederations Cups. After a five-year absence from the national team, he appeared in anAsia Cup qualifier against Kuwait on 16 August 2006 as one of eight Sydney FC players called up to the national team.
Corica took over as coach for the Sydney FCNational Youth League team from the 2010–11 season.[18]
It was announced in July 2011, that Corica would become one of two Assistant Coaches to ManagerVitezslav Lavicka, along withIan Crook, who was the assistant coach at Sydney FC, underPierre Littbarski during Sydney FC'sInaugural season, in which they won the2005–06 Championship.[19]
In 2012, Corica acted as caretaker coach of Sydney FC, after the resignation ofIan Crook and until the hiring of replacementFrank Farina.
In the 2013–14 season Corica became Head Coach of the Sydney FC National Youth League once again guiding them to the Championship in a stellar season. He continued in this role in 2014–15 but towards the end of the NYL season in which Sydney FC finished fourth he was drafted into the role of Assistant Coach toGraham Arnold with the Sydney FC A-League team where they finished runners up in the Premiership and Grand Final. From 2015 to May 2018, Corica continued as the Assistant Coach to Graham Arnold on a full-time basis.
On 16 May 2018, following Graham Arnold's appointment by theAustralian national team, Corica was appointed the Head Coach of Sydney FC's senior team.[20] His first season coaching theSydney FC club was a success, with Sydney FC narrowly missing out on winning the league, however would go on to beat PremiersPerth Glory in the2019 A-League Grand Final. During that match, Corica was given a yellow card due to arguing with the referee.[3]
Corica would continue to deliver success for Sydney the following season, during aCOVID ravaged 2019–20 season. Having recruited strongly during the offseason, includingKosta Barbarouses fromMelbourne Victory,[21]Alexander Baumjohann fromWestern Sydney,[22] andLuke Brattan fromMelbourne City.[23] Sydney would go on to win the league a record-breaking fourth time by a seemingly comfortable 6 points, despite being winless in their last 5 games, which was attributed to the long season andCOVID hangover as a result of the league being suspended in March, with the final games being played mostlybehind closed doors due to theCOVID-19 pandemic in Australia.[24]
Due to COVID restrictions, the finals series was heldBankwest Stadium inParramatta in front of capacity restricted crowds. Corica would steer Sydney to a comfortable 2–0 victory over the previous season's Grand FinalistPerth Glory, before defeatingMelbourne City 1–0 in theGrand Final, courtesy of a 100th minuteExtra time goal byRhyan Grant, giving Sydney itsrecord breaking 5th A-League finals trophy.[25]
Due to restrictions in international travel and border closures associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, Corica was unable to make too many changes to the overall squad, however welcomed backAdam Le Fondre from his loan atMumbai City,[26] and Brazilian fan-favouriteBobô.[27] The season was yet again heavily disrupted by the pandemic, with the2020 FFA Cup being cancelled, as well as the club withdrawing from the2021 AFC Champions League which was being held inUzbekistan.[28][29][30]
Sydney would perform strongly, and narrowly miss out on its fifth Premiers Plate at the hands ofMelbourne City who won by two points. The2021 A-League Grand Final would be a re-match of the previous seasons, however this time Melbourne City won comfortably defeating Sydney 3–1 atAAMI Park in Melbourne.[31][32]
Going into the 21–22 season, Corica would not change the structure of the team except for a few tweaks, re-signing the bulk of the existing squad.[33][34] The team would have a poor start to the season, not winning its first game until Round 5, an unconvincing 2–1 win overWellington Phoenix. Poor and inconsistent form would plague the team throughout the season as Corica struggled to string wins together. The club would qualify for2022 AFC Champions League group stage after a 5–0 victory overPhilippines Football League clubKaya F.C.–Iloilo,[35] however the continental tournament which was being held inVietnam would be a disaster as Sydney failed to win a single group game, finishing last.[36] The poor form would continue once the team returned to Australia to see out the remainder of the 21–22 league season losing its remaining 2 games. As a result, the club missed out on the finals series for the first time since the2015–16 season.
Despite the club having its worst season in 6 years Corica was handed a 2-year extension on his contract, with the promise of guiding Sydney back into silverware contention as the club moved back to theSydney Football Stadium following a hiatus while the stadium was re-built.[37] However the season would be plagued with controversy, as star player and fan-favouriteMilos Ninkovic publicly declared that he would be leaving the club on less than acrimonious terms and sign with direct rivalsWestern Sydney Wanderers. To add further insult to injury it was announced that club academy playerCalem Nieuwenhof would also be departing the club and heading to the Wanderers without being offered a contract. Corica responded strongly by bringing inSlovakian InternationalRobert Mak,[38] andEnglish Premier League wingerJoe Lolley, the latter being the first transfer fee being paid in the clubs history.[39] Controversially, Corica also signed formerSunderland playerJack Rodwell from the Wanderers, despite his injury issues being well known. Sydney would start the season in disappointing fashion, slumping to a 3–2 loss toMelbourne Victory on the opening day of the season, with Center Back pairing Rodwell and Wilkinson both out injured.
Throughout the season, Corica struggled to maintain consistent form and the technical issues that were highlighted from the previous season had not seemingly been resolved as the club struggled to stay within finals contention. The season would reach an ultimate low pointduring the final derby of the season against the Wanderers as Sydney crashed to a 4–0 defeat, with former players Ninkovic and Nieuwenhof being involved with all the goals.[40] The humiliating result led to an increase in calls from supporters for Corica to step down or for the board to sack him, calls which had been simmering since the prior season.[41]
Corica started his sixth season in change of Sydney FC strongly, winning the2023 Australia Cup, defeatingBrisbane Roar in thefinal 3–1,[42] with new signingFábio Gomes scoring twice.[43]
On 7 November 2023, it was announced that Corica had left Sydney FC, having lost the opening three games of the2023–24 season, with his Sydney side failing to score a goal in the process.[44]
Six weeks after departing Sydney FC, newly announced A-League expansion clubAuckland FC announced Corica as their inaugural manager for the 2024–2025 season. He joins formerSydney FC team-mate andHall of Fame inducteeTerry McFlynn, who was signed as the club'sDirector of Football.[45]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Marconi Stallions | 1990–91 | National Soccer League | 17 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 17 | 0 |
| 1991–92 | 17 | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 17 | 2 | ||
| 1992–93 | 27 | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 27 | 4 | ||
| 1993–94 | 24 | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 24 | 4 | ||
| 1994–95 | 18 | 3 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 18 | 3 | ||
| Total | 103 | 13 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 103 | 13 | ||
| Leicester City | 1995–96 | First Division | 16 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 18 | 2 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1995–96 | First Division | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 18 | 0 |
| 1996–97 | 36 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | – | 42 | 2 | ||
| 1997–98 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1998–99 | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 33 | 2 | ||
| 1999-00 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 16 | 1 | ||
| Total | 100 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | – | – | 110 | 5 | ||
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 2000 | J1 League | 21 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | – | – | 25 | 6 |
| 2001 | 22 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 25 | 12 | ||
| Total | 43 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | – | – | 50 | 18 | ||
| Walsall | 2001–02 | Football League One | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 3 |
| 2002–03 | 41 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 46 | 4 | ||
| 2003–04 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 23 | 2 | ||
| 2004–05 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 73 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 82 | 9 | ||
| Sydney FC | 2005–06 | A-League | 21 | 5 | 4 | 1 | – | – | 5 | 3 | 30 | 9 |
| 2006–07 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 4 | 29 | 7 | ||
| 2007–08 | 20 | 4 | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 22 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | – | 24 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | 26 | 7 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 26 | 7 | ||
| Total | 106 | 23 | 14 | 1 | – | – | 11 | 7 | 136 | 31 | ||
| Career total | 441 | 66 | 28 | 4 | 14 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 494 | 78 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 1993 | 4 | 0 |
| 1994 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1998 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1999 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2000 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2001 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 32 | 5 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 July 1993 | Nijmegen, Netherlands |  NEC Nijmegen | 1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 15 February 1995 | Sydney Football Stadium,Sydney, Australia |  Japan | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 9 February 2000 | Estadio Playa Ancha,Valparaíso, Chile |  Chile | 1–1 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 4 | 19 June 2000 | Papeete, Tahiti |  Cook Islands | 13–0 | 17–0 | Oceania Nations Cup |
| 5 | 28 February 2001 | Nemesio Camacho Stadium,Bogotá, Colombia |  Colombia | 1–3 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 6 | 14 April 2001 | BCU International Stadium,Coffs Harbour, Australia |  Fiji | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Sydney FC (caretaker) |  | 12 November 2012 | 27 November 2012 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 000.00 |
| Sydney FC | | 16 May 2018 | 7 November 2023 | 180 | 86 | 37 | 57 | 047.78 |
| Auckland FC |  | 14 March 2024 | Present | 19 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 063.16 |
| Total | 199 | 95 | 43 | 61 | 047.74 | |||
Sydney FC
Marconi Stallions
Australia
Individual
Honourable distinctions
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Australia squads | |||||||||||||||||||
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