There was only going to be one winner of the Isuzu UTE A-League Goal of the Year, with Western United defender Ben Garuccio taking out the award.
The left-back netted a sensational scorpion kick against Western Sydney Wanderers on February 20, a goal that immediately went viral across the world and has been replayed ever since.
Garuccio hadn’t scored a goal in more than four years when he crossed the white line at AAMI Park on that evening, and not even he could have predicted what happened next.
READ MORE: How the world reacted to Ben Garuccio’s stunning scorpion kick
Not only did United’s No.17 score an excellent goal in first-half stoppage time, he went one better in the second half with not only the Goal of the Year, but arguably the best goal the A-Leagues has ever seen.
In the 68th minute, United was on the attack as the ball was switched from right to left with John Aloisi’s men leading the match 2-1 at the time.
Serbian striker Aleksandar Prijovic scurried out to the left wing to retrieve the ball, opening up space for Garuccio to make an underlapping run into the penalty area.
With a defender in front of him, Prijovic bent a gorgeous cross into the box with the outside of his boot, picking out Garuccio as he made his move.
With the cross coming in just slightly behind Garuccio, the left-back had to improvise and he came up with something out of this world.
Flinging his body forward and bring his left foot through at the same time, Garuccio caught a sweet connection with the ball on the heel of his boot that sent the ball into the bottom corner and past Daniel Margush in the Wanderers goal.
After wheeling away in half celebration, half disbelief, Garuccio composed himself to help United weather the storm and hold onto a 3-2 win on the night, a victory that kick started a four-match winning streak.
The goal was shared across social media by FIFA, BT Sport and ESPN among others, gaining millions of views worldwide and widespread appreciation, and will be a moment that Garuccio himself will never forget.
