Sydney were beaten 2-1 by Western United FC on Saturday to end their regular season, having only picked up five points out of a possible 18 in the six games they played since the A-League resumed last month after a COVID-19 shutdown in March.
They have not won any of their last five games, but had built up enough of a buffer before the shutdown to ensure they sealed their fourth Premiers Plate three weeks ago as the top-placed side in the regular season.
“I still believe this side will win the Grand Final,” Sydney coach Steve Corica told reporters.
Sydney have qualified automatically for the semi-finals, which will be played on Aug. 26, and captain Alex Wilkinson acknowledged they would need to tighten up.
“Defensively we have to stop leaking soft goals. We have to be better there because defence wins championships,” he told Fox Sports.