Adrian,
Welcome to the forum
A tip that may help a bit with your glare problems. Get a couple of red manilla folders and make a tube out of them that goes around the end of your scope - an extension to your scope. Fix them on with velcro bits and this should help with the glare. One of the main problems with light pollution is off axis light getting into your focusere and wrecking the contrast of your image. By extending the tube it is not possible for the incidental light to get into the focuser and this helps.
As for good places in Sydney, they are a rare beast as the light pollution is all pervasive. I live in the Blue Mountains and get a great view of the wasted light from Sydney every night. You will be able to moderate the effects of the light pollution while in Sydney but the only real way to get great views is to pack the beast into your car and travel to a dark site in the mountains or up the coast.
Have you contacted your local astro society, they will have some inside knowledge we don't have about little areas that are better in your area?
Keep looking up.