Victory in Melbourne 

One of the big stories of the 2009 Victorian Premier League so far has been the rise of Dandenong Thunder. Playing their first ever season in the state’s premier football competition they have been a relevation remaining undefeated after eight rounds, with seven of those being wins. They currently sit on top of the table, six points clear of their nearest rival.

I had my first experience of the phenomenon that is the Dandenong Thunder on Friday night as they took on the Richmond Eagles at the Kevin Bartlett Reserve. In what was a highly entertaining match the Thunder ran out 3-2 winners. All the goals were of the highest quality, although I did think the first goal by Dandenong had a touch of offside about it as the Thunder caught the Richmond defence napping in the first minute. But that may just be my pro-Richmond side showing through.

Although disappointed by the fact that Richmond lost the match you had to marvel at the number of supporters that were there to support Dandenong. The Thunder, are a team that has a strong following in the Melbourne Albanian community, bring a huge amount of support to away games. Against teams such a team as Richmond, who have only a small dedicated group of fans, make an away game feel like a home game.

It will certainly be interesting to see how the Thunder progress through the remainder of the season, as the more experienced heads of the big name clubs will certainly look to bring them back to the field and try and cut them down to size. For my sake, I hope Richmond can bounce back from the defeat and maintain their position in the top five.

I have been really enjoying the Victorian Premier League of late. This is particularly due to the fact that the Richmond Eagles are sitting on top of the table after five rounds and are yet to taste defeat. We are also in the great part of the season when the weather is still relatively balmy and not too many layers of clothing are required. Local football is also my topic of discussion for my latest blog post for au.fourfourtwo.com which can be read here.

In order to keep myself amused during the A-League off season I have taken to writing reviews and previews for au.fourfourtwo.com of the goings on in 2009 season of the Victorian Premier League. You can read my first effort here.

Was out at a freezing CB Smith Reserve covering the match between Fawkner and the AIS when a nearby gentleman asked if I had a spare pen. Being the kind soul that I am I fumbled around in my bag and found him one. It was only after I had handed it over that I realised who it was. It was Socceroo great, Alan Davidson who obviously checking out some of the AIS talent on show and needed my pen to take some notes. I would have let him keep it, but he was kind enough to return it with a knowing wink.

That is all. Obviously nothing to do with the Victory of course.