Victory in Melbourne 

Last nights game made me angry. I’m not sure whether I was angry  at Archie Thompson for being so stupid for calling Matthew Breeze what he did and being sent off and thus missing the clash next against Sydney (even if it is possibly true - can’t give me a red card Mr Breeze); angry at Matthew Breeze for reacting angrily to Thompson’s comments and giving the red card; angry that we conceded a late goal again after going to ten men; or angry at the way the team played.

To put it simply, the Victory came across a team that responded to a week of heat from their coach. They were more hungry and for long periods of the game dominated all aspects of the match. The absence of Lopez from the Victory enabled the Jets to dominate this area of the pitch and Hernandez struggled without his fellow countryman, being constantly double and triple teamed.

The red card for Thompson, will surely be the talking point of this match. Clearly frustrated by the lack of opportunities provided to him and the fouling when he did get the ball, he snapped when Breeze failed to call a foul. Breeze, who always seems to be at the centre of controversy, had no hesitation in bringing out the fourth red card in five matches for the Victory. Probably a bit harsh in my opinion, a yellow and a talking to would have sufficed.

Merrick has finally admitted that the team does have an issue with discipline. Constant red cards are slowly bringing down what was a promising start to the season and is costing us in important matches, especially the upcoming match in what will be a top of the table clash against Sydney.

On a brighter note, the Melbourne Youth team picked up their first every win in their inaugral season, with Matthew Theodore (who impressed me in his time with the AIS) scoring the only goal. I wonder if Ernie, will bring in Nathan Elasi from the youth team to replace the suspended Thompson.

It was nice to get back on the winner’s list last night with a 4-0 thumping of Perth. But as the title suggests the opposition, to put it simply were quite ordinary. Could you imagine what the scoreline would have been if Melbourne were at full strength with Hernandez and Fabiano available, it could have been quite scary. And to be honest I got a little bored throughout the second half and spent most of it watching and listening to the Northern Terrace (shown above) in action.

The crowd of 18,000 was quite disappointing but the odd kick off (5pm on a Saturday) would have contributed to the number of people not being able to attend along with the prospect of seeing Perth in action. Thankfully we only play them once at home this year. Crowd numbers should be boosted for the next home game, which in all likelihood will be a top of the table clash against Sydney. Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend :(.

It was good also to see Danny Allsopp back on the scorer’s sheet with a double, which was also especially good for my A-League Fantasy Football team as he is my captain. It was also amusing to see Archie Thompson efforts to get on the scoresheet were more often than thwarted by his teamates much to his frustration.

Not much else to write about the game in general but after playing every team once its great to be sitting solely on top of the table with things looking promising heading into the international break. Hopefully it can continue for the rest of the season.

As I said in my previous post, I was a little excited about Friday night’s game - first home game of the season and against Newcastle, a team for some reason I despise. Probably something to do with Joel Griffiths I’m sure. The afternoon pre-game was put also to good use, baiting members of my work’s Newcastle office.

Maybe, it was the first game of the season, or the fact there was no way I was going to wear my MV shirt from last year with “Patafta” on the back or most probably the effects of the beer drunk at after work drinks but I decided to dress up for the occasion - tie, vest, jacket, nice shirt, pants and shoes - you know the deal. Only problem, I don’t know how to tie a tie (don’t have to wear one for work) so I quickly learnt.

Anyway I was well rewarded for my dress sense with a 5-0 thumping of Newcastle and some excellent play from the Melbourne boys. The match started off slowly and I thought for a while it was going to be one of those nights where we dominate and then Joel Griffiths pops up in the 80th minute and bangs in the only goal of the game. But with a bit of tactical genius by Ernest Merrick (something you don’t hear me say to often), substituting an injured Thwaite for Archie Thompson, the flood of goals started as the Newcastle defence was made to look very ordinary. The main culprits being North and Covic.

There was a lot to be pleased about on Friday night - especially the way we played, but for me the standout players would have to be Hernandez, Lopez and Berger. An honourable mention goes to Ney Fabiano, who was unlucky not to get amongst the goals despite tireless running all night. I probably noticed his running more than mainly because of his running style. Make sure you have a look next time - its a bit odd. I am really enjoying our style of play at the moment and it makes for much more enjoyable viewing than what we were seeing same last season.

Was a bit disappointed with the crowd of only 22,000 - thought there would have been a few more with it being the first game of the season and all, but I guess everyone wasn’t as excited as I was. Hopefully in a couple of weeks time there will be a crowd of 30,000+ as we take on fellow league leaders, Adelaide.

And finally if you want to see me all dressed up for the game, visit here because it probably won’t happen again.

Whilst Kevin Muscat, Rodrigo Vargas and Archie Thompson all are in camp hoping for an international call-up against Qatar next Wednesday night, Melbourne Victory’s very own Carlos Hernandez is already on international duty with Costa Rica. Los Ticos took on a coachless Iran in an empty Azadi Stadium (a stadium I would very much like to visit) and by all accounts the match was a rather drab affair finishing 0-0. For match reports click here and here. It is good to hear that Hernandez’s choice of playing in Australia hasn’t harmed his chances of international selection. Game time in this match and in an upcoming match against Jamaica will keep him match-fit for our upcoming ACL campaign.

It is also interesting to note that fellow AFC heavyweights, Iran, are only to gain the services of their new coach, Javier Clemente, days before their first World Cup qualifier against Syria. Certainly interesting times for Team Melli.

Image “borrowed” from the Tehran Times.