Victory In Melbourne

A 21st Century Portrait

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 18 May 2008 00:37:00 +0000

More often than not football and film do not make a good mix but with Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait the combination is almost perfect. The film is the creation of Turner winning artist and filmmaker Douglas Gordon and French artist Philippe Parreno and is a study of one man, Zinedine Zidane.

This film is brilliantly executed as seventeen cameras follow the every movement that Zidane makes during the course of a La Liga match between Real Madrid and Villareal in the Santiago Bernabeau Stadium.

What makes this film so good is that Zidane is captured from a range of viewpoints, from extreme close-ups to aerial views and every view in between. This not only allows the viewer to see Zizou as he moves around the field and gets involved in the play but also allows a glimpse of the various mannerisms of this intriguing player. It gives us a glimpse of how vulnerable, tiring, calculated and almost lonesome a footballer can be whilst out on the pitch doing their thing.

A soundtrack that encompasses crowd noise, ambient sounds, Zidane’s breathing and the music of Scottish group, Mogwai, compliments the footage. On occasions this soundtrack is interrupted by the voice of Zidane himself as he talks about what he does and doesn’t remember from the matches that he is involved in.

My only disappointment is that I didn’t get around to seeing this film on the big screen and only watched it at home. The reason being that this film is probably better suited to the big screen and its ability to make things larger than life. Hopefully, it gets a rerun somewhere and I do get that opportunity.

A film well worth checking out for both football fans and lovers of fine cinema. I'm not sure what David and Margaret gave this film, but I give it five stars.

Two stories, one common denominator

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Thu, 15 May 2008 11:41:00 +0000

Two books that I have read recently are worthy of a joint review as they both deal with the same subject matter, being a spectator at the FIFA World Cup. The two books being Dancing In The Streets: Tales from World Cup City by Don Watson and Australia United by Tony Wilson.

Dancing In The Streets is the story of Don Watson, a Scotsman, who follows Celtic and Leeds and his journey to the USA to follow the fortunes of Ireland at the 1994 World Cup. Twelve years later, Wilson does a similar thing and follows the fortunes of Australia at the 2006 World Cup and tells us his story in Australia United. It is probably stating the obvious that both books are by their very subject matter, similar in nature and style.

Where the two books do differ is in their location and how the locals react to the event. For Wilson he is in football mad Germany where everyone is absorbed by all the events of the tournament and wants to talk about it. In contrast, Watson is in a country that on a whole, is largely disinterested in the event and often he struggles to find bars that will show the games on TV as in New York particularly, they are more interested in the fortunes of their basketball team, the New York Knicks in the NBA playoffs than they are in their national football team.

For most of us, we will probably never get the chance to go to a World Cup and these two authors capture perfectly what it is like to be at the event that we will have been watching on television. Both Watson and Wilson manage to get to their respective World Cup Finals and the events leading up to and at the final are well worth the read especially Wilson's mad rush through the streets of Berlin makes for hilarious reading. Just as entertaining is Watson's "inter-racial" warfare with the Tongs, who object to him standing up at the final.

Both books are well worth the read and it was nice to reminisce and remember the events of the two tournaments, especially the 1994 event, whose memories were a little less clear than those of two years ago. Myself along with a friend with all things going to plan hope to attend the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, hopefully our experiences are just as enriching as those in these books.

No excuses, Gamba simply better

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 03:11:00 +0000

Mike Tuckerman, whom I asked to help out with some Gamba Osaka scouting, wrote an interesting article titled "Gamba Osaka vs Melbourne Victory: excuses at the ready?" asking who would be coming up with the excuses after last night's clash between the two teams as many were offered after their first clash. Last time around, I offered no excuses for our dramatic loss to Gamba Osaka and this time around it will be the same. Of course this time the loss wasn't dramatic, but you could see it coming.

It was good to see, Ernie Merrick bite the bullet and start Patafta much to the delight of many fans. Unfortunately, in only his second start at the Victory he was unable to deliver. He probably wasn't helped that after a busy first ten to fifteen minutes where the Victory actually played it through the midfield, the team resorted to old tactics and bypassed this area of the pitch for the remainder of the match. In contrast, as with the game two weeks ago, Gamba totally dominated the midfield and thus the game.

It is quite clear that to be competitive with teams with Japan and in fact Aisa as a whole, your midfield needs to be pretty strong technically, something which our team lacks without the influence of Hernandez. Too often our passes in midfield went astray and plays were broken up quickly. Its an area where I think all Australian teams need to strengthen and teams from the J-League would be a good starting point of where to start.

There was no real standouts from the Victory side of things, although an honourable mention probably should go to Billy Celeski, whom I thought put in a decent effort. Its a pity that he didn't have many supporters. A positive, although we did concede from a free kick, was that our defending at set pieces was a lot better overall. Standouts for Osaka was of course, Yasuhito Endo and goalscorer Masato Yamazaki, who combined for both goals. In reality you could add the rest of their midfield to that list. Also, my girlfriend liked the look of Michihiro Yasuda, put that may have been for more aesthetic reasons.

Anyway, our ACL campaign is officially over, even though we have two games remaining in the campaign. Wouldn't mind seeing a player such as Nathan Elasi getting a run in the remaining matches, to give him a taste of ACL action and some match time. It also looks like Gamba Osaka will qualify from our group after Chonburi FC drew with Chunnam Dragons in Thailand. It will be interesting to see how they progress through the rest of the tournament.

On a final and slightly silly note, my girlfriend reckoned that Leigh Broxham looked a little like "Marky Mark" Mark Wahlberg last night. I'll let you be the judge.

In praise of the ACL

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 03:55:00 +0000

While it was disappointing to go down to Gamba Osaka in the dying minutes of what had been a pulsating match, the reality is that on the night the better team probably won. Although Gamba Osaka is making a habit of scoring in the penultimate minutes of matches having done so in all of their ACL games so far this campaign. But what grabbed my attention, and it may be stating the obvious, was that ACL football is so much better than A-League football. It was my first ACL game in the flesh as I had missed the opening game against Chunnam Dragons due to work commitments. The style of play is better, the technical ability of teams comes to the fore, and of course the support is better.

Starting with the style of play. It was of much slower pace and thus more controlled than A-League, where teams try run the opposition of the park. The technical ability of our opposition was far superior and it showed. Gamba's ability to put in decent crosses time after time eventually took its toll in the end, with three of their four goals coming from the head. Mike Tuckerman, in my previous post stated that one of Gamba's most obvious strengths is their set pieces. Yasuhito Endo is probably one of the best set piece takers in Asia, and he's a constant menace over any kind of dead ball. How true were those words. Its also worth noting that they have seven current full internationals, and their last substitute Under 20 national team representative.

Our propensity to rely on the long ball was grating at times. We really missed the influence of Hernandez in the midfield, who I believe would have flourished in this style of play. When we have players such as Pace and Pantelidis in our midfield it does not bode well. Having to push players such as Ward and to a lesser extent, Caceres forward, really limits the creativity of our midfield. Standout players for the night were Celeski, Caceres, Allsopp and Muscat.

And finally to the support. The support was awesome. Everyone was talking about it after the Chunnam game but of course I didn't experience it. This time I was sitting directly opposite the North Terrace and directly above the South Terrace. The sound generated by those opposite me was fantastic and with all the oversized flags it was truly an inspiring site. Lets hope it continues in the upcoming season. Kudos also to the visiting supporters from Osaka as well, who although small in number and maybe stature, generated plenty of their own noise as well.

So obviously our chances of moving past the group stage range from pretty slim to nil after last night's result but there is much to be learnt from our first journey into Asia, not only for Melbourne Victory but for Australian clubs in general. The teams we have encountered from the J-League so far can serve as prime example of the direction in which we should be heading, especially in developing local talent.

Gamba Osaka exposed

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:39:00 +0000

With the upcoming crucial games against Gamba Osaka for Melbourne Victory in the Asian Champions League I decided to find out more about our opposition. So thanks to Mike Tuckerman, an Australian who lives in Japan and a mad Shimizu S-Pulse fan, who has provided some insight into Gamba Osaka. His blog is also worth checking out if you are a fan of the J-League as well.

1. How would you describe Gamba Osaka's style of play? What are their strengths and weaknesses?

For the past few years Gamba have been renowned as one of the most attacking sides in Japanese football. Certainly Akira Nishino is a coach who prefers free-flowing, attractive football and he has fielded a 4-3-3 formation for Gamba's last couple of league games. The problem for the Osakans is confidence. That attacking style hasn't yielded the expected results, particularly over the past two seasons. Now they seem to be at the crossroads of how they want to play, and I think they'll be very wary of the pace of Melbourne Victory.

One of Gamba's most obvious strengths is their set pieces. Yasuhito Endo is probably one of the best set piece takers in Asia, and he's a constant menace over any kind of dead ball. He's also an incisive passer of the ball, and while he is prone to go missing in games, I think the way he plays will have an important bearing on the outcome of the two matches.

As for weaknesses, Gamba have plenty at the moment. In particular their defence looks weak, and the question of where to play teenager Michihiro Yasuda is a thorny one. He's often exposed in a back four, but doesn't quite seem to have the nous to operate effectively in midfield. Confidence is always a key factor for Japanese clubs at the moment, and while Gamba have won their past three league matches in a row, they've all been scrappy wins against sides struggling with their own problems at the moment.

2. Who are the key players that Melbourne Victory should be wary of?

The key players are Yasuhito Endo and Bare.

Everything goes through Endo, and closing him down in midfield will prove key to Melbourne's chances of winning.

As for Bare, he's a predatory goal-poacher. He's not an especially skillful player, but he has the brilliant knack of always seeming to be in the right place at the right time to score crucial goals.

I'd have also suggested that former Japan international Ryuji Bando has a point to prove - both to Gamba coach Nishino and to Japan coach Takashi Okada, but Bando is injured and looks like he'll play no part in Melbourne.

3. Will there be a significant travelling contigent from Osaka?

Since there is rarely a significant travelling contingent from Osaka for J. League games, I doubt it. Osaka is a baseball town, and unlike the Kanto plain (the region surrounding Tokyo where most of the J. League teams are based) and Shizuoka (the hotbed of Japanese football), the citizens of Kansai (where Osaka is the main city) haven't quite taken to football as they have elsewhere in the country. Gamba's compact Expo '70 Stadium is generally packed for J. League fixtures, but that's just because they've been relatively successful over the past few seasons. I suspect that if cross-town rivals Cerezo Osaka had been just as successful, then most football fans in Osaka would identify themselves as Cerezo fans.
4. How are Gamba Osaka faring in the J-League in the early stages of the season?

They've flattered to deceive. As I said, they've just won three fixtures in a row, but they were arguably out-played by Shimizu S-Pulse last weekend. The early rounds of the J. League are generally fairly deceptive, and it's not until the season breaks for the summer that one has a general idea of who might challenge for title honours (although at the break last season Kashima Antlers were in fourth, some eleven points behind league leaders Gamba). I think Gamba will be particularly concerned by this trip to Melbourne, especially as it's being talked up in the Japanese press a little bit.

5. There are reports that Gamba Osaka must play three J-League games in six days before flying to Melbourne. Do you think this will have any significant impact?

It's true that Gamba have just played three fixtures in six days. The AFC Champions League is unlikely to come into consideration when the J. League draws up the fixture list, particularly with the twin concerns of World Cup qualification and the Beijing Olympics taking precedence. The bad news for Melbourne fans is that Gamba won all three of those matches! However I certainly think it will have a significant impact, particularly as the toughest of those games was the last one against Shimizu S-Pulse. With the exception of the injured Ryuji Bando, they fielded a full strength starting eleven in that game, and I think several of the Gamba players will be fatigued by the time they hit the tarmac in Melbourne.

6. What do you think the result will be?

I have no idea! Both sides are nervous about each other's capabilities, and I think it will be a cagey affair in Melbourne. I think an individual error will settle it.

Schwarzer takes away Chinese chance of Kumming glory

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:42:00 +0000

The roar that erupted in the Charles Dickens Tavern when Mark Schwarzer made his penalty save was as loud as any I have heard within its walls. I wanted to yell out: "That one's for Tibet!" but I kept my mouth shut. I did say to the two guys in front of me on the noise generated: "Its like we've scored." Their response: "Its even better than that!" And I think that most people in the extremely crowded pub agreed. A pub so crowded that my late arriving girlfriend almost didn't make it inside. Many people obviously finishing their working day early, as I had done, to take in the game.

I would have to agree with The Football Tragic that we were pretty luck to get away with a point in Kumming. It was clear early on that the Chinese had set out to frustrate a clearly undermanned Australian outfit by packing their defensive half. This seemed an odd tactic considering that the Socceroos were clearly lacking an out an out striker, particularly after the injury to Thompson and probably showed the lack of confidence within the Chinese team in front of their home crowd.

I think Verbeek got his tactics right on the night (or day as it was) with our lack of firepower that was available for the game. As said above it was helped that the Chinese played into his hands. The combination of Grella and Valeri as two holding midfielders was excellent and provided perfect foils for each other. Tactially, it was almost Capello-esque. For this combination to work in other situations a more creative midfielder is required rather than having Cullina in there as well. Myself along with the masses that were crammed into the bar, let out a groan as they realised that possibly Thompson would probably miss upcoming ACL games and that his replacement would be Brett Holman. I have never really been a big fan of Holman. Too often he appears to run around like a chicken sans head. Although at times he did appear to reverting to old habits he did his thankless job well, although not quite as well as a lot of pundits would make out.

A lot of credit for the point must also go to our defence with both North and Neill putting in outstanding performances ably assisted by Beauchamp after a slow start. Their only mistake was the failure to cover the long ball that resulted in the referee pointing to the spot. North looked really comfortable in the team and if the rumours are true he will be soon heading overseas in order to gain more game time in order to maintain his position within the squad. Newcastle's loss, but the Socceroos gain. Of concern would be the lack of width provided by both Carney and Wilkshire on their respective sides of the park.

A comment must be made about the poor performance put in by the referee, only moments after Holman received a soft yellow card for a minor shirt tug, Sun Ji Hai puts in a studs up, ankle destroying type tackle on Wilkshire and walks away without even a yellow card. It should have been a straight red and it had the patrons incensed. Although they were appeased somewhat when Valeri put in a strong tackle only moments before full time. There was also a number of dodgy calls that appeared to go against the Australians - but they always seem to do for the away team

With Qatar pulling off a surprising 2-0 victory over Asian Champions, Iraq, the Socceroos are now in a good position to progress to the next stage of the qualification process. The two games against the Iraqis, both home and away will more than likely decide who will be advancing from the group. June will also provide a feast of international football with the last four games of this qualification stage occurring in a torrid three weeks. It also provides a great opportunity for all European-based members of our squad to play regularly together in high quality games as it will be their off-season.

A more comprehensive analysis of the game can also be found here, here and here.

Word of the day: Impressive

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 09:38:00 +0000

impressive adj. capable of impressing, esp. by size, magnificence, etc.; awe-inspiring; commanding

I made my way down to Bob Jane Stadium yesterday to take in the clash between South Melbourne and the AIS and put it simply I was impressed. Impressed by the AIS and their quality of their play. Impressed by a team that wasn't intimidated by a much physically stronger and more experienced team and even took it up to their opponents. For the record the AIS team picked up a 2-0 victory, which put them in second place on the VPL table only a point behind leaders Oakleigh and with a game in hand.

Players that impressed me were Jason Naidovski, scorer of both goals and leading scorer in the VPL with 8 goals to his name; Matthew Theodore, who controlled the AIS midfield and almost got on the score sheet himself; and Luke Devere in the centre of defence, who was rarely beaten and marshalled his defence well. I am looking forward to seeing these players on a more regular basis as I am sure most of this team will be picked for either A-League youth squads or their senior squads.

To read my report on the match, click here, where I impressed myself by not using the word impressive as much as I thought I would. And as bonus you can hear me talk about the game by listening to Eamonn's Nearpost Radio Show here.

Lack of motivation and Pele reviewed

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 02:02:00 +0000

There has been a severe lack of motivation lately on my part to write anything of substance down in recent times. This is probably due to a combination of work pressures and social and sporting commitments. Although to be fair I still have been writing about football, just not on these pages. And who would have thought that after the end of the A-League season that I would be watching more football than during it. I have been in attendance at all of my newly adopted team, Richmond's first four games in the VPL which included on away trip to Fawkner. Plus doing some match reports on other games means that on most weekends I will be watching at least two games of football.

I have also been doing a fair bit of reading, most of it not necessarily football related but I am halfway through Australia United by Tony Wilson (only halfway through because my girlfriend has borrowed it and is now reading it herself) and finished off Pele: The Autobiography (Simon & Schuster, 2006). The Ball Is Round by David Goldblatt is also taunting me from my bookshelf but its number of pages and comprehensiveness is scaring me a little.

Back to that book about Pele, a player many consider to be the best that has ever been. For me, Diego Maradona is the best only because I got to see him play at his best (only on TV mind you). The book is an enjoyable read and of course it is an amazing story and is probably a better read than Maradona's own autobiography. One thing that amazed me was the number of exhibition matches that were played by Pele with his club Santos. Unfortunately for Santos they have never really again reached the dizzying heights they achieved with Pele again since his departure. For the most part, Pele is pretty up front with the things that going on in and around football but I would have to agree with Hamish, that his current career is reducing his ability to be so candid. Pele's achievements will probably never be challenged and to read about how these records were achieved is truly riveting reading. A must read for all football fans.

First silly season signing

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:08:00 +0000

Only days into the beginning of the silly season, Melbourne has made its first signing with the announcement today that Tom Pondeljak has signed with the Victory for the next two years. Pondeljak, a former Melbourne Knights player, returns to his home town to probably finish off his long career. His signing coincides with the excellent news that Nick Ward has also agreed to a one year extension on his previous six month contract. My only concern is that of recent times, Pondeljak has been a tad injury prone, but if he stays fit he should provide great support for a midfield that already contains the aforementioned Ward, Hernandez, Celeski and possibly Patafta.

In other firsts for the week, my indoor soccer team won its first ever game; I had my first crack at football journalism with a match report for a Victorian Premier League match; I bought tickets to see the Victory in its first Asian Chamionps League campaign; and not for the first time this season an A-League match was surrounded in controversy as the Newcastle Jets took out their first A-League championship. The events of Sunday have been already been well covered here, here, here and here, so there is no need for me to add my bit at this late stage.

A change in scenery

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 06:06:00 +0000

Last night I finally got round to checking out a Victorian Premier League match. I had given it thought around the same time last year but in the end I never got round to it. Probably too many other distractions - it may have been when I started taking up golf. Anyway back to the matter at hand, the match I went to was the first of the new Foxtel Cup season between Richmond Eagles and last year's champions, Preston Lions at Kevin Bartlett Reserve.

Having never supported a VPL team before, I went through and long arduous selection process in order to choose one. In fact, it boiled down to a club that had a stadium that was easily accessible by public transport from my house in Kensington. So in the end it basically came down to Richmond and South Melbourne, and I couldn't support the latter due to not liking them during their NSL days, so Richmond it was. Reading through the club history and discovering that it was origins were in the local German community and myself having the surname, Zimmerman it seemed like it was preordained.

To the game itself I thoroughly enjoyed the experience as I stood (no seats or stands here) with the small but loud supporter group based at the Heyington Bridge end of the ground. As the game progressed I slowly joined in more and more with their chanting that was in a mixture of English and German and got talking with some of the supporters. The home support was severely outnumbered by the visiting fans which was clearly evident when Preston scored their only goal for the game. Highlights of the night in no particular order for me were:

- The result, a 5-1 win to the home team over the defending champions was a good way to start the season;
- Some well taken goals - one free kick stands out;
- The availability of German beers from the club bar;
- The raffle ticket seller and her warning for us not to set off any flares as any money she raised would have to go paying the fine;
- The announcement of the winner of the match day raffle by a person carrying around a piece of cardboard with the winning ticket number written on it (unfortunately I didn't win); and
- The barman after the game giving myself and another supporter the "special" German beer, in his words something you would get at the opera. Maybe it was something you would drink at a Wagnerian opera.

After my first taste of the VPL I definitely will be back for future games, both home and away. Its an experience completely polls apart from that at an A-League match and one that has whetted my appetite, much to the chagrin of my girlfriend.

Reflections and musings on a week in football

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 10:36:00 +0000

The end has almost come on what I said earlier would be a big week of football and I have finally got round to write and muse about it.

The footballing week started off with a visit to the Telstra Dome to see Australia vs Qatar. As everyone knows the result went out our way and we all went awat very happy except maybe for the contingent of Qatari fans that were in attendance. There has much analysis from my fellow bloggers, so I will only add a small analysis of my own. The first half was great with the home team playing free-flowing, attacking football and were duly rewarded with three goals. Second half wasn't as great as the first and it was something to be expected as the jet lag kicked in for our overseas players. Standout players for me for the Socceroos in no particular order were McDonald, Emerton, Wilkshire, Carney and Moore. Was disappointed to see Thompson not get a run. I think his pace and trickery would have been useful against a tiring Qatari team in the second half, although maybe that is my Melbourne bias showing.

I was a little disappointed with the crowd, not the numbers, but the atmosphere. There was little or no atmosphere and I could barely hear the Green and Gold Army from my position on the third level. Maybe it was to do with the fact that the lure of an international game brought out a lot of non-footballing people. If Melbourne is to host more qualifying games we need to create a more intimidating atmosphere for opposition teams. We have the numbers but not the noise and atmosphere - something that is quite prevalent at Victory games. Anyway I went home happy and that's the main thing. Sad to here after the game that Craig Moore had retired from the international arena but now is a good a time as any and we thank him for his efforts for the national team.

In other news, it was disappointing to hear that Adrian Caceres would be leaving the Victory after our ACL campaign and heading north to Gosford to join the Central Coast Mariners. Obviously, he believes he is not getting the game time that he deserves under Merrick and its time to move on. It will be also disappointing for my girlfriend's dad, with whom I watch most home games, who won't get to see a player that reminded him of himself in his playing days back in Chile. On the plus side we have gained the services of Billy Celeski, who returns to his home town after a stint with Perth Glory. It will be interesting to see how he will fit into the squad. Now that Caceres is leaving will that mean more game time for players such as Berger and Patafta (that's if he stays after the loan period), let's hope so.

Finally, my indoor soccer team, Max Power made its debut during the week and we lost 14-2 in a grading match. The less said about the game is probably best although we were complimented on our team name and shirts. I did score one of our two goals and it was a bit of a golazo if I do say so myself.

Big week of football

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 10:45:00 +0000

This week promises to be a big week of football. You may think that taking in the spectacle of Australia vs Qatar on Wednesday night at the Telstra Dome would be enough to make it a big week of football. But no, there is another big football event this week. My new indoor mixed football team, "Max Power" will be making its debut on Thursday night in some grading matches all kitted out in our Barcelona "knock off" away shirts (the blue ones). In fact that night I will be playing three matches as an outdoor five-a-side team I play with will be also playing that night.

In truth this Wednesday night's match for the Socceroos vs Qatar is definitely the big football story of the week. Everyone is waiting with baited breath to see how the team will perform in their first match under new coach, Pim Verbeek. With concerns raised after their 1-1 draw with a Melbourne team that was missing a lot of its stars, will the gamble to rely on our overseas-based players pay off, even though most will only be here 48 hours before the game. This will be the first World Cup qualifying match I have attended and am looking forward to it immensely. With the likelihood that roof will be closed due to forecast rain here's hoping that the atmosphere and noise generated by a crowd close to 50,000 will both inspire the home team and intimidate the visitors.

Let's hope that this week there is victories for both the Socceroos and "Max Power".

On international duty

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:01:00 +0000

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.

A fevered review

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 09:43:00 +0000

Nick Hornby and I have a few things in common: we both love football; we both have an appreciation for music; and most obviously we have the both the same first initial. Why the comparison? The reason being I have just finished reading Hornby's Fever Pitch, an autobiographical account of his obsession with Arsenal from his first game until 1992, when the book comes to an end. This book came highly recommended from fellow football fans and I read it not long after another Hornby book, 31 Songs.

Fever Pitch is an excellent read and extremely well written (as you would expect from a writer of Hornby's calibre) as Hornby details the growth of his obsession with all things Arsenal and its subsequent impact on his life. The book obviously appeals to most football fans as they can see part of themselves in Hornby's writings. Also because of the way it is written the book has also appealed to non-football obsessives, my girlfriend included, because they see in Hornby some of the traits that they see in their husbands, wives, girlfriends and boyfriends. The book is of course a little out of date as it was written back in 1992. I wonder if Hornby still has that obsession for Arsenal, a team I abhorred during the 1990s but now for which I have a grudging respect for their style of play under Arsene Wenger.

Reading Fever Pitch also makes one analyse or question their own football obsession or interest. I like to think that my interest is not as obsessive as that of Hornby's and that my life doesn't revolve around football or a particular team. My girlfriend probably begs to differ and often complains about how much time I spend talking about football, reading about football, blogging about football and trawling forums about football. I like to remind her that I did give up going to one home game this season (my first ever) for her birthday but that apparently doesn't cut much shrift as I didn't give it up that easily. And whereas, Hornby devotes all his interest to one team and little else, my interest spreads to all aspects of football, both at club and international level and inside and outside of Australia. It will be interesting to see how my interest level changes in the years to come as I get older and my lifestyle changes.

If you haven't read Fever Pitch yet its well worth checking out.

Fitting finale

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 09:58:00 +0000

Usually I am more of an individual supporter, happy to sit in the stands and support my team. I'm not that vocal with the only time my vocal chords get a work out is when a goal is scored and I proceed to try and deafen my neighbouring supporters with my shout of joy.

But last Sunday was different as I went to my first game with the Melbourne Victory away supporters. I had been to away games before but usually amongst the home team supporters. And it was for a game against Sydney FC, the arch enemy, as we looked to deny them the chance of a minor premiership.

After two days of almost constant rain, Sydney finally produced some sunshine for game day and it was quite humid as my girlfriend, Caroline and I made our way to the pre-game pub. When we arrived at the pub it looked like most had been there for a few hours already and were clearly enjoying the beverages on offer behind the bar. The pub obviously hadn't expected the turn out and the the three bar staff were barely coping with wave after wave of Victory supporters that descended on the bar.

After us being there for just over an hour the bar emptied as we joined our fellwo supporters as we took to the streets not bothering to obey the traffic signals as the group made its way into Moore Park. Through the group's sheer numbers the traffic was powerless to do anything.

After a good twenty minutes of walking, chanting and two security checks we finally made it into the stadium. Those who had obviously done this before quickly took up their positions either in the stands or made their way to the nearby bar for another pre-game drink. The rest of us novices took up positions further back in the stands but not too distant as to create a separation in the mass of support.

As the first half kicked off so did our chanting, fearlessly lead by our capo and his lieutenants. It was not long before both the team and us as supporters were under pressure took an early lead. The noise of the home crowd descended on us like a massive wave and for a moment it felt quite suffocating. At that moment I knew what it felt like for away supporters at our home games when the Victory scored. However, amongst this noise our capo urged us on to continue our own noise and support. The team managed to hold on for the remainder of the half and were only a goal down at the break.

Not long into the second half we were back on level terms as a deflected cross found its way into the back of the net. We as one roared in celebration. A flare was lit and soon the smoke was burning our nostrils. We were ecstactic. We thought we had another shortly after but for an offside call. As luck would have it shortly have it we were again a goal down shortly after ours had been disallowed. Again that wave of noise hit us from the home fans - if anything it seemed a lot louder than for the first goal. Our capo, who looked totally spent, exhorted us again to respond. This time it was more difficult.

When we drew level again with fourteen minutes to go all you could hear was our roar as the home supporters went silent. The guys behind us had warned us that if we scored a goal his beer would go flying and true to his word we copped some beer spray during the goal celebrations. Both him and his mate then proceeded to knock me from where I was standing as they slipped on a combination of rain and beer. The remainder of the game was spent either holding our breath, mocking the opposition supporters and generally having a good time. When the final whistle came we celebrated like we had won and the players came over and showed their appreciation.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time with the active supporters. As I said in my introduction I'm usually not the vocal of supporters when by myself but when you are amongst a group you can't help be dragged along by their enthusiasm. It also helps when there is that "us" versus "them" vibe that being at an away game generates. I will be definitely be looking to become a more active supporter in the future. I won't be in the terrace every week as it will depend on the people with whom I go to games, but I will be there.

Football, Fame and Oblivion

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 10:04:00 +0000

Its not often that I make my way to the local library, preferring to buy books for future reference and reading. However, recently the local library was paid a visit and I came away with a number of books*, one of them being Best and Edwards: Football, Fame and Oblivion by Gordon Burn (Faber and Faber, 2006). Best and Edwards tells the story of two of the greatest talents to ever pull on a Manchester United jersey, George Best and Duncan Edwards and how both their careers ended in dramatic fashion. Edwards, who died in the Munich air disaster of 1958 and Best, who quit United at the age of 27 and then proceeded to drink himself into oblivion for the next 30 years.

Edwards, who died at the age of 21, was considered by many to be the greatest talent going around. It is said that if he hadn't died in Munich, we would be speaking of him now in the same breadth as Pele and Maradona. Best, will be forever known as Northern Ireland's greatest ever player and described by Pele as the most skillful he had ever seen and remember he had played with Garincha. Best was part of a team that made Manchester United a force in Europe, culminating in the European Cup title in 1968. What links these two men is that the both played under United great, Sir Matt Busby, who is quoted on the dust jacket of the book as saying:

"Every manager goes through life looking for one great player, praying he'll find one. Just one. I was more lucky than most. I found two - Big Duncan and George. I suppose in their own ways, the both died, didn't they?"

The book is basically divided into two, the first covers the brief but brilliant career of Edwards and the second, the rise and then fall of Best. The chapters on Best highlight the cult of celebrity of footballers that basically started with Best and clearly illustrates its downfalls if the player is unable to deal with it. Burn in his writing can tend be a little winded at times. Chapter 6 is a case in point which drags on for a sometimes tedious sixty pages. Interspersed amongst the stories of the two players are extracts from books used to demonstrate certain points which only seem to demonstrate Burn's mostly fictional writing background. These are a bit unnecessary and detracts from what else is a fairly good book.

This book will probably be mostly appeal to fans of British football and Manchester United. It is also good starting point for those who want to know more about these two talented players, but for a more detailed description of their playing days is mostly likely to found elsewhere.

Coincidentally, this is the 100th post I have written for Victory In Melbourne in 242 days, therefore averaging a post every 2.42 days. Some have been good, some bad, some so-so and some difficult to write whilst others have been easy. Thankyou to all who choose to read my writings and occasional rantings, hopefully you stay with me for another 100 posts or more.

* - one of the others was Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby - will be reading that one shortly.

All to no avail

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sat, 12 Jan 2008 05:21:00 +0000

Last night both myself and my fellow supporters finally got to see the Melbourne Victory play football the way we had wanted them to play all season. Well, expect for me couple of people who were sitting to my front and rear who find reason to criticise at every opportunity. Goals to Hernandez, Ward and Patafta saw the Victory record a 3-0 win over the Wellington Phoenix. For the first time since mid-October the Victory theme song rang out around the Telstra Dome. The win kept us in finals contention for at least another 24 hours until unfortunately the Jets beat the Mariners and ended our chances.

Last night I also got my wish from last week in seeing both Ward and Hernandez start on the pitch together, although Carlos was playing in a much more forward role due to the absences of Allsopp through a virus. The combination worked well and complimented each other effectively. This combination bodes well for our ACL campaign.

Special mention should go to Sebastian Ryall, who at only 18 years of age is making a name for himself in the Victory defence. Time and time again he made crucial tackles and never looked panicked. As the weeks go by he is looking more and more comfortable on the ball. Playing in a backline that has both Muscat and Vargas in it has probably helped his development.

Kaz Patafta has been one of my favourites for the year almost to the point of stalking and it looks like my fellow supporters are also becoming fans as a huge roar erupted around the stadium when he came on as substitute in the 75th minute. He responded in kind with his first goal for the club and our third for the night, a well taken goal from a tight angle after Thompson scuffed a shot. I don't think I would get any disagreement by saying that he has been under utilised throughout the season and Merrick and his coaching staff have to take some blame for that. Its unlikely that he will stay beyond his loan period but I will probably maintain my "stalking" although from a much greater distance.It looks like our good run of form came to nothing and we only have ourselves to blame, our style of football for the majority of the season has been poor and we didn't really deserve a position in the finals. I am off to Sydney next week for our final game of the season and my first away game where I sit/stand in the "away" end. I am looking forward to it even though there is nothing to play for. But I hope the boys put one last final effort and stop those boys in baby blue from taking out the minor premiership.

Bottom image "borrowed" from The Age.

A speck of blue in a sea of orange

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 22:36:00 +0000

One should never allow an opposition supporter choose wear you sit at an away game. Last Saturday night was my second away trip to Brisbane to see the Victory take on the Queensland Roar at Suncorp Stadium. After days of rain, which I enjoyed on Stradbroke Island, Brisbane was at its balmy best for the match. I have a few friends up north who support the Roar and attend these away games with these people. Therefore I was always going to be sitting amongst opposition supporters. However, this time I was deep in enemy territory sitting in the Northern Stand barely fifty metres from "The Den". As I made my way to our seats I was subjected to many a good natured jibe from the Roar fans.

The first half was a fairly tense affair and a pretty ordinary performance from the Victory as the Roar basically camped in our half of the pitch. I thought it was going to be a long night as the team barely created any chances and were being dominated in the midfield. There was a lot of wasted possession and long balls that went to nobody. Luckily for us, Queensland failed to take advantage of their dominance and the score remained 0-0 at half time.

With the second half came a change of mood as twice I leapt to my feet scarf raised amongst the sea of orange as we went two goals to the good. On both occasions I was on the receiving end of some projectiles, namely empty beer cups and coke bottle or two. Luckily none were full and most missed their target and no harm was done. My girlfriend, Caroline, who also joined in the celebrations, didn't cop anything as she wasn't wearing Victory colours. For the next 25 minutes I sat nervously as the Roar went on the attack. The crowd of just over 21,000, a season high, roared into life as Marcinho pulled one back for the Roar and also had very good claims for a penalty as Muscat appeared to handled in the box. For once this season the luck and the call went out our way and the claims were waved away. The sea of orange was livid and vented their frustrations on referee, Matthew Breeze. For the second year running I managed to walk out of Suncorp Stadium with a smile on my face.

Our finals hopes are still alive, although barely as a win or probably even a point to Newcastle in either of the final two rounds will see the official end of our chances and those of fellow 2007 grand finalists, Adelaide. Standout players for me on the night were Theoklitos, Vargas, Thompson and Hernandez with honourable mentions going to Allsopp, Ryall and Muscat. Its good to see Allsopp gaining confidence in front of goal, although to be honest its a little late in the season. Hopefully it continues through to our ACL campaign. I would like to see Hernandez and Ward both start the next game to see how they work together and unfortunately for Caceres that probably means a spell on the bench.

Next is our final home game for the season, barring an unlikely finals appearance, against Wellington. Heres hoping our winning streak continues and the guys below have some more to cheer about.

The bottom photo appears courtesy of smurfie_77 and also appears in the Victory In Melbourne Flickr Group.

Three get Socceroos call-up

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 05:27:00 +0000

Today, new Socceroos head coach Pim Verbeek picked 22 players from the A-League for a training camp to be held in Sydney next week. While not a final squad for the Qatar match, it makes for interesting reading. Three Victory players got the call up, being Muscat, Thompson and Vargas who has been rewarded for his consistency over his two seasons in the league. Disappointment must have been felt by Michael Theoklitos, who along with Covic have been the outstanding keepers of the season in the A-League.

To be honest I am a little surprised at some of the selections, with names such as Corica, Durante, Coyne, Talay, Matt Thompson and Pondeljak springing to mind. It is also worth noting that Graham Arnold has also called up fifteen players from the Olyroos squad for a camp as well. Players such as Milligan, Djite, Vukovic and Musalik in that squad would also be under consideration for the full squad. It would also provide them with excellent preparation for the Olympics. The absence of Craig Moore from the squad raises a few questions, as one would expect a player of his experience to be an automatic selection. This is reported to be the first of two camps before our first qualifying match. It will be something of interest to see if the squad changes between camps as Verbeek sees them first hand and takes in more A-League matches.

It is also interesting to read that Verbeek thinks that an all A-League squad for the Socceroos may not be up to the task of beating Qatar on February 6 and will most likely call up European-based Australians for the game. It is good to seek Verbeek not taking the Qataris lightly and demanding improvement in the local competition.

Squad: John Aloisi (Central Coast Mariners), Clint Bolton (Sydney FC), Alex Brosque (Sydney FC), Simon Colosimo (Perth Glory), Steve Corica (Sydney FC), Ante Covic (Newcastle Jets), Jamie Coyne (Perth Glory), Travis Dodd (Adelaide United), Andrew Durante (Newcastle Jets), Adam Griffiths (Newcastle Jets), Joel Griffiths (Newcastle Jets), John Hutchinson (Central Coast Mariners), Matt McKay (Queensland Roar), Kevin Muscat (Melbourne Victory), Jade North (Newcastle Jets), Lucas Pantelis (Adelaide United), Tom Pondeljak (Central Coast Mariners), Ufuk Talay (Sydney FC), Archie Thompson (Melbourne Victory), Matt Thompson (Newcastle Jets), Rodrigo Vargas (Melbourne Victory), Alex Wilkinson (Central Coast Mariners)

Victory makes for easy listening

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 02:07:00 +0000

Being not able to get myself in front of a TV due to New Year's Eve commitments I had to resort to listening to old friends, Zappers and Trimmers on SEN for my Victory versus Mariners football coverage. Listening to the game makes any objective comments about the game quite difficult as the boys from SEN aren't what you would call impartial.

From what I heard it sounded like we finally put in a performance that is worth talking about and the 5-2 scoreline surely points to that. The result certainly put me in a good mood for the remainder of the night about until we had to try find a way home from the CBD. Nick Ward made his full debut for the squad and by all accounts his hard running in the midfield had a significant impact. Good performances were also put in by regular performers, Thompson and Theoklitos.

The win has huge ramifications within the A-League and mathematically we are still are chance to make the finals. The proviso on this is that we have to win our last three games and hope results go our way in the other matches. Maybe I was a little premature with my performing of the last rites on our season. Our win would have certainly pleased the guys (one Roar Fan and two SydneyFC fans) with whom I watched Sunday night's Perth Glory/Queensland Roar match as it put the Roar on top of the ladder for the start of the new year and gives Sydney still hope of taking out the minor premiership. Wellington's win over the Jets also keeps them in with a chance of finals. The new year will make for an interesting one in terms of the final weeks of the A-League season.

Speaking of the next three weeks, they will be extremely hectic for myself as I will be taking in all three remaining Victory games live, including two away trips, one to Brisbane and the other to Sydney. Slotted in between them will be our last home game against Wellington Phoenix. I am looking forward to the away trips, in particular the Sydney one as I have never done this trip and it will be my first time in the "away" end. So northern states, you have been warned, Victory In Melbourne is heading your way looking for some wins and a finals charge. Optimism may be returning, the next three weeks will tell.

You write fiction

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 05:08:00 +0000

That's the quote attributed to Joseph Blatter that appears on the back of Foul! by Andrew Jennings (Harper Collins, 2007), probably one of the most controversial books about football every written. Jennings exposes a culture of endemic corruption that runs throughout all facets of the largest sporting body in the world, FIFA. He is particularly scathing on his main targets, Sepp Blatter and Jack Warner. Other continental federations also rate a mention and Asia's very own Mohamed Bin Hammam cops a spray.

Both Hamish and The Football Tragic have posted excellent reviews on this book, which are probably much better than anything I can hope to write and I would be repeating much of what they have to say. I have probably the benefit of reading a slightly later edition which now includes the Jack Warner ticketing scandal of the 2006 World Cup and the VISA/Mastercard sponsorship farce that preceded that event. For those that have read the slightly early edition, it is certainly worth having a look at these couple of new chapters.

I highly recommend this book for all lovers of our beautiful game as it is a well written expose by one of the best investigative journalists going around. The first chapter is one of the most enthralling pieces of writing that I have come across. My only criticism of the book is that Jennings tends to repeat facts and stories in various parts of the book which tends to be a tad annoying at times.

If you want to keep up to date, with Andrew Jennings ongoing investigations into FIFA in both print and on film, check out Transparency In Sport.

Shameless plug

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 10:22:00 +0000

Back in my not too distant past I was once told by a distinguished lady told that I had a good voice for radio. Now you can be the judge of that as I was kindly asked by Eamonn of Football In The Capital to make a guest appearance for his Christmas special on his Nearpost Radio Show. The show is going to air on Christmas Day at 6:30pm on 2XX 98.3fm. For all those outside the Canberra area, the show will be available shortly after the show as a podcast at Football In the Capital. Not only do you get hear my dulcet tones, but also the people behind Football Down Under & Beyond, The Football Tragic, MVFC Blog, The Round Ball Analyst and Totally Football. Hopefully it makes for interesting listening.

I will now take this opportunity to wish all my readers (there's about five or six of you out there) and my fellow football bloggers a safe and festive season. May all your football teams do well in the coming year unless of course they are playing Melbourne Victory.

Tough ACL draw

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 06:23:00 +0000

The draw for the Asian Champions League has just taken place at AFC headquarters. Melbourne Victory has been drawn in Group G alongside Chonburi FC of Thailand, Gamba Osaka of Japan and Chunnam Dragons of South Korea. This group is extremely tough and it will be a challenge for the team to get out of the group stages, remembering that only the top team qualifies for the next plus our current form isn't providing fans with much hope.

I am looking forward to the Champions League matches as it will be a great opportunity for football fans to witness a different style of football than they normally see week in week out. I am hoping both the Japanese and Korean teams have a healthy travelling contingent as they are reknown for the great support. Lets see how they match the support of the Melbourne fans. The guys at MVFCblog have provided a brief background to the teams and how they qualified for the tournament, and I will try to give you a brief history of these teams.

Chonburi FC
Chonburi FC is from the Chonburi Province in the eastern part of Thailand and plays its home games at the Chonburi Municipality Stadium, which has a maximum capacity of 5,000. They are nicknamed the Chonburi Sharks. The club was promoted to the Thai Premier League in the 2006 after it had won the Thai Provincial League in which it had participated since 2002. The team finished ninth in their first season in the Premier League. Chonburi FC qualified for the tournament by winning the Thai Premier League comfortably by nine points from its nearest rival, Krungthai FC, in only its second season in the top flight.

Gamba Osaka
The origins of this team hark all the way back to 1980, and began life as Matsushita Industrial Electical Company Football Club. Gamba was one of the original members of the J-League in 1992 and took out its first J-League title in 2005. The team has qualified for the tournament by winning the 2007 J-League Cup and will also participate in the inaugaral Pan-Pacific Championships to be held in late February against American and Australian opposition. This will obviously gives us some indication of where we stand in terms of standard. They finished the recently completed J-League season in third place behind eventual champions, Kashima Antlers and Urawa Red Diamonds. The team is based out of the 1970 Osaka Expo Stadium which has as a capacity of 21,000 people.

Chunnam Dragons
Chunnam Dragons are based in the South Korean city of Gwangyang, and joined the K-League for the 1995 season. They have never won the K-League title with their best performance being runner-up in 1997. They have qualified for the tournament by winning the Korean FA Cup, a title which they have won previously in 1997 and 2006. They play their home games at the Gwang-Yang Stadium which has a capacity of approximately 14,000. They finished the recently completed K-League campaign in tenth position.

In mourning

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 12:58:00 +0000

A different kind of review

noreply@blogger.com (Neil) — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 11:49:00 +0000

This week's match review is going to be a little different as I was unable to attend my first ever Melbourne Victory home game due to clash between the game and the birthday festivities of my lovely, football-suffering girlfriend, Caroline. However I managed to keep in touch with what was going on only a few kilometres away through regular messages from fellow bloggers, Cecilia and Peter, for which I am extremely grateful. So here are the messages in chronological order that I received during the game illustrating their thoughts on the game that I thought I would share with you all and as my token effort of a review.

7:04pm
Kaz AND Hernandez starting.

7:12pm
Muscat gives away a free outside the box. Wasted as it hits an MV for a corner. Nothing comes from it really. Shit! Replay shows MV player's hand caused the corner and he was in the box.

7:22pm
Fuck. We're down. Controversial but I think he was on.

7:23pm
Or not. I dunno. I'll need replays for that. Still, no one was on Agostino. . . Our funeral.

7:27pm
We're all transporting the ball too much. Then we either pass it late so AU get it or pass it like shit because we've been running and out of puff.

7:35pm
0-1. Totally offside.

7:35pm
Kemp moves the microphone, cables and the kitchen sink for a corner. Shit corner as per usual.

8:12pm
Damn. Adelaide score again. EXACTLY the same goal. We don't learn.

8:13pm
0-2 damn it.

8:17pm
Djite on for Giraldi. Oh shit. :(

8:32pm
Penalty 4 us.

8:33pm
1-2 now 20 2 go

8:34pm
1-2 Muscat penalty

8:45pm
Burns may have pulled his hamstring. :( He may also be feigning. :( :(

8:54pm
GOAL!

8:55pm
2-2 own goal

8:58pm
Full time. 2-2

9:05pm
2-2