Simon Colosimo of Sydney during their round one A-League match between Sydney FC and the Melbourne Victory in Sydney. (AAP Image/Jason McCawley)
Peruse the various A-League forums in cyberspace, and many fans are claiming that this Sunday’s minor premiership showdown between Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory is the most important match in the A-League’s five-year history.
Some supporters have gone as far as suggesting that the Valentine’s Day encounter is the biggest domestic club game ever played in Australia.
I’m sure many former NSL fans will have something to say about that, but there’s no denying that Sunday’s fixture bears all the hallmarks of a classic.
Only two points separate Ernie Merrick’s league leaders from Vitezslav Lavicka’s premiership chasing Sydney FC, and both teams are desperate to sew up the title and the place in the 2011 AFC Champions League that comes with it.
Add to that the fact that Gold Coast United are just a point behind Sydney FC and the seeds are sewn for a tense afternoon in the harbour city – even if the Sky Blues will know the result of Gold Coast’s clash with North Queensland Fury by the time they take to the pitch.
Precisely where they take to the pitch is the question on everybody’s lips, as rumours abound that last weekend’s Edinburgh Military Tattoo did significant damage to the surface of the Sydney Football Stadium.
Whether that forces Sydney FC to move the much-anticipated fixture to Parramatta Stadium remains to be seen, but less than 8,500 fans turned out at the same venue last weekend – albeit in miserable weather conditions.
With showers once again forecast for next weekend, thousands of fans may prefer to stay home and watch the action unfold live on Fox Sports.
That won’t take away from the tactical battle at hand, as the A-League’s stingiest defence aims to keep the most free-flowing attack at bay.
Vitezslav Lavica has undoubtedly moulded a tight-knit unit in his first season in charge, and in Simon Colosimo and Stephan Keller, the Sky Blues possess the sort of hard-nosed central defence that every coach dreams of.
Melbourne are of course missing their self-appointed hard man Kevin Muscat through suspension, but surely of greater concern to coach Ernie Merrick is the absence of injured talisman Archie Thompson.
The dubious signing of Central Coast Mariners striker Nik Mrdja aside – Thompson’s absence hits hard at precisely the wrong end of the season, even if Carlos Hernandez is currently in sparkling form.
The tireless Matthew Kemp could also miss the entire finals series, and the absence of key players may hand the advantage to Sydney FC should the pair meet once again the finals.
Sydney’s major concern this season has been a lack of goals, and marquee man John Aloisi is still looking to silence the critics despite his two-goal haul last weekend.
The stage could be set for the former Socceroo to wreak havoc on a depleted Victory defence, as Aloisi looks to stamp his authority on a Sydney side that his missed fellow striker Mark Bridge for long stretches of the campaign.
It’s a dream match-up for both the marketing men and women and the football purists, as Australia’s two biggest clubs go head-to-head in what what promises to be a fascinating stoush.
Whether it truly is the biggest A-League clash ever played is debatable, but there’s no question that FFA officials have got the final day blockbuster they desperately craved.
The weather might be lousy, a couple of key players are crocked: but this is precisely the kind of Valentine’s Day showdown fans were hoping to fall in love with when the A-League kicked off.
If there’s only one thing left to wish for – besides a decent playing surface – let’s just hope that it doesn’t end in a scoreless draw!
Isen
Guest
You know this competition is going somewhere when Sydney FC is expected to draw 30 K +
albatross
Roar Pro
Plus on a Sunday evening in muggy weather with the match live on TV, there are better places to be in western Sydney. In addition there us virtually no public transport in the region at this time on a Sunday. One real issue with Parra Stadium is that there is not much nearby parking and Western Sydney Rovers will have to confront this at some time.
Australian Football
Roar Guru
This healthy hate thread is building quite nicely ;) I am going to wait until the end of the week before I publish my thoughts on this fixture.. I don't like to see grown men reduced to tears too early before the event.. :D ~~~~~~~ AF
roary
Guest
Yeah, went to that. It ended up 0-0, you could see people saying to themselves they were suckered in with the hype. The game lost a bit of it's momentum that night. They play the stupid, brainless long ball, kick and hope tactic too much.
roary
Guest
Bring it on! This is what soccer passion is all about. Without that, it is just, ahh, like basketball. Melbourne to win the fights and the match.
MV Dave
Guest
"That was in Melbourne and the league really looked like it was going somewhere then." Ahh yeh that was when there was no Youth League, no W League, no acadamies, no expansion, no huge new TV deal in prospect, no increased number of games, no ACL, no current Socceroos returning to the league....geeez Altra you know, l think that for a 5 year old comp HAL is doing very nicely and heading in a very good direction. ps you might want to check out some action this week at SFS or the finals in a few weeks time or some ACL action coming up.
Altra
Guest
That was in Melbourne and the league really looked like it was going somewhere then.
MV Dave
Guest
Looks like rain, rain and then more rain is the forecast for Sydenee this weekend. The condition of the pitch will therefore be a significant factor...but will a heavy/bumpy pitch favour MV or SFC? MV have certainly played on some poor quality pitches at ES this season and in the long run that may make a difference...in the end however MV dont need to win and with AT missing will probably have a more cautious approach. SFC need to score and this will allow MVs counter attacking game to flourish. l still think it will end up a draw with most if not all, of the goals in a 2-2 draw coming in the last 25 minutes. It is certainly the biggest H&A game in the HALs short 5 year history and if the weather is reasonable 30,000 plus would be expected. Hopefully this fixture will be repeated in about 5 weeks time in the GF this time in front of 55,000 at ES!
Macs.football
Roar Rookie
Hopefully the day after the game the headline in the Sydney Morning Herald will be "Valentine's Day Heartbreak".
Rhys
Guest
Getting 8.5k at Parramatta was pretty good considering the 200mm of rain the area had gotten in the days leading up to the clash.
Al
Guest
I'd take a 7-0 Melbourne win!
Towser
Guest
So what if it is ingrained Mike. It was ingrained in the casual fans mind that the NSL was a wogs competition. You should know better than most that our acceptance into Asia changed football in Australia. Part of that, is respect for being able to participate in the ACL. To call someone minor premiers when they get a spot in that competition is in my book an insult. Its something other sports dont have in Australia & changed the parameters of the domestic League. Australians cant have it both ways. The only reason that football in Australia has forged ahead in the last 5 years is Asia. Sorry Asia, we call it minor premiers. Sorry Australia, you dont respect our competitions back to Oceania & oblivion.
Brett McKay
Guest
what money on headlines of "VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE" should it be a large margin... Not that I think it will be....
Tom
Guest
MV v Sydney got 50,000 in season 2 but Adelaide have never drawn the same crowd except for finals. For the record, the result was a nil all draw. Don't expect too many of the travelling fans to be disappointed if its the same result this time round.
Mike Tuckerman
Expert
Point taken, Brendo. Although I think it's a shame that the FFA had to run with the premiers/champions tag given that it confuses many of the A-League's more casual fans, when the concept of minor premiers/premiers is already ingrained in our sporting psyche.
whiskeymac
Guest
should be a good game but ashame its not in Melbourne re:atmosphere. went to the game at parra. wasnt bad and the support was vocal and appreciative but the game wasnt exaclty advertised that well and in mnay respects shows that SFC, to engage with the region, needs to do more than just turn up (and only then because their SFS is trodden on by the tattoo). i noted one corner had a WS banner in red and black.... Western Sydney supporters already? maybe the truth is is that SFC is not resonating beyond strathfield becaus they have never tried too and this explains the turn out.
Ben of Phnom Penh
Guest
I can't remember the game however I seem to recall MV v AUFC getting 52,000 odd for a regular season game. Still, it's a great promotion for the game and hopefully the Sydney fans show up.
Art Sapphire
Guest
We don't trade in excuses down in Melbourne. No one in Melbourne has complained about Muscat's punishment.
Brendo51
Guest
Wow, after just finishing Adrians article about the lack of media using the correct term for the winners of the plate (ie Premiers) what do I find but the very next article on Roar is your using "Minor Premiers". What hope do we have when even passionate football writers such as yourself as referring to it as the MINOR premiership.
Punter
Guest
Of course the Melbourne Victory have a ready made excuse if they do lose, that the Sydney Bias FFA rubbed out that thug Muscat for this match.