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Its been a long-time coming but the very first Melbourne derby is nearly upon us. As the cliche goes, this is history in the making and the first chapter is set to be a fiery encounter.
When a second Melbourne franchise was announced I was very skeptical. In fact, I still am. In my opinion, if you want a two team city to be successful both clubs should be introduced at the same time. This way it gives people a choice. Of course in this situation one team is bound to be more successful than the other, but at least they both start out on even ground and have something to build on.
When the A-League was formed a Melbourne franchise was considered to be the toughest market to crack. As we now know though it turned out to be a huge success. Melbourne Victory became a team for all Melbournian’s and all Victorians.
So when you introduce a new team after all the success the Victory has had, what’s left for the Heart to tap into? Sure there’s plenty of football supporters who haven’t taken to the A-League yet, but if they didn’t care the first time around why are they going to care now? Anyone in Melbourne who truly cares about the development of football in Australia has already sided with the Victory.
I think the 3,000 or so supporters that Heart have managed to round up kinda speaks for itself. I don’t even think solid on field success can help them. Look at Sydney. They win the Premiership/Championship double and the next season they’re setting club and league records for the lowest attendances ever. If the reining Champions can’t gain any decent support then how can the Heart, entering an already flooded sporting market possibly survive? This town really isn’t big enough for the both of us.
So as the derby looms I wonder how long will it last? Yes, the Heart have done all the right things off the field, but don’t underestimate the importance of fan support. Who are their supporters? Who are they playing for? All this nonsense about them being the club for “purists” is not going to guarantee you supporters.
For rivalry sake and for the sake of the A-League the Heart need to be successful. If they were to fold it would be a massive step backwards.
However, if they are to fail, the sooner the better. I know that sounds contradictory but at least it would give more worthy regions/states/cities a chance, such as Canberra and Tasmania.
On the positive side tickets for Friday night’s match have been selling fast and a sell out is not out of the question. Most of those people will be Victory supporters of course and a few curious first timers no doubt.
Whatever the future holds though the first match will surely be very special. Don’t miss it.
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