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As the cheers of the swathe of red-clad fans reverberated around Olympic Stadium, I was left with a broken heart.
The game was certainly a winner for Manchester United. The same cannot be said for the A-League.
In the tentative opening period of the game, I felt apprehensive. My hands were sweaty. My heart beat so hard I was scared it might break out of its skeletal cage.
This was not because of the match, however. An over-hyped pre-season game against the red enemy would hardly get the blood pumping through my veins.
What I was more worried about was what the match stood for. It was a chance for the A-League to prove its worth. Fans, coaches, players and board members of rugby league, rugby union and AFL clubs alike have begun to acknowledge the A-League as a serious marketing threat.
The final frontier: those football fans in Australia who continue to degrade the A-League, shove its face in the dirt, treat it like a joke.
Of course the A-League is not up to the standard of the big European leagues. For a league whose age is not even in double digits yet, it is absurd to think that the A-League should be able to compete with these leagues.
Considering how quickly our domestic league is catching up with the likes of the J-League and K-League in our region, we should be proud of our A-League.
I was so desperate for a win for the All Stars on Saturday night. Memories were evoked of the smothering blanket of uneasiness that settled on the crowd at ANZ during the Socceroos game against Iraq.
Imagine the drop from that high horse! How far those Euro fans would have fallen.
I wanted the All Stars to bring these ‘fans’ crashing back down to earth. I was aware of the reality; this was extremely unlikely.
Like all pre-season games the score was completely irrelevant. It still hurt though, especially when I think of those smug Manchester United fans.
The performance by the All Stars, however, was far from terrible. Yes, they were outplayed for much of the game, but considering the difficulties they faced, they performed admirably.
Twenty A-League players were whipped away to South Korea by Osieck for the East Asia Cup. The three marquee players, Ono, Heskey and Del Piero were not playing. Youssouf Hersi was picked but unfortunately came down with an injury.
Not to mention the host of players who have moved overseas or retired in the off-season. Ryan, Rojas, Ibini, McBreen, Zwaanswijk, Brockie, to name a few.
On top of all this, the All Stars were only given a week to gel. The players admitted to the difficulties they had in putting aside past grudges (I suspect Besart Berisha might have had something to do with this).
It was no surprise that the All Stars’ only goal of the game came from the Brisbane Roar pair, Berisha and Broich.
Even if the All Stars did suffer a heavy defeat, they never stopped playing good football. Broich and Miller in the centre ducked and weaved, matching, if not surpassing, some of their United counterparts in technical ability.
In defence, Beauchamp showed the calmness and strength that helped him to two World Cups. Nigel Boogaard, little known to me prior to the game, surprised me with his assurance in defence.
Josh Ridson epitomised what the A-League is about when he copped a kick from Evra that would not have looked incongruous in a taekwondo bout. Seeing him hop straight up while Evra writhered on the ground satisfied my intake of pride for the night.
While the game was a success for the marketing of Manchester United, there are always losers. Not being a Manchester United fan, I would have much preferred to have watched the Socceroos play South Korea, had it been televised on free-to-air.
As such, I indulged in a world of plastic Channel Seven commentating and classic hype.
This made me realise how much the All Stars was a commercialised concept. Why not let Manchester United just play an A-League team? Considering the difficulties facing the All Stars in their preparation, an A-League team would have performed just as well, if not better.
United may as well have played the Wanderers, such were their numbers among the ranks of the All Stars.
In every experiment there is a control, a big football club, and a variable, the Australian based team. It’s time we test the likes of Bayern Munich or Arsenal against Sydney FC or Brisbane Roar.
If Liverpool are willing to play Melbourne Victory, why do we need the All Stars?
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