After a tight and chess-like first half, both South Melbourne and Carlton turned on a barnstormer in the second before a packed Bob Jane Stadium on Sunday. But the greater portion of the massive crowd would have departed disappointed, as Carlton brought to an end South Melbourne's long undefeated home record in a dramatic late come-from-behind 2-1 win as both teams ended the game a player short.
Michael Curcija had headed South into the lead in the 74th minute after good work on the left from Steve Panopoulos who broke away from midfield and crossed.
Carlton captain Andrew Marth equalised from the penalty-spot ten minutes later after South keeper Chris Jones missed a punch and Con Blatsis conveniently fell on substitute Mike Conroy just as Conroy was about to take advantage.
And Marth twisted the knife with the winner in added time when he was first to a ball inside the South six-yard box after a 20 metre blast from Con Anthopoulos set up following a Markovski free-kick was not cleared.
"(South) have conceded goals late on in several games this year," said Carlton coach Stuart Munro afterwards. "So I said to the players that they have to stick with it, no matter if we go a goal down.
"It was a typical derby game - it had everything: orderings off, plenty goals, lots of controversial incidents."
South coach Ange Postecoglou was less pleased. "I thought we had to fight to stay in the game (after having a player sent-off), and I thought we did that well. We got the goal, and from there I'm disappointed we lost the game - we'd got into a winning position, and both teams were down to ten men. We just couldn't hold out."
For the second successive game, South Melbourne played a man short for all of the second half. Goran Lozanovski was given his second yellow card just before the first half ended. The incident began when Lozanovski was brushed off the ball by Stuart Slater, then chased Slater, bringing him down with a foul tackle. Referee Eddie Lennie cautioned Lozanovski who then seemed to say something to the referee as he walked away. Lennie blew his whistle several times to recall Lozanovski but Lozanovski ignored it and kept walking back to his defensive position. When Lozanovski eventually returned, Lennie produced the red card.
Lozanovski remonstrated at the unfairness of it all, and had to be restrained from further approaching Lennie by several of his team-mates, before reluctantly departing the contest.
Midway through the second half, Lennie dismissed Dave McPherson after McPherson took a round-arm swing at Steve Panopoulos, angered by Panopoulos' tug of his shirt sleeve. As the South Melbourne midfielder is about a metre shorter than the big Scotsman, the swing was well over Panopoulos' head, but showed sufficient intent to have Lennie show the red card.
In an earlier incident, Marth threw Con Blatsis to the ground, provoking a melee which threatened to engulf all players of both teams. After regaining control, Lennie showed the yellow card to Marth, Blatsis, and John Markovski. He could equally have recorded the names of many others.
The first half had involved both teams' midfields nullifying the abilities of the other. It was a game for the student of the game, rather than a spectacle for those requiring entertainment.
What chances arose were fleeting. Both defences capably managed what escaped the midfield crush.
But with South a player short, the suspicion was that there would be space for Carlton to exploit in the second half.
And so it proved. South had re-arranged its midfield formation after the break - Lozanovski's absence giving Carlton's wingers Slater and Archie Thompson greater time and space. From the beginning of the second half, it was Thompson who got the greater share of the advantage.
But still the breakthough could not be fashioned. The reorganised South defence ran down and harried any Carlton build-up, increasing their workrates to cover the player deficit.
Carlton did have a goal disallowed for offside, and South had a penalty claim turned down by Lennie who clearly indicated what the South players thought was an arm, was a thigh.
With then with McPherson off, and both teams playing with nine outfield players, the game opened out.
Rather against the run of play, Panopoulos' cross found Curcija in position to head home the opening goal with only fifteen minutes of regulation time remaining. In a calculated gamble, South coach Ange Postecoglou then almost immediately took off Curcija for a more defensive player - Robert Liparoti - perhaps signalling his intention to close out the game and hold on to this slender lead.
But the gamble failed. Jones, taking the opportunity of starting as South goalkeeper in the enforced absence through suspension of Milan Udvaracz, had coped competently with any threat, but may be slightly faulted for the incident that lead to Carlton's equaliser. He came for a ball but missed, and it fell to where substitute Conroy may have scored but for Blatsis falling on him.
Marth is cool in these circumstances, and blasted home the consequent penalty. He is a player that delights in a contest, and seems especially to relish those against South Melbourne - whether they be in a Knights' shirt as was previously the case, or a Carlton one as at present.
So it would have been with particular joy that Marth stabbed home the winner from close-range with all the ninety standard minutes elapsed. That it also made Carlton the first team since the end of season 1997/98 to leave Bob Jane with all three points would have added to his, and Carlton's, pleasure.
It certainly pleased Munro: "It's a big step for us - for the confidence of the players and the morale of the club."
Carlton and South Melbourne have established a keen rivalry since Carlton's arrival in the National League three seasons ago, having met five times in their first season including the Grand Final, and this year will meet four times in the League as a result of the Sharks' non-appearance.
If the remaining three games provide as much for the fan as this one, the NSL need not shilly-shally around with a twelve-team competition - it could cut it to these two and still leave the football supporter sated.
The game was attended by more than attend the games of both clubs separately, with perhaps another three thousand drawn to the game. The attendance caused the match's kick-off to be delayed, as at the scheduled start, there were still over two thousand waiting to buy tickets.
Speaking pre-game of the move to cut the League from 16 to 12 teams, South Melbourne President George Vasilopoulos said that he hoped Soccer Australia had got this reform right. He expected that South Melbourne would be one of the twelve, because if South Melbourne did not meet the criteria, no club would, and that Soccer Australia "had better start looking for twelve new consortiums".