Melbourne Victory pulled off an amazing three-two win at its Docklands home on Saturday evening against bitter rival Sydney FC to end a three-game losing streak. Sydney had taken a two goal lead by the fourth minute, so the Melbourne comeback was of mammoth proportions.
Shannon Cole got the game off to a stunning start with a spectacular goal inside the first minute. If that wasn't a startling enough beginning, Brendan Gan made it two with an equally wonderful strike just a few seconds after the clock ticked over three minutes. Victory was already two goals down and some of its players hadn't yet touched the ball.
From this unpromising start, Archie Thompson got Melbourne back into the contest after being quicker of thought than the Sydney defence when Carlos Hernandez took a free-kick, shooting home on the turn from close-range.
In a Boys' Own Annual moment, befitting for this Christmas game, Nick Ward came off the bench in the 70th minute and scored seconds later to bring the game back to level terms.
Then Ney Fabiano got Victory's unlikely game-winning third ten minutes from time after being first to Danny Allsopp's headed ball across the face of goal from Kevin Muscat's cross.
Melbourne coach Ernie Merrick was unable to attend the post-match media conference, having to leave earlier, suffering a migraine. The club made no statement at which point in the game the migraine had set in, but it would have taken a strong disposition to fend one off given the score after four minutes of play. Assistant coach Aaron Healey deputised for the stricken Merrick, as bemused as anyone else in the stadium at the run of events.
"We were sick after three minutes on the side(line)," said Healey. "(But) we came in at half-time and thought we had a good chance of having a crack at them, and getting a result."
"When we (got level) we wanted to push on for the three points," he said. "The mental toughness they showed today was phenomenal. It was a pretty entertaining match."
"It was too good a start, to score two before Melbourne even had a chance to settle," said Kosmina. "That was a good performance ? you can't take anything away from the players. They fought, they played some decent football, and they created some decent opportunities."
It took only 26 seconds for the first goal. Melbourne had kicked off, but lost possession allowing Sydney to play the ball wide to Rob Middleby on the right. Middleby was faced by Evan Berger and so he played the ball inside to Shannon Cole, criminally unmarked at the edge of the penalty-area. Cole's curling left-foot shot found the inside corner of the goal past Michael Theoklitos' despairing leap.
The hubbub had scarcely subsided before Sydney got a second, also from distance after another spare player had been found. Goalkeeper Ivan Necevski's booming clearance was inadequately dealt with by a back-pedalling Sebastian Ryall allowing Alex Brosque possession. Brosque made good ground on the left and then squared the ball to Gan, in the clear, twenty metres out. Gan's shot with the outside of his right boot curled high into the same part of the net Cole had found just moments before.
"Last week, he's had an air swing, this week it's gone in," said Kosmina. "It was a great strike. It's good to see a young bloke with not much experience, having a lash from outside the (area)."
Not long after, burly Victory front-man Danny Allsopp crashed into Kosmina standing inside his technical area after being bumped on his way by Middleby. Allsopp might well have been able to avoid the hit, but didn't, sending Kosmina crashing into the chairs in a reminder of the clash between Kosmina and Kevin Muscat in the 2006 Grand Final when Kosmina was coach of Adelaide.
Kosmina bore no ill will towards Allsopp in his after-match media comments, brushing the matter off. "My back was a little out (beforehand), and he fixed it," he said.
Referee Matthew Breeze pulled Allsopp aside for a chat after that incident, but took no further action.
But if that raised a cheer amongst the voluble home support, it was outdone by the clamour which followed Thompson's goal before the quarter hour. After the far-side assistant referee had flagged for a foul by Beau Busch holding Allsopp forty metres out, Hernandez took the resulting free-kick quickly, spotting Thompson had slipped Middleby's attentions inside the penalty-area. The sometime Socceroo turned, and sent his shot low to the far post and into the net.
"We switched off," said Kosmina. "Melbourne played that same free-kick last week against Newcastle and it was Hernandez. This week it was Archie (Thompson). And we've got to be (more) aware."
Chances were now being created by both sides as the game swung from end to end, and bringing both goalkeepers into action. The better portion of these fell to Victory, but neither side was able to convert.
Cole brought out a fine save from Theoklitos from a free-kick, and another from Brosque. Necevski made an excellent reaction save from Thompson seeking to divert in a cross from Michael Thwaite after another quick free-kick had caught out Sydney, and Gan cleared off his own line when Rody Vargas outjumped all opponents to head goalwards from a corner. At the other end in this fast-paced and high action game, Brosque sent in a glancing header from a Cole cross.
But the best opportunity of the half was sent wide by Allsopp seven minutes before the break. Muscat had won possession in a typically crunching tackle which robbed Stuart Musialik mid-pitch, then played the ball through to Allsopp who had beaten a square Sydney defence to face only Necevski, directly in front. Allsopp took the ball inside the penalty-area but his shot went wide of Necevski's left post when surely even Ben Buckley would have excused Grant Brebner from betting an equaliser would ensue.
Five minutes into the second half, Tom Pondeljak created another equalising chance when he sped down the right, latching onto a cross-field pass from Rody Vargas, outpacing Matthew Jurman. Pondeljak crossed as he reached the goal-line, but found only Jurman's outstretched boot as the defender strained to intercede, diverting the ball onto the inside of Necevski's near post from where it flashed across the face of goal and away from danger.
Brosque could have stretched Sydney's precarious lead on the hour when he was clear inside the penalty-area but wastefully blasted over the bar.
After a double change by Merrick, bringing on Fabiano and Matthew Kemp for hard-working midfielder Billy Celeski and defender Thwaite respectively, Victory altered its formation to three up front. But it was Merrick's next change that brought an immediate return. Nick Ward came on in a straight swap for wing-back Evan Berger.
Ward must still be wondering how he was allowed so much space on the ball after shrugging off an ineffective challenge from Middleby as he carried the ball into the inside-left position just thirty seconds after entering the fray, giving him time to launch a spectacular shot which crashed in for the equaliser.
The momentum had tipped Melbourne's way. After overcoming a dreadful start, the momentum was unequivocally with the home side, spurred on by its vociferous support.
But yet again, Sydney had an excellent chance to regain the lead as Brosque found himself benefiting from poor defensive work inside the penalty-area requiring sharp reactions from Theoklitos to divert for a corner. Unaccountably, it was Muscat who had failed to clear the ball, allowing Brosque to gain possession, the veteran seemingly uncertain of his best option in such a critical position, and acknowledging his error as Theoklitos saved him further embarrassment.
The pace and commitment on display was never going to allow the scoring to end with fifteen minutes remaining. And so it seemed inevitable when Fabiano put Melbourne ahead after he converted on the slide from close range following Allsopp's header back across the face of goal from Muscat's cross.
Sydney could reasonably claim to have been on the wrong side of fortune for Fabiano's goal. Central defender Busch, who had been Allsopp's normal marker, was off the field having sustained a cut above his eye in an earlier incident which required attention.
Thompson could have made it four with a last effort deep into added time, after bursting through a sluggish defence, but Necevski held his shot.