Melbourne Victory
2
T.B.A.
Saturday, 2 Feb 2013
6:45PM AEDT
1
Melbourne Heart
 
 
N Coe
39
A Traore
3
M Milligan
5
Goal 56'
A Leijer
23
N Ansell
24
Sub Off 37'
L Broxham
6
Yellow Card 45'
M Flores
9
Sub Off 81'
M Rojas
11
Sub Off 88'
B Celeski
14
A Thompson
10
Yellow Card 58' Goal 29'
T Velaphi
1
J Bru
8
Sub On 37'
F Stella
0
Sub On 88'
S Galloway
31
C Pain
32
Sub On 81'
Preview: Victory v Heart
Date: Saturday February 2, 2013
Kick-off: 7.45pm AEST, 7.45 local
Venue: Etihad Stadium
Head-to-head
Played: 8 Wins: Melbourne Victory 2, Melbourne Heart 3, Draws: 3

Previous encounter
Melbourne Heart 1-2 Melbourne Victory, 22 December 2012

Form:
Past five matches:
Melbourne Victory: WWDWL
Melbourne Heart: LWLWW

The Game
In front of a projected 30-40,000 crowd, the two Melbourne clubs will meet in what promises to be a passionate encounter. The blue side of Melbourne has been in good form of late and is second in the standings, five points behind leaders Central Coast. Heart have lost two of their past three and are in sixth position with bottom-of-the-table Wellington only four points behind.

Victory could play an unchanged line-up after their comfortable 3-1 win over Sydney FC on Australia Day. New signing Francesco Stella appeared in the final 14 minutes of that game and now it could be the turn of fellow signing Jesse Makarounas, who impressed in the Youth League last weekend.

With the departures of Vince Grella (retirement) and Aziz Behich (Bursaspor), the Melbourne Heart squad will become even more stretched, particularly with the absences of captain Fred (quad) and Simon Colosimo (calf). Young full-back Sam Mitchinson could replace Behich while 17-year-old Ben Garuccio is an option to play. Returning striker Eli Babalj played 31 minutes against the Wanderers and may be ready to start the derby.

The big issue

Victory – Can Ange Postecoglou's men overcome Heart's stifling forward press? The past two derbies, which saw each side register a win, have been notable for the excellent press initiated by John Aloisi that attempts to put pressure on the Victory defenders playing out from the back. This tactic dominated the first derby in Round 1 and while a late Archie Thompson goal clinched the last clash in December, Heart's tactic again restricted the effectiveness of Victory's game plan. If Victory can navigate their way through the opening exchanges, space should eventually open up for Marco Rojas, Marcos Flores and Thompson.

Heart – Will Heart lift again for Melbourne's biggest football clash? Since their Hyundai A-League debut, Heart have always acquitted themselves well in the derbies and their season could ride on another big performance. They will have significant amounts of experience missing from their side with Fred, Colosimo, Behich and Grella all unavailable. Aloisi will be hoping the injection of youth into the team, with players such as Mitchinson, Garuccio, Jeremy Walker and David Vrankovic all in selection reckoning, will spur the side on to a good performance.

Gamebreaker
Marco Rojas – Arguably the in-form player of the competition this season, the young Kiwi attacker has hit 12 goals– an extraordinary return considering he went goalless last year. Young right-back Walker will have his hands full with the talented 21-year-old and if Rojas can get on top of the inexperienced defender, we may see a match-winning performance.

Prediction: Melbourne Victory 3-1 Melbourne Heart

A full-strength Heart line-up is capable of beating any team in the competition but the inexperienced squad may struggle to rise to the big occasion. Aloisi’s side will be boosted by the likely start of Eli Babalj and the powerful striker will cause the Victory defence problems if they are not on their game. Heart will try and exploit 18-year-old central defender Nick Ansell, but the youngster has acquitted himself well in his seven appearances this season. Marcos Flores will endure a tough time in advanced midfield with tough-tackling pair Matt Thompson and Jonathan Germano snapping at his heels. It will be a good test of Flores' credentials as he has endured a mixed season, but his class should shine through in a Victory win.
League Position
 
Top Scorers
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94:00 Redmayne kept busy in dying stages. Victory can't find a third though.
 
94:00 That's it! Victory go back-to-back in the derby. A gripping contest with Heart fighting back strongly after Victory threatened to storm away.
 
94:00 Victory 2 Heart 1. Thanks for your company. Victory now chasing Central Coast at the top while Heart again show their ability despite sitting in 8th position.
 
93:00 Williams is brought down outside the area but it's deemed a dive! Heart is broken.
 
90:00 End to end football of the highest quality and all players out on their feet. Milligan and Galloway with important touches for Victory.
 
87:00 Traore with a delicate cross finds Thompson at full height but Redmayne is up to the task. Still 2-1 Victory.
 
85:00 Corner for the Heart after a length period of possession. Still time if they're good enough...
 
81:00 Heart pressing for their second. Mebahtu wins a free kick down the left side...
 
78:00 Redmayne keeps the Heart in reach with a low save to his left off Rojas. What a match!
 
75:00 Mebahtu lurking for the Heart. Could there be an equaliser coming?
 
72:00 GOAL!! Williams darts through the area and around the keeper. He slams home a beauty and the Heart are alive! 2-1 Victory.
 
67:00 No respite for the Heart back half but Williams finds space at last to strike but the keeper gets low to maintain the two-goal break for the Victory.
 
63:00 Rojas hammers the shot at Redmayne who recovers to deny Milligan. Heart under siege at Etihad.
 
55:00 GOAL!! Milligan tucks away the penalty and the Victory extend their lead to 2-0.
 
54:00 Penalty! Flores brought down by Germano off the ball.
 
53:00 Hapless defending by the Heart sees Thompson almost capitalise with a shot over the bar on the turn.
 
48:00 Heart with some promising forays to start the second half.
 
47:00 Half time see Victory lead Heart 1-0. Action aplenty at Etihad. Can't wait for the second half. See you soon.
 
46:00 Heart win a free kick late in the half...Wow. Mebrahtu with a stunning effort from the set piece. Dips late and rattles the woodwork. Unlucky not to equalise.
 
43:00 Rojas nails the long ranger and it smacks into the crossbar. Victory on fire here.
 
42:00 Thompson bamboozles the Heart defenders but can't beat Redmayne .
 
41:00 Germano fires in the cross for the Heart but it's smacked away by the Victory defence.
 
39:00 Rojas can't keep the free kick down and the Heart hang in.
 
38:00 Flores felled in the D. Too good for the Heart defenders and a free kick in an ominous position for Victory.
 
35:00 Mebrahtu comes on for Tadic. Heart manager Jon Aloisi injecting some pace and x-factor for the Heart. Interesting move.
 
33:00 Babalj a lone man up front now for Heart who are struggling to keep up with their more fancied rivals for the moment.
 
30:00 Flores feeds Thompson again and it was nearly a first half brace for the former Kiwi. Heart are wobbling right now.
 
28:00 GOAL!! Thompson finds himself with only Redmayne to beat after Flores lifts it perfectly for the speedy Victory striker who slides it to the right for the opener. 1-0
 
24:00 Thompson with some neat work inside the area but Flores miscues straight to Redmayne.
 
20:00 Garcia down the right almost gets on the end of a pretty Heart passage. Free kick to Victory though. Frenetic pace both ways.
 
16:00 Rojas beats the offside trap and shoots on goal but Redmayne make a fine save to keep his sheet clean. Absorbing contest at Etihad.
 
14:30 Free kick to Victory floats innocuously towards the Heart defender who cautiously taps it out. First corner to the favored team falls flat.
 
13:00 Incredible save by Coe as Walker finds Babalj in the area but the Victory keeper instinctively lifts the deft shot over the bar. Great stuff!
 
11:00 Flores brings Thompson into the game but the Heart defence is solid and win back possession without incident.
 
090:00 D. Williams is cautioned by the referee.
 
090:00 S. Mitchinson is yellow-carded.
 
09:30 Heart with a corner now. Quick transition football and the Victory are under pressure.
 
088:00 M. Rojas is done for the day. F. Stella is his replacement.
 
081:00 C. Pain comes on for M. Flores.
 
08:00 Babalj narrowly misses with a clever flick that just skims the bar. Bright signs for the Heart.
 
073:00 Goal to Melbourne Heart, scored by D. Williams!
 
069:00 N. Kalmar comes on for E. Babalj.
 
058:00 A. Thompson receives a yellow card.
 
056:00 Penalty goal scored by M. Milligan!
 
05:30 Heart unlucky not to draw first blood. Walker hammered a close range shot at Nathan Coe who partially trapped the ball and eventually earned a goal kick.
 
045:00 L. Broxham gets yellow.
 
037:00 N. Ansell is replaced with J. Bru.
 
034:00 G. Mebrahtu enters the game and replaces J. Tadic.
 
029:00 A. Thompson has scored a goal for Melbourne Victory!
 
02:30 Free kick in the right corner to Rojas. Plenty of heat in the contest early.
 
013:00 P. Gerhardt goes into the referee''s book.
 
00:45 First corner to Heart after some confusion in the area. Well cleared by Victory.
 
00:30 Babalj is back for the Heart and Jon Aloisi did not hesitate in reinstating him in the starting eleven. Let's get this one started.
 
00:00 The sides are emerging from the tunnel now. Huge crowd as expected and a cool, clear Melbourne night. Interestingly no team has won back-to-back derbies so will Heart cause an upset tonight?
 
Welcome to Etihad Stadium in Melbourne for another epic clash between the red-hot Victory and the Heart who are still well in contention for finals.
Home Team Statistic Away Team
2 Goals 1
0 Shots 0
0 Shots Off 0
0 Corners 0
0 Offside 0
0 Fouls 0
2 Yellows 3
0 Reds 0
0%
0%
Possession
Referee: S. Delovski
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Victory win action-packed derby
Melbourne Victory held out for a 2-1 win over Melbourne Heart at Etihad Stadium on Saturday, making it a second successive derby triumph for Ange Postecoglou's in-form team.

Local bragging rights were not the only prize on offer - maximum spoils see Victory close to within three points of Central Coast Mariners after the A-League leaders could only draw with Brisbane Roar on Friday.

Archie Thompson opened the scoring for Victory in the 29th minute, and Mark Milligan doubled the lead from the penalty spot 10 minutes into the second half.

An opportunistic David Williams pulled one back for Heart with 17 minutes remaining, but they could not snatch an equaliser, as Victory registered their first derby win at the Docklands stadium.

John Aloisi's Heart dominated the first 15 minutes, with Eli Babalj menacing in his first start since returning from Red Star Belgrade.

But the team in red and white were unable to gain reward for their early endeavours and, after weathering a sustained period of pressure, it was Victory who opened the scoring just before the half-hour mark.

An inch-perfect long ball from Argentine playmaker Marcos Flores released Thompson in behind the Heart defence, and the striker had no trouble guiding his shot beyond Andrew Redmayne to make it 1-0.

With 10 minutes remaining in the first half, injuries forced both teams to make changes.

Heart withdrew forward Josip Tadic for Golgol Mebrahtu, while Victory centre-back Nick Ansell limped off with a groin problem. Midfielder Jonathan Bru came off the bench, prompting Leigh Broxham to drop into defence.

The disruption caused a brief lull in proceedings before the fancy footwork of Thompson jolted both teams back to life just before the break.

Advancing into the area, the Socceroos man turned young Heart right-back Jeremy Walker inside-out, before dispatching a low shot which Redmayne did well to tip round the post.

From the resulting corner, Billy Celeski launched a dipping long-range effort which just shaved the cross-bar.

Heart replied in kind soon afterwards, a curling free-kick from substitute Mebrahtu crashing into the angle between post and bar.

In contrast to that flurry of activity, the second half began innocuously enough, before the peace and quiet was interrupted by an incident which effectively decided the contest.

On 55 minutes, Jonatan Germano was deemed to have pushed Flores inside the area, and referee Strebre Delovski had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

Milligan stepped up and confidently stroked the penalty into the bottom right corner of the net, sending Redmayne the wrong way to make it 2-0.
With Victory pressing for a third, the result appeared to be a foregone conclusion, until Williams breathed new life into the contest.

The winger - dangerous all evening against Victory debutant Sam Galloway - cut in from the flank, seized on a loose ball and beat two defenders before slamming the ball past Nathan Coe to make it 2-1.

The match then hung on a knife edge and could have gone either way as both teams spurned good chances to score within the next 60 seconds.

First, Williams crossed for Mebrahtu to head inches wide of goal, before Rojas was denied from close range by Redmayne.

Victory enjoyed one of the best opportunities late on, left-back Adama Traore teeing up Thompson, who saw his header tipped over the bar.

Rojas and Thompson again shot straight at Redmayne in extra-time, Victory though were happy to settle for the win, as Heart's slim finals hopes suffered another blow.

Melbourne Victory: 2 (Thompson '29, Milligan 55')
Melbourne Heart: 1 (Williams '72)
41,203@Etihad Stadium
Home Team Statistic Away Team
2 Goals 1
0 Shots 0
0 Shots Off 0
0 Corners 0
0 Offside 0
0 Fouls 0
2 Yellows 3
0 Reds 0
0%
0%
Possession
Referee: S. Delovski
94:00 Redmayne kept busy in dying stages. Victory can't find a third though.
 
94:00 That's it! Victory go back-to-back in the derby. A gripping contest with Heart fighting back strongly after Victory threatened to storm away.
 
94:00 Victory 2 Heart 1. Thanks for your company. Victory now chasing Central Coast at the top while Heart again show their ability despite sitting in 8th position.
 
93:00 Williams is brought down outside the area but it's deemed a dive! Heart is broken.
 
90:00 End to end football of the highest quality and all players out on their feet. Milligan and Galloway with important touches for Victory.
 
87:00 Traore with a delicate cross finds Thompson at full height but Redmayne is up to the task. Still 2-1 Victory.
 
85:00 Corner for the Heart after a length period of possession. Still time if they're good enough...
 
81:00 Heart pressing for their second. Mebahtu wins a free kick down the left side...
 
78:00 Redmayne keeps the Heart in reach with a low save to his left off Rojas. What a match!
 
75:00 Mebahtu lurking for the Heart. Could there be an equaliser coming?
 
72:00 GOAL!! Williams darts through the area and around the keeper. He slams home a beauty and the Heart are alive! 2-1 Victory.
 
67:00 No respite for the Heart back half but Williams finds space at last to strike but the keeper gets low to maintain the two-goal break for the Victory.
 
63:00 Rojas hammers the shot at Redmayne who recovers to deny Milligan. Heart under siege at Etihad.
 
55:00 GOAL!! Milligan tucks away the penalty and the Victory extend their lead to 2-0.
 
54:00 Penalty! Flores brought down by Germano off the ball.
 
53:00 Hapless defending by the Heart sees Thompson almost capitalise with a shot over the bar on the turn.
 
48:00 Heart with some promising forays to start the second half.
 
47:00 Half time see Victory lead Heart 1-0. Action aplenty at Etihad. Can't wait for the second half. See you soon.
 
46:00 Heart win a free kick late in the half...Wow. Mebrahtu with a stunning effort from the set piece. Dips late and rattles the woodwork. Unlucky not to equalise.
 
43:00 Rojas nails the long ranger and it smacks into the crossbar. Victory on fire here.
 
42:00 Thompson bamboozles the Heart defenders but can't beat Redmayne .
 
41:00 Germano fires in the cross for the Heart but it's smacked away by the Victory defence.
 
39:00 Rojas can't keep the free kick down and the Heart hang in.
 
38:00 Flores felled in the D. Too good for the Heart defenders and a free kick in an ominous position for Victory.
 
35:00 Mebrahtu comes on for Tadic. Heart manager Jon Aloisi injecting some pace and x-factor for the Heart. Interesting move.
 
33:00 Babalj a lone man up front now for Heart who are struggling to keep up with their more fancied rivals for the moment.
 
30:00 Flores feeds Thompson again and it was nearly a first half brace for the former Kiwi. Heart are wobbling right now.
 
28:00 GOAL!! Thompson finds himself with only Redmayne to beat after Flores lifts it perfectly for the speedy Victory striker who slides it to the right for the opener. 1-0
 
24:00 Thompson with some neat work inside the area but Flores miscues straight to Redmayne.
 
20:00 Garcia down the right almost gets on the end of a pretty Heart passage. Free kick to Victory though. Frenetic pace both ways.
 
16:00 Rojas beats the offside trap and shoots on goal but Redmayne make a fine save to keep his sheet clean. Absorbing contest at Etihad.
 
14:30 Free kick to Victory floats innocuously towards the Heart defender who cautiously taps it out. First corner to the favored team falls flat.
 
13:00 Incredible save by Coe as Walker finds Babalj in the area but the Victory keeper instinctively lifts the deft shot over the bar. Great stuff!
 
11:00 Flores brings Thompson into the game but the Heart defence is solid and win back possession without incident.
 
090:00 D. Williams is cautioned by the referee.
 
090:00 S. Mitchinson is yellow-carded.
 
09:30 Heart with a corner now. Quick transition football and the Victory are under pressure.
 
088:00 M. Rojas is done for the day. F. Stella is his replacement.
 
081:00 C. Pain comes on for M. Flores.
 
08:00 Babalj narrowly misses with a clever flick that just skims the bar. Bright signs for the Heart.
 
073:00 Goal to Melbourne Heart, scored by D. Williams!
 
069:00 N. Kalmar comes on for E. Babalj.
 
058:00 A. Thompson receives a yellow card.
 
056:00 Penalty goal scored by M. Milligan!
 
05:30 Heart unlucky not to draw first blood. Walker hammered a close range shot at Nathan Coe who partially trapped the ball and eventually earned a goal kick.
 
045:00 L. Broxham gets yellow.
 
037:00 N. Ansell is replaced with J. Bru.
 
034:00 G. Mebrahtu enters the game and replaces J. Tadic.
 
029:00 A. Thompson has scored a goal for Melbourne Victory!
 
02:30 Free kick in the right corner to Rojas. Plenty of heat in the contest early.
 
013:00 P. Gerhardt goes into the referee''s book.
 
00:45 First corner to Heart after some confusion in the area. Well cleared by Victory.
 
00:30 Babalj is back for the Heart and Jon Aloisi did not hesitate in reinstating him in the starting eleven. Let's get this one started.
 
00:00 The sides are emerging from the tunnel now. Huge crowd as expected and a cool, clear Melbourne night. Interestingly no team has won back-to-back derbies so will Heart cause an upset tonight?
 
Welcome to Etihad Stadium in Melbourne for another epic clash between the red-hot Victory and the Heart who are still well in contention for finals.
Home Team Statistic Away Team
2 Goals 1
0 Shots 0
0 Shots Off 0
0 Corners 0
0 Offside 0
0 Fouls 0
2 Yellows 3
0 Reds 0
0%
0%
Possession
Referee: S. Delovski
To view profiles, please select a player below
20
A Redmayne
6
P Gerhardt
Yellow Card 13'
18
D Vrankovic
24
S Mitchinson
Yellow Card 90'
8
M Thompson
11
R García
13
J Germano
25
J Walker
10
J Tadic
Sub Off 34'
15
D Williams
Yellow Card 90' Goal 73'
36
E Babalj
Sub Off 69'
1
C Bolton
22
N Kalmar
Sub On 69'
14
G Mebrahtu
Sub On 34'
28
P Retre