Victory secure first A-League win

The Melbourne Victory have finally lived up to their name by recording a first-ever win in the Hyundai A-League, defeating the Newcastle Jets 1-0 in Melbourne tonight.

Socceroo striker Archie Thompson capped his home debut with an unstoppable header in the 68^th minute to break the Victory drought and promote them from the foot of the table. Thompson also narrowly missed the opportunity to ensure the result in injury time, his one-on-one strike deflected wide by Jets goalkeeper Liam Reddy.

After an even first half where both sides created scoring opportunities, and each had a goal ruled out, Melbourne took control in the final thirty minutes to the delight of the 13,831 fans packed into Olympic Park.

A nervous Melbourne started the match tentatively, perhaps worried about the prospect of going five matches into the new competition without a win. Newcastle almost sent shockwaves through the stadium by nearly scoring in the opening minutes when a long ball cleared defender Geoffrey Claeys for dangerous striker Ante Milicic.

But the Jets striker, then midfielder Nick Carle could not capitalise on the early chance. Despite a quick reply from Victory forward Daniel Allsop, who received a lob-pass from Thompson in sight of goal but his shot was deflected, the Jets made the most promising start.

Six minutes in, Milicic latched onto a long ball from keeper Reddy and slid the ball underneath Eugene Galekovic and into the net but an offside ruling robbed Newcastle of the dream start. At the 17-minute mark, Labinot Haliti missed a golden opportunity to score when his shot from a tight angle rolled wide, though an unmarked Milicic in the six-yard box may have been the better option.

Melbourne eventually settled into the contest after and started to create more chances of their own, captain Kevin Muscat also helped solidify the Victory defence after some early jitters. Midfielder Andy Vlahos produced the best chance for a goal with a fine left-footed drive forced Reddy to make a desperate save just before half time.

Each side produced an early chance after the break but the Victory slowly went about taking control of the game. Vlahos in particular was working hard in midfield and looking dangerous, a fine cross from the left wing just evading the head of Allsop in the box.

On the hour, Thompson forced Reddy into a save from a header and from the ensuing corner, the ball fell to Michael Ferrante who may have blasted over the bar but the passage of play ignited the hometown supporters.

The Victory lifted as the crowd got behind them, sensing that an opening goal was not far away. Teenage midfielder Kristian Sarkies was proving a handful for the Jets defenders and it was his proficiency with the dead-ball situation that set up the only goal of the game. His 68th minute free kick from the right wing was met perfectly by Thompson at the near post, the finish reminiscent of his goal against Sydney FC in the opening round.

Finding themselves in front for the first time ever in the new competition, The Victory maintained their advantage and despite a few anxious moments in the final minutes, always looked like claiming all three points once they hit the lead.

For the victors, Sarkies and Vlahos provided the drive from midfield that proved the difference, Newcastle seemingly relying more on strikers Milicic and Haliti to create the goal scoring chances. Daniel Allsop also toiled hard as the centre-forward after recovering from an ankle injury picked up in Brisbane last week.

With three draws and a 1-0 defeat from the opening month of the season, Ernie Merrick’s side were being referred to as the Melbourne ‘Draw’. But to the delight of the home supporters, the result never looked in doubt once Thompson’s header gave Melbourne the advantage. The win sees the Victory leapfrog New Zealand and Queensland into sixth place on the ladder but one thing is assured - the Melbourne ‘Draw’ is no more.

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