Keeping up appearances
The Age
Monday October 19, 2009
MELBOURNE Victory shook off any ill-effects of last week's heavy loss at the hands of Sydney and shored up their spot in the A-League's top four with a come-from-behind 3-1 win over the unlucky Newcastle Jets.If the scoreline looks like a comfortable win for the champions it was anything but as the Jets played some pretty football while the visitors dug in, weathered the early storm and finished strongly.In the end class €” and some shoddy goalkeeping €” was the difference as Victory won largely through the efforts of Carlos Hernandez and Archie Thompson, who both scored goals and combined to create the decisive goal for Tommy Pondeljak that put Melbourne ahead with 11 minutes left.Thompson had got the visitors back in the game with a 62nd-minute equaliser after Labinot Haliti had given the hosts a first-half lead. After Pondeljak had put Melbourne in front, Hernandez' 85th-minute strike sealed the points €” and rubbed salt into Newcastle's wounds.For much of this game, the Jets gave as good as they got and with an ounce of luck, Haliti's 73rd-minute header might have gone in rather than struck the underside of the bar. It didn't, and, as is so often the case, the higher-rated team was good enough to capitalise on its chances when they came while their opponents weren't.It was Melbourne's first win in the Hunter Valley since August 2006, while the loss brings the Jets' winless streak to six. Ernie Merrick made two changes to the team that crashed 3-0 at home to Sydney, bringing in Pondeljak, fit again, for the injured Robbie Kruse, and dropping Leigh Broxham in favour of the more experienced Grant Brebner.Jets boss Branko Culina brought in Ben Kantarovski, the 17-year-old who was voted Newcastle's player of the season last year, at the back to replace the injured former Victory player Ljubo Milicevic. Another former Victory player, Kaz Patafta, got the chance to shine against his former employers when he was preferred to Iraqi international Ali Abbas.Patafta looked up for the challenge early, testing Victory goalkeeper Glen Moss from long range in the fourth minute after he had been found in space by a speedily taken Matt Thompson free-kick. The game began at a good tempo and it made for an open contest, with Melbourne getting an early chance when a Hernandez shot went wide.The hosts did not take long to get their noses in front, however, and it was a well-taken goal by a one-time Kosovan refugee, Haliti, which broke the deadlock in the 22nd minute.Jets' full-back Tarek Elrich played a pass down the right-hand channel for Haliti to run on to and the striker got in between Adrian Leijer and Kevin Muscat before lofting the ball over Moss from an angle.The goal brought confidence to the Jets, who now put together a decent spell of football with the industrious Korean Jin-Hyung Song a busy presence in the centre of the field. Thompson looked lively, but the champions could not manufacture any really clear-cut chances as much of their first-half build-up play broke down on the edge of their opponent's penalty area. At the other end the Jets had chances but could not take them.Melbourne's Thompson tried to become his own provider shortly after the restart, creating space for a 49th-minute shot that flashed over the bar.But Victory got back on level terms just after the hour mark, and it was Thompson who rescued them, as he has on so many occasions.Hernandez' quick free-kick caught the Jets napping and his lofted ball was controlled beautifully by the striker who eased out of challenges by Kantarovski and Nikolai Topor-Stanley before chipping over Ben Kennedy.Haliti almost restored the hosts' lead with a flying half-volley that was acrobatically turned over by Moss before Thompson drew a save from Kennedy at the other end.The Jets were desperately unlucky not to take the lead when Haliti's well-timed header from an Elrich cross struck the underside of the bar with Moss beaten before bouncing to safety.But it was Pondeljak who pounced in the 79th minute to put Melbourne in front after a rasping 30-metre Hernandez drive had cannoned back off the bar with Kennedy beaten. The Victory veteran crashed the ball home. It was his last intervention in the game, as barely two minutes later he limped off injured. Three minutes later, Hernandez applied the coup de grace.
© 2009 The Age
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