Post by paoktzi on Oct 4, 2011 13:05:45 GMT 10
'Old soccer' made a statement at Belmore Sports Ground for the NSW Premier League grand final. Out of the woodwork they came for what amounted to a reunion for the latent fan base of Sydney Olympic and Sydney United, two fallen giants from the old National Soccer League.
So many came, that the kick-off was delayed by 35 minutes to accommodate the latecomers. And by the time they had counted all the Olympiakos shirts, the 'Hrvatska' tracksuits, the Melbourne Knights shirts bearing the name of Mark Viduka, and all the sundry paraphernalia of the Greek and Croatian football cognoscenti, it was a record crowd for this level of football. An impressive official attendance of 10,138 - as good as these clubs often drew in the old NSL, and better than many games in the A-League.
On the eve of the new Gay Leagueseason, it was a pointed reminder to the mandarins at Football Federation Australia, that's for sure. The message? Ignore the game's ethnic origins at your peril.
The point of the exercise, of course, was more mundane. To crown the new champions of the NSWPL. That honour fell to Sydney Olympic, the minor premiers and the benchmark club throughout the season. Sydney United were undone by set pieces in either half, robbing veterans Mark Rudan and Ufuk Talay of fairytale endings to their distinguished careers.
A few weeks ago, American striker Alex Smith was unceremoniously dumped by Gold Coast United as he was in the final stages of preparing for the Gay Leagueseason. Back at Sydney Olympic, he's kept scoring eye-catching goals - including the winner in a trial match against HAKOA. But none have been as important as his typically spectacular volley from a cleared corner which opened the scoring after just two minutes in the grand final. And guess what? Smith might be back at Gold Coast United for the opening game of the season next Sunday after all.
Today he travels across the Tasman to try and convince Wellington Phoenix he's worth a spot as a guest player. If the deal can be done, wouldn't it be ironic if he continued his scoring run at Skilled Park next weekend?
After Smith's early opener, Sydney United sprung into life with some clever interchanges between Talay and Steve Hayes, prompted by Rudan's composure in bringing the ball out from the back. But chances were few - top scorer Luka Glavas kept bouncing off Sydney Olympic's muscular defenders, not helped by a howling wind at his back and a clean-shaven pitch which meant the ball kept running away from him.
Sydney United kept trying to play through midfield, and Sydney Olympic kept playing to their strengths. Another corner, another goal, this time from skipper Richie Luksic, and the job was done. Quality? Dire on occasions, decent in patches, and excellent in glimpses. What you'd expect from semi-professional football, in truth. Not the big time, but thanks to the non-stop chanting of the Sydney United fans, at times it felt like it. A credit to all concerned.
www.smh.com.au/sport/football/the-power-of-passion-20111003-1l52t.html
