2008–09 Melbourne Victory FC season

Melbourne Victory
2008–2009 season
Manager	Ernie Merrick
A-League Championship	1st
Pre-Season Challenge Cup	Champions
A-League Premiership	1st
Top goalscorer	Daniel Allsopp (13)
Highest home attendance	53,273 vs Adelaide United (28 February 2009)
Lowest home attendance	18,036 vs Perth Glory (4 October 2008)
Average home league attendance	24,516
Home colours	Away colours
	← 2007–08 2009–10 →

The 2008-09 Hyundai A-League season was Melbourne Victory's fourth season. They finished top of the table at the end of the regular season and defeated Adelaide United in the Grand Final to take their second A-League title.

Season summary

The 2008–09 season brought the start of the A-League Youth League and the introduction of the W-League with Melbourne fielding teams in both competitions. Melbourne actively recruited, bringing in Socceroo Michael Thwaite on a one-year loan,^[1] Costa Rican World Cup player José Luis López,^[2] as well as Ney Fabiano from Asian Champions League rivals Chonburi FC.^[3]

Melbourne's season got off to an optimal start, winning the Pre-Season Challenge Cup. A 0–0 draw resulted in a penalty shoot-out, with Victory winning 8–7 on penalties against Wellington Phoenix.^[4]

After winning the pre-season cup, the Victory were held to a 0–0 draw away against Sydney FC.^[5] They reinforced their premiership favouritism by coasting to 4–2 and 5–0 victories against Wellington Phoenix and the Newcastle Jets respectively.^[6]^[7] Despite this, they succumbed 0–2 to an undermanned Sydney side at the Telstra Dome in front of 31,564 fans.^[8]

On 6 December 2008, Melbourne Victory became the first A-League club to amass total crowd figures of 1,000,000 after their away match against Perth Glory.

On 24 January 2009, Melbourne Victory won its final game of the season against Wellington Phoenix.^[9] The 2–0 win in front of 28,905 fans placed Victory ahead of Adelaide United on goals scored for the premiership title, a margin United failed to achieve in its 1–0 win over the Central Coast Mariners.

The Victory kicked off their finals campaign on 7 February 2009 in the major semi-final first leg against bitter rival Adelaide United at Hindmarsh Stadium, a game which was won courtesy of goals from Carlos Hernández and Danny Allsopp.^[10] In the second leg Melbourne defeated Adelaide United 4–0 with goals from Archie Thompson, Hernandez, Allsopp and Tom Pondeljak, granting Melbourne passage to the Grand Final on a 6–0 aggregate.^[11]

Adelaide then defeated Queensland Roar to set up a rematch with Melbourne in the Grand Final,^[12] which the Victory won 1–0 with Tom Pondeljak scoring in the 59th minute to regain the A-League Championship and becoming the first A-League team to win their second championship,^[13] a feat since achieved by Sydney FC and Brisbane Roar.

Players

First team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	AUS	Michael Theoklitos
2	MF	AUS	Kevin Muscat (captain)
3	DF	AUS	Michael Thwaite (loan)
4	DF	AUS	Steven Pace
5	DF	AUS	Sebastian Ryall (youth)
6	DF	AUS	Steve Pantelidis
7	DF	AUS	Matthew Kemp
8	MF	SCO	Grant Brebner
9	FW	AUS	Danny Allsopp
10	FW	AUS	Archie Thompson (marquee)
11	FW	BRA	Ney Fabiano


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
12	DF	AUS	Rodrigo Vargas
13	FW	AUS	Nathan Elasi (youth)
14	MF	AUS	Billy Celeski
15	MF	AUS	Tom Pondeljak
16	MF	CRC	Carlos Hernández (loan)
17	MF	CRC	José Luis López
18	MF	AUS	Leigh Broxham
19	MF	AUS	Evan Berger
20	GK	AUS	Mitchell Langerak
21	DF	AUS	Daniel Vasilevski
22	MF	AUS	Nick Ward (marquee youth)

Transfers

In

Player	From	League	Fee	Date
Billy Celeski	Perth Glory	A-League	–	February 2008
Tom Pondeljak	Central Coast Mariners	A-League	–	February 2008
Nathan Elasi	Marconi Stallions	New South Wales Premier League	–	February 2008
Steve Mautone*	Retired	None	–	February 2008
Ney Fabiano^[14]	Chonburi FC	Thailand Premier League	US$13,500	1 July 2008
Michael Thwaite	SK Brann	Norwegian Premier League	Loan	1 July 2008
José Luis López	Deportivo Saprissa	Primera División de Costa Rica	Loan	14 July 2008

* Steve Mautone is the current Melbourne Victory Goalkeeping coach and was named as the third choice goalkeeper for the AFC Champions League

Out

Player	To	League	Fee	Date
Ljubo Milicevic	Released	–	–	February 2008
Steve Mautone	Retired	–	–	June 2008
Adrian Caceres	Central Coast Mariners	A-League	–	July 2008
Daniel Piorkowski	Released	–	–	July 2008
Leandro Love	Vissel Kobe (loan ended)	J.League	–	July 2008
Kaz Patafta^[15]	Newcastle Jets	A-League	–	July 2008

Matches

2008 Pre-Season Cup fixtures

Group A
Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
Melbourne Victory	3	2	0	1	3	2	+1	6	Advances to final
Adelaide United	3	1	2	0	2	1	+1	5
Newcastle Jets	3	0	2	1	1	2	−1	2
Perth Glory	3	0	2	1	1	2	−1	2

Source: ^{[citation needed]}

20 July 2008 Group Stage	Melbourne Victory	1 : 2	Adelaide United	Aurora Stadium, Launceston
13:00 UTC+10	Fabiano 8'	Report	33', 90' Cristiano	Attendance: 4,720 Referee: Ben Williams

26 July 2008 Group Stage	Perth Glory	0 : 1	Melbourne Victory	Members Equity Stadium, Perth
15:00 UTC+8		Report	11' M. Thwaite	Attendance: 3,020

2 August 2008 Group Stage	Newcastle Jets	0 : 1	Melbourne Victory	Port Macquarie Regional Stadium, Port Macquarie
14:30 UTC+10		Report	82' T. Pondeljak	Attendance: 3,133

6 August 2008 Final	Wellington Phoenix	0 : 0	Melbourne Victory	Westpac Stadium, Wellington
19:30 UTC+12		(7–8 PSO) Report		Attendance: 9,208 Referee: Peter O'Leary

2008-09 Hyundai A-League fixtures

16 August 2008 Round 1	Sydney FC	0 : 0	Melbourne Victory	Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney
19:00 UTC+10		Report		Attendance: 16,227 Referee: Mark Shield

24 August 2008 Round 2	Wellington Phoenix	2 : 4	Melbourne Victory	Westpac Stadium, Wellington
17:00 UTC+12	Smeltz 29', 65' (Pen)	Report	Allsopp 16', 35' Ney Fabiano 47' Muscat 68' (Pen)	Attendance: 6,110 Referee: Strebre Delovski

29 August 2008 Round 3	Melbourne Victory	5 : 0	Newcastle Jets	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
18:00 UTC+10	Hernández 41' A. Thompson 45+2' Allsopp 61' 64' Brebner 90'			Attendance: 22,589 Referee: Mark Shield

12 September 2008 Round 4	Melbourne Victory	1 : 0	Adelaide United	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
18:00 UTC+10	Ney Fabiano 29' Muscat 64'			Attendance: 24,812 Referee: Matthew Breeze

20 September 2008 Round 5	Central Coast Mariners	2 : 2	Melbourne Victory	Bluetongue Stadium, Gosford
19:00 UTC+10	Simon 12' 84'	Report Summary	A. Thompson 16' 90+4' Theoklitos 57'	Attendance: 9,009 Referee: Peter Green

28 September 2008 Round 6	Melbourne Victory	0 : 2	Queensland Roar	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
17:00 UTC+10	Hernández 48' 58'	Report Summary	Minniecon 83' Zullo 90+4'	Attendance: 22,266 Referee: Ben Williams

4 October 2008 Round 7	Melbourne Victory	4 : 0	Perth Glory	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
17:00 UTC+10	Brebner 25' Allsopp 39' 71' Vargas 46'			Attendance: 18,036 Referee: Srebre Delovski

18 October 2008 Round 8	Newcastle Jets	1 : 0	Melbourne Victory	EnergyAustralia Stadium, Newcastle
19:00 UTC+11	Jesic 85'		A. Thompson 58'	Attendance: 11,384 Referee: Matthew Breeze

25 October 2008 Round 9	Melbourne Victory	0 : 2	Sydney FC	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
19:00 UTC+11		Summary	Bridge 20' Aloisi 62'	Attendance: 31,654 Referee: Ben Williams

31 October 2008 Round 10	Adelaide United	2 : 3	Melbourne Victory	Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide
19:30 UTC+10:30	Travis Dodd 28' (Pen) Cássio 67'	Report Summary	Muscat 55' (Pen) Muscat 81' (Pen) Billy Celeski 84'	Attendance: 13,191 Referee: Matthew Breeze

8 November 2008 Round 11	Queensland Roar	0 : 1	Melbourne Victory	Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
19:00 UTC+10		Summary	Thompson 71'	Attendance: 12,022 Referee: Peter O'Leary

21 November 2008 Round 12	Melbourne Victory	2 : 1	Central Coast Mariners	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
20:00 UTC+11	Tom Pondeljak 37' A. Thompson 60'	Report Summary	John Hutchinson 34'	Attendance: 21,455 Referee: Srebre Delovski

28 November 2008 Round 13	Wellington Phoenix	2 : 1	Melbourne Victory	Westpac Stadium, Wellington
19:30 UTC+13	Brown 21' Smeltz 58'		Allsopp 20'	Attendance: 7,593 Referee: Craig Zetter

6 December 2008 Round 14	Perth Glory	3 : 1	Melbourne Victory	Members Equity Stadium, Perth
18:00 UTC+9	Dadi 19', 23' Pellegrino 79'	Report Summary	Ney Fabiano 55'	Attendance: 6,621 Referee: Peter Green

19 December 2008 Round 15	Newcastle Jets	4 : 2	Melbourne Victory	EnergyAustralia Stadium, Newcastle
20:00 UTC+11	M. Thompson 16', 45', 49' Song 60'	Report Summary	Allsopp 66' Ney Fabiano 87'	Attendance: 6,268 Referee: Craig Zetter

27 December 2008 Round 16	Melbourne Victory	3 : 2	Sydney FC	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
19:00 UTC+11	Thompson 14' Ward 71' Ney Fabiano 80'	Report Summary	Cole 1' Gan 4'	Attendance: 25,395 Referee: Matthew Breeze

2 January 2009 Round 17	Melbourne Victory	2 : 1	Queensland Roar	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
20:00 UTC+11	Allsopp 55' Vargas 67'	Summary Report	Moore 75'	Attendance: 23,447 Referee: Peter O’Leary

6 January 2009^[16] Round 18	Melbourne Victory	1 : 0	Adelaide United	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
19:30 UTC+11	Ward 58'	Report Summary		Attendance: 27,196 Referee: Matthew Breeze

11 January 2009 Round 19	Perth Glory	3 : 2	Melbourne Victory	Members Equity Stadium, Perth
18:00 UTC+9	Dadi 32', 76' Rukavytsya 36'	Summary	Allsopp 3' Ney Fabiano 48' Kemp 33' 88'	Attendance: 9,381 Referee: Chris Beath

16 January 2009 Round 20	Melbourne Victory	3 : 0	Central Coast Mariners	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
20:00 UTC+11	Allsopp 68' Hernández 71' A. Thompson 75'	Summary	Heffernan 87'	Attendance: 24,003 Referee: Peter Green

23 January 2009 Round 21	Melbourne Victory	2 : 0	Wellington Phoenix	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
20:00 UTC+11	K. Muscat 40' (pen.) A. Thompson 90'	Report^{[permanent dead link]} Summary		Attendance: 28,905 Referee: Srebre Delovski

2008-09 finals series

7 February 2009 Major Semi Final Leg 1	Adelaide United	0 : 2	Melbourne Victory,	Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide
18:30 UTC+10:30 Adelaide Starting XI 20 GK Eugene Galeković 05 DF Michael Valkanis 46' 07 MF Lucas Pantelis 08 MF Kristian Sarkies 41' 09 FW Paul Agostino 72' 13 FW Travis Dodd (c) 14 DF Scott Jamieson 18 MF Fabian Barbiero 19 DF Saša Ognenovski 24 MF Paul Reid 27 DF Michael Marrone Substitutes: 30 GK Mark Birighitti 03 MF Alemão 41' 10 FW Cristiano 72' 16 DF Daniel Mullen 46' 28 MF Rostyn Griffiths Manager: Aurelio Vidmar	S. Ognenovski 5' S. Jamieson 35' Adelaide	(0:1) Report Summary Man of the Match: Carlos Hernández	13' C. Hernández 51' N. Ward 54' K. Muscat 89' D. Allsopp Melbourne	Attendance: 14,119 Referee: Srebre Delovski Melbourne Starting XI 01 GK Michael Theoklitos 02 DF Kevin Muscat (c) 05 DF Sebastian Ryall 07 DF Matthew Kemp 65' 09 FW Danny Allsopp 10 FW Archie Thompson 12 DF Rodrigo Vargas 14 MF Billy Celeski 15 MF Tom Pondeljak 16 MF Carlos Hernández 76' 22 MF Nick Ward 56' Substitutes: 20 GK Mitchell Langerak 08 MF Grant Brebner 56' 11 MF Ney Fabiano 17 FW José Luis López 76' 19 FW Evan Berger 65' Manager: Ernie Merrick

14 February 2009 Major Semi Final Leg 2	Melbourne Victory	4 : 0	Adelaide United	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
19:30 UTC+11:30 Melbourne Starting XI 01 GK Michael Theoklitos 02 DF Kevin Muscat (c) 05 DF Sebastian Ryall 07 DF Matthew Kemp 09 FW Danny Allsopp 10 FW Archie Thompson 12 DF Rodrigo Vargas 14 MF Billy Celeski 76' 15 MF Tom Pondeljak 16 MF Carlos Hernández 59' 22 MF Nick Ward 79' Substitutes: 20 GK Mitchell Langerak 08 MF Grant Brebner 59' 11 MF Ney Fabiano 79' 17 FW José Luis López 76' 19 FW Evan Berger Manager: Ernie Merrick	A. Thompson 10' C. Hernández 24' D. Allsopp 44' T. Pondeljak 48' Nick Ward 51' Melbourne	(3:0) Report Summary Man of the Match: Carlos Hernández	30' S. Ognenovski 53' R. Griffiths 62' 81' Cássio 88' T. Dodd Adelaide	Attendance: 34,736 Referee: Matthew Breeze Adelaide Starting XI 20 GK Eugene Galeković 02 DF Robert Cornthwaite 03 MF Alemão 56' 06 MF Cássio 07 MF Lucas Pantelis 46' 10 FW Cristiano 13 FW Travis Dodd (c) 14 DF Scott Jamieson 16 DF Daniel Mullen 19 DF Saša Ognenovski 24 MF Paul Reid Substitutes: 30 GK Mark Birighitti 09 FW Paul Agostino 18 MF Fabian Barbiero 56' 27 DF Michael Marrone 28 MF Rostyn Griffiths 46' Manager: Aurelio Vidmar

28 February 2009 Grand Final	Melbourne Victory	1 : 0	Adelaide United	Telstra Dome, Melbourne
19:30 UTC+11 Melbourne Starting XI 01 GK Michael Theoklitos 02 DF Kevin Muscat (c) 05 DF Sebastian Ryall 07 DF Matthew Kemp 09 FW Daniel Allsopp 10 FW Archie Thompson 12 DF Rodrigo Vargas 14 MF Billy Celeski 15 MF Tom Pondeljak 83' 16 MF Carlos Hernández 22 MF Nick Ward 56' Substitutes: 20 GK Mitchell Langerak 8 MF Grant Brebner 83' 11 FW Ney Fabiano 17 MF José Luis López 89' 19 MF Evan Berger 56' 89' Manager: Ernie Merrick	T. Pondeljak 60' 61' D. Allsopp 65' Melbourne	(0:0)Report Summary Joe Marston Medal: Tom Pondeljak	10' Cristiano 37' S. Ognenovski 56' S. Jamieson 64' F. Barbiero 81' R. Cornthwaite 90' T. Dodd (c) Adelaide	Attendance: 53,273 Referee: Matthew Breeze Adelaide Starting XI 20 GK Eugene Galeković 02 DF Robert Cornthwaite 07 MF Lucas Pantelis 63' 10 FW Cristiano 13 MF Travis Dodd (c) 14 DF Scott Jamieson 73' 15 MF Jonas Salley 16 DF Daniel Mullen 18 MF Fabian Barbiero 19 DF Saša Ognenovski 24 MF Paul Reid Substitutes: 30 GK Mark Birighitti 03 FW Alemão 06 MF Cássio 73' 09 FW Paul Agostino 63' 28 MF Rostyn Griffiths Manager: Aurelio Vidmar

Statistics

Goals

Total	Player		Goals per Round
Total	Player		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	S1	S2	GF
13		Daniel Allsopp		2	2				2						1			1		1	1	1		1	1
9		Archie Thompson			1		2						1	1					1			1	1		1
5		Ney Fabiano		1												1		1	1		1
5		Kevin Muscat		1		1						2											1
4		Carlos Hernández			1																	1		1	1
3		Tom Pondeljak												1											1	1
2		Grant Brebner			1				1
2		Rodrigo Vargas							1											1
2		Nick Ward															1		1
1		Billy Celeski										1

A goal was scored from a penalty kick

Two goals were scored from penalty kicks

A-League

Ladder

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Melbourne Victory (C)	21	12	2	7	39	27	+12	38	Qualification for 2010 AFC Champions League group stage and Finals series
2	Adelaide United	21	11	5	5	31	19	+12	38
3	Queensland Roar	21	10	6	5	36	25	+11	36	Qualification for Finals series
4	Central Coast Mariners	21	7	7	7	35	32	+3	28	Qualification for Finals series
5	Sydney FC	21	7	5	9	33	32	+1	26
6	Wellington Phoenix	21	7	5	9	23	31	−8	26
7	Perth Glory	21	6	4	11	31	44	−13	22
8	Newcastle Jets	21	4	6	11	21	39	−18	18

Source: ultimatealeague.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Finals series


Semifinals			Preliminary final		Final



Melbourne Victory	2	4			Melbourne Victory	1

Adelaide United	0	0			Adelaide United	0

			Adelaide United	1

			Queensland Roar	0

Queensland Roar	2	2

Central Coast Mariners	0	1

2008–09 Awards

Victory Medal
- Kevin Muscat and Danny Allsopp
Players' Player of the Year
- Rodrigo Vargas
Clubman of the Year
- Evan Berger
Golden Boot
- Danny Allsopp
Women's Player of the Year
- Brittany Timko
Youth Team Player of the Year
- Matthew Theodore

References

^ "Thwaite Signs For Victory". FourFourTwo Australia. Haymarket Group. 19 June 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Pupy Lopez Signs For Victory (At Last)". FourFourTwo Australia. Haymarket Group. 14 July 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ Desira, Peter (24 May 2008). "Ney Fabiano signs two-year deal with Melbourne Victory". Herald Sun. Herald and Weekly Times. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Victory claim Pre-Season Cup". A-League Official Website. 6 August 2008. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Sydney and Melbourne share honours". A-League Official Website. 16 August 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Clinical Victory blasts past Phoenix". A-League Official Website. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
^ "Victory run riot". A-League Official Website. 29 August 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
^ "Sydney's double bonus". A-League Official Website. 25 October 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Victory get jump in premiers' race". A-League Official Website. 23 January 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ Goraya, Raman (7 February 2009). "Victory head home with hefty advantage". ABC News.
^ Maasdorp, James (14 February 2009). "Victory maul Adelaide en route to home final". ABC News. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Adelaide earns shot at redemption". ABC News. 21 February 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ "Victory prevail in epic". A-League Official Website. 28 February 2009. Archived from the original on 3 March 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
^ FIFA.com Fabiano leaves Chonburi for Victory Accessed 31 May 2008
^ a-league.com.au Patafta moves north to join Newcastle Archived 18 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 31 May 2008
^ Match rescheduled due to Adelaide's participation in FIFA Club World Cup

External links

Melbourne – Official Website
Pictures of Melbourne supporters
MVFC – Melbourne Victory Videos

Preceded by Central Coast Mariners	A-League Premiers 2008–09	Succeeded by Incumbent
Preceded by Sydney FC	A-League Champions 2006–07	Succeeded by Newcastle Jets

[1] "Thwaite Signs For Victory". FourFourTwo Australia. Haymarket Group. 19 June 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[2] "Pupy Lopez Signs For Victory (At Last)". FourFourTwo Australia. Haymarket Group. 14 July 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[3] Desira, Peter (24 May 2008). "Ney Fabiano signs two-year deal with Melbourne Victory". Herald Sun. Herald and Weekly Times. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[4] "Victory claim Pre-Season Cup". A-League Official Website. 6 August 2008. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[5] "Sydney and Melbourne share honours". A-League Official Website. 16 August 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[6] "Clinical Victory blasts past Phoenix". A-League Official Website. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 1 July 2011.

[7] "Victory run riot". A-League Official Website. 29 August 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 1 July 2011.

[8] "Sydney's double bonus". A-League Official Website. 25 October 2008. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[9] "Victory get jump in premiers' race". A-League Official Website. 23 January 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.^{[permanent dead link]}

[10] Goraya, Raman (7 February 2009). "Victory head home with hefty advantage". ABC News.

[11] Maasdorp, James (14 February 2009). "Victory maul Adelaide en route to home final". ABC News. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[12] "Adelaide earns shot at redemption". ABC News. 21 February 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[13] "Victory prevail in epic". A-League Official Website. 28 February 2009. Archived from the original on 3 March 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.

[14] FIFA.com Fabiano leaves Chonburi for Victory Accessed 31 May 2008

[15] -league.com.au Patafta moves north to join Newcastle Archived 18 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine Accessed 31 May 2008

[Clubworldcup-16] Match rescheduled due to Adelaide's participation in FIFA Club World Cup

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