Melbourne Victory played out a memorable 5-5 draw on Monday night, recovering from 3-0 down and scoring twice in the last 10 minutes to rescue a point against Bulleen Lions.
Summary
A healthy crowd packed into the Veneto Club on a cold Monday night, for what was a potentially momentous occasion for Victory.
A win for Luciano Trani’s team would confirm a second successive promotion.
Both teams showed plenty of ambition from the opening whistle, testing the defences at either end.
Yona Sultan in the Victory goal also made his mark early, making a handful of important saves.
However, a defensive mistake by Victory was punished in the 18th minute, as miss-step playing out from the back handed Bulleen a golden chance to open the scoring, a chance they did not pass up.
An early goal for the hosts, leaving Luciano Trani’s team with an almighty task if they were to secure promotion on the night.
Kayne Razmovski created Victory’s best chance of the first 30 minutes, crossing brilliantly into the penalty area to force the Lion’s defence to scramble, but Bulleen did just enough to ward off the threat.
Tommaso Minutoli also came desperately close as half-time neared, but another piece of last-ditch defending deflected the attempt away from goal.
An improved end to the first half suggested Victory may be capable of a second-half fightback.
However, Bulleen delivered a major blow with the final attack of the half, doubling their lead after a cross rebounded off the far post and into the path of Marko Bagaric.
2-0 the score at the break, with Victory needing a remarkable turnaround in the second 45.
However, it was the Lions who came firing out of the blocks after the re-start.
A foul in the penalty area handed Bulleen the chance to score their third from the spot.
The penalty was duly converted, as Bulleen flexed their muscles.
The next 15 minutes though would prove to be pure chaos.
Tommaso Minutoli took the game by the scruff of the neck, scoring twice in a matter of minutes, the second from the penalty spot, to pull his team right back into the contest.
Despite the resurgence, Bulleen had a prompt response, scoring their fourth just before the hour mark to restore their two-goal advantage.
Marc Petheriotis and Jordan Hoey were substituted into the game soon after as coach Trani looked for another route back into the contest.
The changes paid dividends, as Petheriotis added his name to the scoresheet in the 67th minute to keep Victory’s hopes alive.
4-3 with 20 minutes remaining, the game had certainly not failed to deliver on the entertainment front.
An even more incredible moment was soon to follow, as in the 89th minute, Victory were awarded a free-kick just outside the box.
Adem Duratović took on the responsibility, executing a sublime free-kick which struck the inside of the frame of the goal before ending up in the back of the net.
Victory had clawed their way back to 4-4, but looked to have had their hearts broken again in stoppage time, when a fifth Bulleen goal returned the hosts to the lead.
However, the game had one final twist in store.
A penalty in the sixth minute of second-half stoppage time allowed Duratović the chance to equalise at the death for a second time.
The number 9 made no mistake from the spot, with the scoreline reading an unbelievable 5-5 when the final whistle blew.
Victory’s promotion party was put on ice, with another point required to guarantee a top two finish, but the league-leaders had rescued a point from a seemingly impossible position, scoring five second-half goals.
Head Coach Luciano Trani’s post-match thoughts
On the performance…
“It was really pleasing for us.”
“We knew Bulleen would be really tough to beat at home, they’ve got a great record there this season.”
“For us, to see the boys fight back from 2-0 down at half-time, it showed great character.”
“Moments like this will give us confidence we can recover from any kind of setback.”
On fighting back in the second half…
“I think it gets down to the daily process of our education for players.”
“It’s never over. Yes one team might be in front, but we want to continue to be competitive and turn the game around.”
“The competitive nature of training has a big impact on game day. I thought this game really showed how the competitive environment at training provides the right kind of preparation.”
On the impact of the substitutions…
“We bring players on to make an impact.”
“I think in the last couple of weeks the subs have really influenced the result.”
“That’s what you expect from players coming on, so it’s really pleasing to see.”
On the final games of the season…
“We’re obviously looking for the support of the Victory fans to come and support the players, who are a game away from achieving the prize of being able to compete at the highest level in the State.”
“We’ll do everything possible to work towards achieving that.”
“We’d love to see as many people as possible get down to Port Melbourne in a couple of weeks to support the boys.”
Next Up
Victory’s penultimate game of the season will be in two weeks’ time, when they host Kingston City at JL Murphy Reserve on Saturday 10 August, kicking off at 3:00pm AEST.
VPL1 2024 Round 24
Bulleen Lions 5
Melbourne Victory 5 (Minutoli 53′, 57′ (pen), Petheriotis 67′, Duratović 89′, 90+7′ (pen))
Melbourne Victory U23s starting XI: Yona Sultan (GK), Dimi Palatsides, Nikolas Čevizović, Damien Bozinovski, Riley Foxe, George Karvounis, Kayne Razmovski, Jack Mihailidis, Adem Duratović (c), Austin Ganino, Tommaso Minutoli
