Melbourne Victory could not get the better of high-flyers Dandenong Thunder, who came away as 4-1 winners.
As the NPLM Victoria season continues to close in on the final rounds, Victory’s tense fight for survival was in for a big test against third-placed Dandenong Thunder at George Andrews Reserve.
Recently signing first-team contracts for the upcoming A-League Men’s season, young midfield duo Kayne Razmovski and Luka Kolic returned to the side for the crucial game.
Meanwhile, teenagers George Mihailidis and John Paikopoulos were promoted into the XI, making their first Senior NPL starting appearances of the season.
Kicking off the action, the Young Vucks were immediately placed under immense pressure by Dandenong Thunder.
Seeking to establish a top-three position on the league table, Dandy had a few early chances to take the lead.
Receiving the ball on his right-hand side, star player Yuki Uchida made no mistakes with his finish in the 14th minute, providing the hosts with an early lead.
Victory were forced to largely focus on the defensive end in the first 45, with centre-back Parker Williams pulling off a few key interventions.
Trailing by a goal at the break, head coach Boris Seroshtan introduced young midfielders John Kellis and Charlie Gorevski to start the second half.
Retaining his position in between the sticks, Daniel Graskoski made some important saves as Dandy’s momentum continued on home soil.
Pressed in their half, left-back John Paikopoulos particularly stood out with some excellent driven passes to progress his side up the field.
However, Dandy would score a second on the hour mark after a calm finish by attacker Hassan Jalloh.
Straight after the goal, defender Nikolas Cevizovic was brought on to replace the injured Parker Williams, while speedy winger James Lackay would also enter in the 72nd minute.
The hosts would continue their clinical attacks on goal to seal the win, scoring from the spot in the 78th minute and slotting in a fourth two minutes later.
Taking the score to 4-0 in the blink of an eye, Dandy Thunder’s quality was displayed perfectly, despite Victory remaining tightly contested for the majority of the game.
Ignoring the scoreline, the Young Vucks continued to play their game and were mightily impressive in the remaining 10 minutes.
Attacking down the right wing with speed, an incisive ball by Patrick Wall to Daniel Lazarevski allowed the striker to attack the byline.
Drawing the attention of the defence, Lazarevski swiftly cut the ball back to the arriving John Kellis, who cushioned the ball off the crossbar and into the back of the net in the 83rd minute.
It was a great moment for the Young Vucks and Kellis in particular, netting his first goal since joining the club mid-season.
Kellis continued to impress in his stint off the bench, whipping an excellent cross to the back post that was headed onto the woodwork by the leaping headed effort from James Lackay, coming so close to scoring a second goal for Victory in the space of minutes.
Although positives were certainly evident for Victory’s young group throughout the game, particularly in the final moments, the full-time whistle would eventually sound, crowning Dandenong Thunder the winners of the day.
Recording another loss in a tough away fixture, Victory’s search to escape the bottom three was dealt a devastating blow.
Requiring wins in their final two matches, Melbourne Victory’s Senior NPL side returns to action on Friday, August 15, taking on finals-contending Hume City at Nasiol Stadium.
Match Details
NPL Victoria Men Round 24
Dandenong Thunder 4 (Uchida 14′, Jalloh 60′, Dekker 78′, Taylor 80′)
Melbourne Victory 1 (Kellis 83′)
Melbourne Victory Starting XI: 30. Daniel GRASKOSKI (GK), 2. Linus BOURKE, 4. Damien BOZINOVSKI (C), 6. Kayne RAZMOVSKI, 8. George MIHAILIDIS, 11. Daniel LAZAREVSKI, 13. John PAIKOPOULOS, 18. Lucas ALESSI, 20. Parker WILLIAMS, 22. Patrick WALL, 26. Luka KOLIC
Substitutes: 42. Oscar VON SCHRENK (GK), 15. Nikolas CEVIZOVIC (61′), 17. Jonathan KELLIS (46′), 24. James LACKAY (72′), 28. Charlie GOREVSKI (46′), 29. Tobenna OBANI
