In their last home game of the season, Melbourne Victory fell just short with a thrilling second half rally. It was Sydney FC who walked away with the three points, keeping the Victory at bay with a 1-2 win with goals to Leena Khamis and Jasmyne Spencer for Sydney FC and a lone goal from MelindaJ Barbieri for the Melbourne Victory.

First Things First - Keepers keep the game alive

What first must be recognised are the keepers from both sides, Michelle Betos (Sydney FC) and Melissa Barbieri (Melbourne Victory). Both displayed what it means to be an elite level goalie as they made world class saves and threw their bodies at the feet of players to preserve their team.

This game really was won, in part, on the back of Betos who from the get-go made save after save. Right until the final whistle, Betos remained composed and in control of her box, playing as a credit to her club in Australia and the Portland Thorns of the NWSL.

For Barbieri this game was a demonstration of her remarkable skill, but also a by-product of years of working hard at the elite level. She showed up today in the biggest of ways, from a point blank save to being in the Sydney box for the last minutes of extra time at Victory corners.

Make the most of your opportunities

However it was also a showing that one player’s dedication to the team can not carry them. This is not to say that the rest of the Victory squad didn't show up, in fact for the latter forty-five minutes it was quite the opposite. However early on, a defence forced to be rearranged by Jamie Pollock being out sick with food poisoning, showed it’s flaws and Sydney FC made the most of them.

Down 2-0 into the half and playing well under par, all indications were that this was going to be the Victory of earlier games here to wrap up the home season. That said, this team had other things in mind and it started with an early goal from MelindaJ Barbieri.

It was a stunner from the top of the box from Barbieri, showing fans for the second time this season what happens when she has the ball and space at the top of the box. It was a lethal shot that Betos, stretched out, could do nothing about.

Believe in Yourself

It was the kickstart of what proved to be one of the most entertaining halves of football this season. It felt that the Victory for the first time this game, wanted the win. Not just that, you could feel it in the stadium that they believed they could win. Taking the momentum from Barbieri’s goal, this Victory side out on a show, coming back time and time again to try and slot that second ball into the back of the net.

Try as Hayley Raso, Natasha Dowie and late sub Whitney Knight might, Betos was there at every turn. The offensive and defensive skills of Annabel Martin were on display as well, as she made a striking run up the sideline, delivering a cross directly to the unmarked Raso who couldn't quite slot it past Betos.

What made this half so special was the effort put forth by Victory. Coming from a place where playing the full ninety was a struggle, the Victory showed up in this second half and fell agonizingly short.

With five minutes of extra time to close out this game, and a stadium filling for the A League game to follow, the Victory captured the hearts of the fans with three corner kicks in succession, Barbieri abandoning her net in favour of adding another player to the box.

The stadium was loud, echoing with the rhythmic claps and chants from the fans as they got behind their Melbourne Victory team. Yet it was not to be, in a season of almosts and not quite, the Melbourne Victory played this game out as such.

Reflection and Getting Better

Where could have Victory won this game? Well, having two of Nairn might have helped. One to play the defensive midfield role she's grown into this season, another to play the attacking mid that she prefers.

What we saw from the Victory this game has been typical of them this season. Too many players getting sucked back into the defensive side of play and then when they come out with the ball they don't have the numbers forward to launch an attack.

The speed of Dowie up front has only ever been an asset to this team and she was as goal hungry as ever, but there were moments of chance brilliance that other players simply weren't reading. Not to place blame, those moments came from many players, but this is a Victory team that has had to find its chemistry largely on the fly this season and they can be proud of how far they've come.

Clear Objectives

For Sydney FC, the objective going into this game were clear - win. Sitting in third going into this match if they were going to entertain hopes of closing in on that second place finish they not only needed the win but to score goals.

They did this with clinical efficiency early, both Leena Khamis and Jasmyne Spencer scoring nearly identical goals within eleven minutes of each other.

It was Spencer, with relentless pace on the wing, who caused the most problems for the Victory across both halves. Outrunning Gulcan Koca and Alex Natoli, she used her breakneck speed and footskills on the ball (a la Crystal Dunn) to set up more than one cross into the box and a dangerous shot of her own.

When finding herself on the defensive in this game, it was this same speed and positioning from Spencer that forced an errant pass here, a nervous touch there from the Victory defence allowing teammates to step in and win the ball.

On the other end of the field it was Alanna Kennedy who was the defender to beat. Just as it seemed the Victory attack was on the break, she would step in with a touch or a slide tackle, muscling players off the ball to clear.

The Main Playmaker

Getting the ball from end to end, taking challenges head on and being a presence through the game - all of that was Amy Harrison. Unfortunately for her, she took two hard knocks in the second half and was unable to return to the field of play.

The loss of Harrison in the eighty-fifth minute was a turning point for the Sydney FC side. It was then that they turned to parking the bus and securing the three points instead of looking for their third goal of the game.

There were chances where this Sydney side could have come away with another goal or two, Princess Ibini-Isei was incredibly dangerous, outpacing Martin frequently. However she was unable to put her shots on target.

Nicola Bolger similarly had a chance or two that were stifled by time or the diving saves of Barbieri.

In all, for a game played at AAMI Park, this turned out to be a late thriller. Sydney FC securing three more points for their playoff hopes and the Melbourne Victory reminding us all of the team of past years.

Up Next

Melbourne Victory head out on the road to take on the Newcastle Jets while Sydney FC have a chance to recover with a bye.

Melbourne Victory 1 (MelindaJ Barbieri 47’)

Sydney FC 2 (Leena Khamis 10’, Jasmyne Spencer 22’)

Sunday 27 December 2015

AAMI Park, Melbourne

Kick-off: 2pm

Referee: Rachel Mitchenson

Melbourne Victory: Melissa Barbieri (gk) (c), Alexandra Natoli (Briar Palmer 87’), Melissa Taranto (Whitney Knight 71’), Annabel Martin, Enza Barilla (Adriana Taranto 71’), Christine Nairn, MelindaJ Barbieri, Thea Slatyer, Hayley Raso, Gulcan Koca, Natasha Dowie

Substitutes – Cassandra Dimovski (gk)

Cautions – Melissa Taranto 34’, Christine Nairn 65’, Natasha Dowie 85’

Sydney FC: Michelle Betos (gk), Jasmyne Spencer, Teresa Polias (c), Nicola Bolger (Olivia Price 71’), Amy Harrison (Hannah Bacon 88’), Princess Ibini (Sunny Franco 87’), Natalie Tobin, Alanna Kennedy, Teigen Allen, Kyah Simon, Leena Khamis

Substitutes – Sham Khamis (gk)

Cautions – Teigen Allen 51’