As the Melbourne winter chill kicks in and we all brace ourselves for another Melbourne winter slog it would be easy to go through this week forgetting it is the 20th anniversary of South Melbourne’s second NSL Championship.
Who can forget one of the most amazing days in South Melbourne Hellas history with the supporters taken on an intense emotional journey of highs and lows finishing with the ultimate climax of victory?
History remembers when South Melbourne won its second national championship, beating Melbourne Croatia on penalties after a tense 1-1 score line in normal time. The team boasted some of the finest Australian football talent – Ange Postecoglou, Michael Petersen, Paul Wade, Mehmet Durakovic, Paul Trimboli, Peter Tsolakis and Con Boutsianis.
A massive crowd of 23,318 gathered to watch probably the most enthralling national league grand final ever in May 1991. Here South Melbourne defeated Melbourne Knights – albeit on penalties – after two hours of intensive on-field action resulted in a quite pulsating national league season climax.
Hungarian legend Ferenc Puskas kept the nucleus of the squad from the previous season and the move paid off as the team again finished second (this time behind Melbourne Croatia by three points) at the conclusion of the regular season.
Determined to erase the disappointment of previous finals campaigns, South began brightly by defeating Adelaide City 4-2 in the Qualifying Final at Olympic Park. A Grand Final spot beckoned with a win against Melbourne Croatia in the Major Semi Final, however Croatia was too strong and held out to win 1-0. South managed to defeat Adelaide City at Hindmarsh Stadium in the Preliminary Final to set up an all-Victorian Grand Final showdown.
In what is one of the most incredible Grand Finals in domestic history, Croatia dominated the game but could only score once. Many South supporters were heading for the exit door to avoid seeing their arch enemy celebrate victory when a moment of magic from club great Paul Trimboli turned the match on its head with a sublime through ball to Joe Palatsides on the 88th minute who calmly slotted the ball past David Miller to equalise and take the game to extra time and penalties.
Palatsides now resides in Greece and is currently coaching and had this to say about that amazing day: “It was without doubt the highlight of my life. When I scored it was an out of body experience. People were commenting on my goal celebration at the club that night but I did not remember a thing for a good minute after the goal.
That moment, and when the South supporters sung the Greek National Anthem are probably the most amazing two moments of my life. I will never forget it and its impossible to try and replicate that feeling in any other part of life.
I remember when the pass came in my first touch had to be spot on because Miller came out and closed the space down quickly to try and block my shot and thank God it was and I slotted the ball in the back of the net.”
Peter Tsolakis, who played left wing that day and childhood best friend of Joe Palatsides has distinct memories of the whole week and the game: “It was a huge build up through the week. The game was really tough because a few of us were down and we were not in the game.
Saying that we should have won it in extra time. Pala (Joe Palatsides) hit the bar with a header and we had two good chances to score. People don’t know this but Pala was going to be taken off midway through the second half and he pointed to Puskas and yelled, “Don’t take me off!! Don’t you dare take me off!!” He was having a lean spell at the time as well.
Thankfully Puskas listened and he has now etched himself into South Melbourne history with that famous goal.
With the penalties they had three penalty opportunities to win it and they missed them all. When Ivan Kelic stepped up to try and save the game on the last penalty I knew we had won it as he was cramping and was reluctant to take it.
They thought they had it won in the last 10 minutes, Andrew Marth was taking shots from 30 metres out and nearly putting the ball in the Yarra river and was laughing but we managed to steal it.
“I feel very fortunate to have played in a great era and to fulfil the dreams of every Greek boy and win a championship and to win it with so many mates that I grew up with in the same junior team makes it extra special.”
Most supporters you talk to about that amazing day will always place this Grand Final as extra special. The enormous crowd, the great rival in Melbourne Knights and the nail biting finish makes this a very special day in the history of South Melbourne FC.
We look back fondly of another era, halcyon times that meant so much to so many people.
George Koukoulas, current Club Secretary who played a huge role in saving the club through its dark era post NSL, had this to say: “That day was the day that tipped me over the edge from being a passionate supporter to a fanatical supporter.
“It was one of the most memorable days of my life to date. It was the embodiment of everything that is great about this club.
“Everything I do today is influenced by the emotions experienced that day and it is one of the club’s greatest highs and we are all working towards providing an opportunity for future generations to experience similar moments.”
We celebrate this great memory and the brave players that played that day and represented the famous blue and white.
