South Melbourne and Sydney Olympic’s long-awaited clash to open the Australian Championship delivered in spades, playing out an enthralling contest that brought together nearly 7,000 spectators who basked in the celebratory spirit of the new competition.
The two Hellenic-background clubs delighted in the huge tournament opener on Friday night (10 October) at Lakeside Stadium, with an official crowd of 6,825 people congregating at the venue to witness the thrilling 3-2 victory in favour of “Hellas”.
The new competition has long been viewed by Australia’s older clubs as a spiritual successor to the old NSL, and it was a feeling shared by Olympic supporter Paulo Mpliokas, who specifically flew in from a conference in south-east Asia to make the match.
“About 18 hours ago I was in Singapore,” Mpliokas told Neos Kosmos.
“Basically I left the conference, finished up there, got on a plane, flew to Sydney and then from Sydney flew to Melbourne.”
When asked why he made the effort, he pointed to the atmosphere generated at the game.
“Look around! It’s Sydney Olympic vs South Melbourne. I absolutely had to be here. I’ve got my brother, my wife, my son…had to be here,” he said.
Mpliokas’ links to Olympic originated from his late father Dimitrios, who took him to many games.
“You’re going to get me pretty emotional,” Mpliokas said when asked what the club means to him.
“I grew up going to Olympic. It’s been 21 years since we were playing in the National Soccer League. Last time I was there, I was with my dad. Now he’s watching from up top…That’s what it means.”
Numerous families, including Mpliokas with his own, turned out for the match and transformed it into a true demonstration of the connection and sense of community forged through football clubs like South Melbourne and Olympic.
The match itself lived up to the hype and see-sawed in momentum with the Sydneysiders seizing the lead via a stunning strike by Ali Auglah (12’) before Yuki Uchida (45+2’) and Oliver Lavale (51’) intervened to put “Hellas” ahead.
A dramatic final ten minutes saw Olympic score another ripper of a long-range goal, this time through Ryan Feutz (84’), but the night was destined to belong to South Melbourne as they regained the lead moments later via Jordon Lampard (87’).
While winning was the main concern on the minds of the teams, the vast home crowd, as well as the loyal travelling pack of Olympic supporters, the biggest winner of the evening seemed to be Australian football itself.
