O'Neill with brace and goals 110 days apart: City pick up points in A-League derby
Melbourne City showed why they are top of the league, Melbourne Victory showed why they are not, and most importantly, fans stayed off the pitch as the two clubs wrapped up their Dec. 17 match on Wednesday night.
"There you go - a world record."
- The impact of the invasion is still being felt by the Victorys, who are still counting the cost at the box office and the sanctions they received from Football Australia after the invasion.
- As of Jan. 25, Victoria Police had identified 46 people linked to the pitch invasion. Thirty-five have been charged, while the others face various penalties and fines.
- Football Australia has slapped several people with suspensions ranging from life to several years, with more suspensions expected once the legal process for each person is complete.
- Victory coach Tony Popovic disagreed with the replay and would have preferred the game to be replayed in full.
"After the whistle was blown, the game should have been 0-0 and continued as a normal game, but the decision was made and we were aware of it," Popovic said.
"It was a very strange situation, it was important for us to score the first goal today because psychologically the players look at the scoreboard and it's 2-0, and then the players force things, are anxious.
"Overall, we are satisfied. We play against the top team and in the end it's a draw, but we take the result and the starting position from December" with us
Vidosic said his club was happy to take the points.
"This was definitely the most bizarre game I have been involved in," Vidosic said.
"We knew it was coming, but after the game against the Newcastle Jets, we started to think hard about what we were doing. We do not really need this.
"I am glad it's over, let us put this [game] behind us."
The atmosphere was far more subdued than at previous derbies. While the active groups chanted as usual, most of the crowd watched, perhaps trying to process the unusual event of a game resuming instead of starting.
On December 17, the atmosphere on the pitch was one of rage, with the sound of firecrackers being set off and flares being lit - on this night, the opposite was true, most likely at the start of the second half, when someone in the dressing room dropped dishes that hit the concrete floor.
Play resumed at 1-0, and in the 21st minute goalkeeper Tom Glover, who had a bucket of sand thrown at his head at the start of the invasion, was booed by the dwindling number of active Victory supporters now in the back of the stands.
O'Neill was the lone scorer in December and was among the players who remained on the pitch when play resumed Wednesday night, despite picking up a yellow card early on for a late tackle.
style="text-align: left;">Neither side was able to create any significant chances in the 26 or so minutes played until halftime. However, Glover made a brilliant save to save Victory fans from a Bruno Fornaroli shot that landed in the bottom corner.
City took the 1-0 lead into halftime, and they doubled their advantage in the 58th minute when Victory played a misplaced pass in defense that was intercepted by O'Neill, who charged into the box and put the ball in the net.
O'Neill scored in the 11th minute on Dec. 17 and made it his brace 110 days apart when he tapped in a shot in the 57th minute.
Victory tried hard, but failed to create the chances they needed to get back into the game. In the 89th minute, Bruce Kamau broke down the right and beat the offside trap before sending a cross to Nishan Velupillay, who scored from close range.
