The First Melbourne Victory Home game

10 years ago in September 2005, the first Melbourne Victory home game in the A-League was played against Perth Glory with the final score being a 2-2 draw. On that historic day, Austrian import Richard Kitzbichler and current coach Kevin Muscat were the scorers.

However, it is a much lesser known fact that Melbourne Victory’s FIRST EVER home game was also against Perth Glory! This historic game was played as part of the pre-season challenge cup on the 30th July 2005 at MV’s first home ground – Olympic Park.

And I am very proud to say that I was one of the small crowd of 4,528 who attended the game!

The starting eleven on that night was …

1 Michael Theoklitos

2 Kevin Muscat (captain)

4 Mark Byrnes

5 Geoffrey Claeys

6 Steve Pantelidis

7 Michael Ferrante

9 Daniel Allsopp

10 Archie Thompson

12 Carl Recchia

13 Kristian Sarkies

17 Richard Kitzbichler

And the score was 1-0 to Melbourne Victory with Archie Thompson scoring the winning goal in the 60th minute ! It was a great night and I have been a loyal Melbourne Victory fan ever since.

Here are some pictures I took on the night. Apologies in the advance for the very poor photos! Bear in mind this was in 2005 – consumer compact digital cameras at the time was pretty basic and terrible at night photos. Not to mention my photographic skills are pretty non-existent!

Hope you enjoy this little trip down memory lane. I will gladly take the same 1-0 scoreline for tomorrow’s A League match between Melbourne Victory and Perth Glory at AAMI Park !

Ed: This post was originally posted at the Melbourne Ahoy website - The First Melbourne Victory Home game

Cruise Holiday Tips For Your Christmas New Year Vacation

This article is written exclusively for Melbourne Ahoy by best selling travel author Ben Better. Check out his latest book “Secret Cruise Tips For The First Time Cruiser: Your Key To An Enjoyable And Stress Free Cruise Holiday” now available on Amazon.

Cruise Ahoy !

With the Christmas and New Year festive period upon us, it also the time for many to take a break and have a well earned holiday.  And top amongst vacation plans for many is a cruise holiday!

With the stressful and busy lives that many of us lead these days, it is not surprising that cruise holidays are the fastest growing section of the travel industry. After all, the ticket price is typically inclusive of ALMOST everything – notable exceptions include alcohol, spa treatments, professional photos, guided on-shore tours, etc.

The First Time Cruiser

Have you booked your first ever cruise holiday during the festive and new year holidays?

Are you feeling just a tad uncertain about how to make sure that your cruise holiday is smooth sailing (pardon the pun!) ?

If yes, then here are some quick tips to help you have an enjoyable and stress free cruise holiday.

Getting ready for theme parties

All cruise ships will have a few theme nights – e.g. Mexican, Caribbean, Bath Robe, Formal black tie, etc. – in the itinerary. These parties are always a blast when you are dressed appropriately as it helps to make you feel more involved.

So do give the cruise line a call to find out what are the themes beforehand so you can prepare your costume. Theme nights are always great fun and even more so when you dress up in costume. You will be pleasantly amazed as to how much effort some seasoned cruisers go into their custom-made outfits!

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To read on, continue on to the blog post on the Melbourne Ahoy website - Cruise Holiday Tips For Your Christmas New Year Vacation

How The Famous Melbourne Laneways Came About

Melbourne laneways are a world renown phenomenon for its exciting combination of cafes, dining, hipsters and hidden gems. But have you ever wondered how the Melbourne laneways came about ?

Find out at my latest blog post on the Melbourne Ahoy website - How The Famous Melbourne Laneways Came About