by Greg Blake
Ancient cultures knew that a people without legends loose their soul. The legacy of legends will die if stories aren’t recorded in words or remembered and passed on to the next generation.
Seems to me that we live in times when legacy seems like a mangled, empty word. History is recorded in stats uniformly completed and saved in the ‘Cloud’. Match reporting is AI generated and lacking in both emotion or context.
With that in mind and the new season only a few sleeps away, it’s timely to celebrate two of the most unheralded and yet remarkable Heidelberg United Alexander successes in club history. They may not have been the best, but the deeds of Alexander’s doggedly heroic teams of 1988 and 1990 are the stuff of legend. Both teams won the Victorian State League title. Against all odds.
Alexander has won six senior Victorian state championships. None were harder won than those successes of 1988 and 1990. The 1975 triumph put the club on the map and the grand final era is an easy recall. The penalty shoot-out in 2001, Andrew Cartanos’ goal in 2018 and last year’s epic.
But the stories of the 1988 and 1990 teams are something else again. It’s the story of two marvelous coaches, both of whom recently left us, one in 2023 and the other just last year. Life is best understood when viewed through the rear-vision mirror. Reflecting upon the achievements of Terry Hennessey and then Len McKendry, their places in club history are the stuff of legend. The impact of their deeds and the manner in which they were achieved should never be forgotten
Heidelberg remains the only team Australia-wide to have been relegated twice from the NSL, only to rebound by winning a state championship and bouncing back into national contention at their first try on both occasions. I’ll be telling the stories in two parts.
Just to set the scene, the late 1980’s were tumultuous years for the code in this country. The national competition was still searching for the right recipe. As confused as chimps being handed the nuclear codes, those running the National Soccer League had no clue quite what to do or how close they were to disaster.
Two divisions were reduced back to one, 24 clubs became 14, then back to 16. Finals were scrapped in favour of first-past-the-post before finals and a grand final were re-introduced, the top five became a top six and winter seasons were replaced by summer.
As quickly as local clubs were promoted, relegated or ditched as excess to needs meant the Victorian competition commenced bulging at the seams. The State League swelled from a 14 team competition in 1986, to 15, then 16 team league before ballooning to 18 teams in 1990. It was still two points-per-win and first-past-the-post in Victoria, with a finals system not adopted until 1992.
Against that backdrop, Heidelberg United was facing a crisis or three all of their own. After a decade of top half of the table finishes in the NSL, in 1987 Alexander finished dead last and thus began a prolonged and ugly on-again, off-again divorce from the national competition.
The flames of instability and uncertainty were fanned by the news that Alexander was around half a million bucks in the red. Call it a yard sale or a fire sale, but that figure was reduced to around 100k after the club sold off just about every bit of playing talent it could possibly offload in the off season between 1987 and 1988.
When the State League and NSL competitions kicked off in the early months of 1988, there were 14 ex-Bergers playing for rival clubs in senior competition
Terry Hennessey had seen significant success as a player in the old English First Division and as a coach in the North American Soccer League. But with only a handful of experienced players remaining at Alexander when Hennessey took charge, this would be his toughest gig yet.
Club legends Jeff Olver and Theo Selemidis were gone, along with the likes of Steve Marley, Brian Brown, Alan Hunter, Chris Ketsakidis, Laurie McKinna and Peter Tsolakis, so going into the 30-game 1988 state campaign even Hennessey was guarded about the year ahead.
Even after a couple of handy pre-season Buffalo Cup wins – including a 4-0 smashing of Fawkner, featuring a hat-trick from newly signed Kiwi, Andy Deeley – Hennessey was circumspect. “It’s a tough ask to rebuild and hope for immediate success,” he told the media.
The season started with a tight 2-1 home win over Ringwood City, thanks to a last minute winner from new signing from St Albans, Dennis Morovic. With Morovic and Kon Pappas in splendid early goalscoring form the Warriors reeled off five consecutive wins – including a 4-1 demolition of St Albans – and claimed top spot on the ladder.
The core of the senior squad going forward included the goalkeeper Heidelberg had sold to Derby County nine years beforehand for a reported $130k, Yakka Banovic, veteran Claude Lucchesi, Micky Valentine, Scott Fraser, Nick Ousalkas, Mike Chatzitrifonos, Peter Bordignon, John Kanesoulis, Chris Illiopoulos, Arthur Panatiotis and soon-to-be Hollywood-bound, Lou Theodosopoulos. As well, second-season sensationa, John Anasatasiadis, was up and flying.
UK imports Willie Raynes, Andy O’Dell and Phil Stubbins were incrementily introduced between round six and round 17. John Dowie was a later addition after moving from Brunswick Juventus.
The winning start was met with a reality check in week six, Heidelberg falling 1-0 away against future Berger boss, Miron Bleiberg, and his Croydon City side. What has been forgotten down the years is how exciting the title race was in 1988. And how close. Six clubs were neck-and-neck for the title all season long and with just two games left to play any one of the half dozen – Heidelberg, Thomastown, Green Gully, St Albans, Caulfield City and Croydon – could still take the title.
Caulfield City won 3-2 at Olympic Village in round nine, but Heidelberg still led the league into the half way stage of the season. A 3-4 loss at Northcote – Hercules scoring three goals in the final seven minutes of the game – and a 2-3 loss after leading at Ringwood commenced a forgettable June and July for the team and ultimately costing Hennessey dearly.
Stubbins played his first game in a round 17 win at struggling Oakleigh, but a scoreless draw at St Albans, a 1-2 loss at Springvale City, a draw at Thomastown and a 1-2 defeat at Bulleen – the Lions led by former Warrior stars Jim Rooney (Bulleen’s coach) and Andy Bozikas, who scored in that game – meant just two wins in seven starts.
The Springvale game was significant. It was young gun Anastasiadis’ last game for the club before he left to seek and ultimately find fame and fortune in Greece. The Thomastown game at Partridge Reserve was a hoot. Andy O’Dell was sent off and a couple of beer cans spiralled out of the crowd, one hitting the Thomastown keeper, the other decking a linesman.
The game was halted as the linesman sought time to recover. He did and returned to active duty. No further action was taken. The game finished 2-2, with Stubbins making his mark as an aggressive goalscoring midfielder by scoring both goals. Stubbins netted five in four games but couldn’t stop the rot as the Warriors won just three times in 10 games.
Suddenly the top five teams were within a point of each other and St Albans had stolen top spot. The natives grew restless and such was the volatile nature of the game, then Heidelberg president, Lewis Yoannidis, stepped into the spotlight. According to media reports Yoannidis instructed Hennessey on his selection policies.
A 2-3 defeat at Green Gully in round 26 was the final game for the coach who had sculpted a team from very little and Hennessey was ousted and replaced by former Socceroo and Heidelberg favorite son, Jim Tansey.
Alexander had fallen to third with four rounds to play, but the Warriors had a postponed game in hand, against fellow contenders Croydon City. A careful 2-0 win over Western Suburbs and draws against Polonia and Croydon – in the postponed game – was followed up by two wins on the final two weekends.
The most unexpectedly audacious of Heidelberg’s six Victorian title wins was only clinched in the very last round with a 2-1 home win over Northcote City. Alexander ended the 30-game campaign with 39 points, with Croydon second on 37, Green Gully third with 36 and Thomastown, Caulfield and St Albans all on 35 points.
A matter of weeks later Heidelberg United had launched themselves back into the national league, beating out Brisbane City for an NSL place in a two-game play-off. The Warriors won the Brisbane leg 2-0, with the Melbourne game ending 1-1.
In part two – up in the next couple of days – we’ll have a look at the miracle of the marathon men of 1990. Heidelberg United won the Victorian title in the longest state season ever played, some 34 games. In all, Alexander played 55 games in ten months during an unforgettable journey of redemption.
Warrior Nation!
