It’s inevitable that last Friday night will evolve into one of those “remember that game when…………………” memories. We collect such moments and hold them dear for a lifetime. For the record, Heidelberg United Alexander beat close-rivals Avondale 2-1 in a game which had its moments, but ambled for the most part.
My nan always said to look for the ordinary miracles. How about that Marcus Humbert winner. In the final minute of regulation time. Under game-on-the-line pressure. And off his non-favoured right foot, which looked every bit as capable as his elegant left in the moment.
Or Blake Carpenter’s equaliser some thirty minutes earlier, off his left, from an angle from around 30 yards out. Vapour trails followed the ball off his boot and the trajectory never deviated as it flew with unerring accuracy into the far top corner of Yaren Sozer’s net.
An early second half penalty – converted with circumstantial aplomb by Anthony Lesiotis – had opened the scoring. If the body check on Asahi Yokokowa to draw the penalty was the correct call, could Heidelberg United then please expect retrospective receipt of the 2025 Australia Cup.
That said, as unintentional as it was, anything that this Warriors and Avengers contest produced on-field on Friday night was much less a concern than it might usually have been, once the focus of the evening shifted from big game to event status.
As both a fund and awareness raising affair to fight the wretched Motor Neuron Disease, it did the trick. As an event and a celebration of Ange Goutzioulis, it too was perfect.
And at a time when the tumult of global instability, economic uncertainty, a looming fuel crisis and the confrontational horror of wars being played out in real time in several hot spots, Friday night’s game – no, event – provided some much-needed sanctuary.
The overwhelming sense of altruism of everyone involved in making the night so special was palpable. That desire to help, and the abundance of kindness and generosity both seen and felt was a joy to embrace. There was a touching sense of community and a celebration of humanity. People smiled.
The Avondale club had been brilliantly supportive in the lead up to the game. The entire Avondale contingent – players, coaches, support staff, officials and supporters – were wonderful on the night.
The rivalry between the two clubs has been red-hot for many years, yet pre and post game conduct of both playing groups and supporting staff was decorous and praiseworthy. It will be very hard to dislike Avondale for any reason ever again. They were all class.
On a night overwhelmed by something much bigger than winning or losing, the minutes after the Lesiotis penalty conversion produced my play-of-the-day. Lesiotis led his bouncing, fist-pumping, back-slapping, high-fiving team mates to the fence at the scoreboard end to share the moment with the kids over the fence. The unashamed shared joy of this game and this life on full display.
Something really beautiful happened on Friday night. If you were at Olympic Village you must have felt it and hopefully let it touch your heart, as it did mine. It’s so sh*tty that the evil of MND may cost Ange Goutzioulis the fairy-tale ending we all deserve.
But some fairy-tales have yet to be written and perhaps ‘Shaggy’ is inadvertently writing a few of his own for all of us to enjoy along the journey.
“Remember that game when Heidelberg played Avondale and we celebrated Ange Goutzioulis and raised all that money to fight MSD”.
