By John Fotinos
Since the advent of the NPL format in Victoria, these two clubs have been the top two performers throughout. In the six seasons spanning 2014 to 2019 (season 2020 & 2021 cancelled due to COVID), they have taken out 13 trophies between them, often meeting in the deciding match. For fans of either club, it seemed like a tit for tat for several seasons, with it seemingly a duopoly of titles and bragging rights split between them,
They’ve met in NPL Grand Finals, Dockerty Cup Finals, Community Shield matches – and in amongst that lot throw in some feisty NPL regular season fixtures. No quarter given, and a begrudging mutual respect between the clubs.
And, it’s on again this Sunday at the Olympic Village, with the extra spice of a resurgent Heidelberg United outfit taking on a Bentleigh Greens side that has found the going a little tougher in the middle portion of the season. The seventh placed ‘Bergers are now within a point of the sixth placed Greens, knowing a victory will take them into the top six for the first time in 2022.
But the ‘Bergers know only too well the capabilities of the Greens, who on their day are capable of matching it with any team, having until just recently been entrenched in the top four spots.
In the Round 3 match earlier this season at Kingston Heath, a typically tight match was settled by a late Pierce Waring penalty to give the Greens all three points in the battle of two clubs that had no points between them going into the fixture. Expect another nip and tuck affair between two fairly evenly matched sides this Sunday.
The action kicks off at 3:00pm at the Olympic Village on Sunday June 5, with the Under 21s match starting at 1:00pm.
How to watch –
Live on Facebook at 3pm – Link
Live on Website at 3pm – Link
