Victorian Cup Double Header

This weekend saw the Cup double header at Lakeside stadium.

Firstly it was the Women’s Knockout final between favourites South Melbourne against the very inform FC Bulleen Lions.

South coached by ex Soccerroo Alan Davidson and WPL ladder leaders were out to make amends for last years loss to Sandringham. But before the first whistle South had to overcome the loss of their top scorer Tiffany Eliadis and keeper Cassandra Dimovski. Both had been selected for W-League side

Melbourne Victory , thus preventing them form playing for their club.

Bulleen staved off relegation last season ,only to reinvent themselves under the guidance of Bob McGuinness . They are currently sitting in third spot in the WPL.

Cup finals are notorious for not going to script, and today proved no exception. South were for the most part the more likely to score but In the end it was a Speculative strike from Tessa Sernio and a scrappy goal from Emily Coppock that gave Bulleen the 2-nil win.

The second match, The Dockerty Cup final saw Melbourne Knights and the romantic cup run of South Springvale, who are also in the last 16 of the FFA Cup.

A Tomislav Uskok goal in the dying minutes of extra time saw Melbourne Knights defeat a gallant South Springvale and claim the 2014 Dockerty Cup at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday night. Having valiantly held on to a clean sheet for just over two hours, State League 1’s fairytale club South Springvale simply couldn’t deny its NPL counterpart, which won its first Dockerty Cup title since 1996 – the year where its current coach Andrew Marth captained the Knights to glory. The Knights came out of the blocks on top early, dominating possession and forcing their opponents to sit back and defend a wave of attacks. It was South Springvale though which had the first real chance of the match as a fantastic cross to the back post found Ali Hameed, but the former Southern Stars winger saw his effort brilliantly denied by Michael O’Farrell in the 18th minute. Melbourne was the next to go close just eight minutes later as Stipo Andrijasevic found space on the edge of the area, but his half-volley flew over the crossbar. South Springvale continued to look dangerous on the counter attack with the pace of Hameed and Alex Florea causing problems for the Knights’ backline, but neither side could find that final pass required for a clear scoring opportunity. Uskok then had a great opportunity to open the scoring in the 63rd minute but his effort was brilliantly saved by Rani Dowisha – winner of the best-on-ground medal - before being cleared away off the goal line. The introductions of former NSL and A-League veterans Bill Damianos and Ricky Diaco turned the tables completely though for the underdogs with 20 minutes remaining. Having played over 200 games of top-flight Victorian football between them, their experience certainly made a telling difference as South Springvale begun to push forward in search of a winner. Neither side could be separated over the course of 90 minutes though as the match went into extra time. With a significantly older and more experienced outfit, South Springvale sat back and waited for an opportunity to counter as the Knights dominated possession. Dowisha proved to be in inspired form, making a number of crucial saves in the first period of extra time to keep South Springvale alive. Ricky Diaco then had a chance from 25 yards out with a direct free kick, but his effort skimmed the cross bar on the way over to the dismay of a buoyant South Springvale faithful. And just when it seemed that the match was going to penalties, the Knights stole the winner through Uskok. The tall midfielder was in the right place at the right time following a goal-mouth scramble to bundle the ball over the line and seal the Knights’ ninth Dockerty Cup title. Winning coach Andrew Marth was delighted to win the Dockerty Cup, but paid tribute to the determination of South Springvale. “Obviously they made it extremely difficult for us and they were very physical early but in hindsight I feel like we could’ve won by more today so in the end I think we deserved the win,” Marth said. “Their (South Springvale) work rate was phenomenal and I think they died a little in extra time and we began to play a lot better than we did over the 90, so I think that was the difference today.” South Springvale coach Bill Lambropoulos was devastated but proud of his side’s cup run. “It’s gut wrenching to lose after putting in so much effort today but I couldn’t be prouder of my boys,” Lambropoulos said. “We’re just a bunch of part-timers who play the game for enjoyment and I’m just devastated for our older guys like Bill (Damianos), Ari (Drakos) and Ricky (Diaco) who have played in three finals now but haven’t won the cup.’’ "This is the biggest achievement in our club’s history and I am just so proud to have been a part of it all. Now we will turn our attention to going up to the Gold Coast (Westfield FFA Cup Round of 16 match against Palm Beach Sharks and doing the club proud again.’’