The final whistle at Olympic Village last night was met with pure elation by the home support, but strangely it was also underscored by the melancholy reminder of years past.
It was in a way, a harsh reminder of the lofty heights that Heidelberg United once held itself in – it’s former glory days in the National Soccer League, national coverage and the like – but also a look at the present, a club failing to forget its proud history, but one with the right characters to build a bright future.
The reunion with opponents Sydney United was a strange one, the former NSL titans last met in the Bergers’ final season in the nation’s top flight, losing 3-1 in that 1994/95 fixture. Yesterday’s 2-0 FFA Cup win was redemption two decades in the making.
There’s no better yardstick for the club than coach George Katsakis, whose association with Heidelberg extends back to his junior days and of course the NSL. The commander is steeped into the rich history of the club, and helps motivate his players by telling them they can achieve just that. The 16-strong who outlasted Sydney last night have gone one step closer to achieving just that.
“We’ve showcased the club again. I know people don’t extend their thoughts back as far as the NSL days but today was a reminder of those days. I can say that I’ve seen people here that I haven’t seen in 10-20 years,” says an emotional Katsakis after the full-time whistle.
“But more importantly, everyone involved in this FFA Cup tournament need to be patted on the shoulder because they’ve actually brought grassroots football to another level and has given us something to strive for. Previous to that, it was just concentrating on the VPL, whereas now we’re on the national stage.”
Katsakis paid the utmost respect to the workers in the background who helped piece together the showpiece fixture, many club volunteers taking multiple days off work, and others sacrificing the chance to watch the game themselves to keep the night running smoothly.
“I’m ecstatic, firstly for the boys, because I think their efforts over the last eight months or so have been terrific in terms of their endeavour and their persistence to be winners more importantly than anything else,” he says.
“But also [I’m ecstatic] for the club as well, who have displayed themselves on a national stage in a phenomenal way. I think everyone associated needs to really pleased with their efforts.
“Especially from the playing group and the coaching staff, we extend our congratulations to the board, to the people and volunteers who have helped us out.”
But it’s straight back into action for the Bergers, who have another massive fixture to attend to on Sunday afternoon – their NPL elimination final against Pascoe Vale. Katsakis admits the boys will get the chance to take in what they’ve achieved on the national stage, but will concentrate their focus on the fixture ahead.
“I think the boys need to soak it up and enjoy the moment because you don’t get these opportunities often, and no doubt they will do that. But Friday we’re back in and we start preparing for Sunday,” he says.
“The balance that we’ve got [in the team] at the moment is one where we can shuffle and rotate players around. Of course having the right characters in the room is a significant point that we’ve made early on in the season, that we wanted the right balance of people, as characters and players.
“It gives us the ease this weekend to be able to rotate a few players and get the same output from the ones that have missed out today.”
The carnival vibe of Wednesday night may be long gone by then – the boisterous crowd, the pyro, the Fox Sports cameras – but as Katsakis best put it, it’s all a part of history now and it’s up to them to create more in the coming weeks.