Melbourne Heart FC

Melbourne Heart
MelbournHeartLogo.png
Full name Melbourne Heart Football Club
Short name Heart
Founded 2008
Ground AAMI Park
(Capacity: 30,050)
Chairman Australia Peter Sidwell
Head Coach Netherlands John van 't Schip
League A-League
Home colours
Away colours
Current season

Melbourne Heart FC is a professional football (soccer) club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, which is the 11th official franchise in the A-League, and the 12th to have played in the league.[1][2] The club was formed in 2008, and was awarded an A-League licence in 2009 to compete in the 2010-2011 season of the A-League. The club plays its home matches at AAMI Park.[3]

Contents

History

Bidding Process

Strong crowd numbers for Melbourne Victory in their second A-League season suggested to the FFA that the Melbourne market could support a second A-League side, but due to a five year exclusivity clause that exists to protect the original 8 A-League sides, no new Melbourne team could be introduced until the 2010 season. During February 2007, Victorian Major Projects Minister Theo Theophanous floated the idea of a second Melbourne franchise being formed to be tenants at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, should Melbourne Victory choose not to move to the new stadium.[4]

On February 12, 2007 the South Melbourne (Association) Football Club revealed that they were courting approaches from private investors with a view to being the second A-League club in Melbourne.[5] As part of the South Melbourne bid, the club was to be privatised and the bid name was to be 'Southern Cross FC'.[6]

On March 1, 2008 former Carlton (Australian) Football Club vice-president and businessman Colin DeLutis expressed his interest in a second Melbourne A League side, with an approach to the FFA to become sole owner of the second licence with the bid name of 'Melbourne City'.[7] FFA chief executive Ben Buckley raised the possibility of expanding the A-League from 8 to 12 teams in May 2008, in readiness for the 2009-10 season. Buckley also revealed the existence of a third Melbourne bid tentatively known as 'Melbourne Heart' backed by Peter Sidwell, who had some former involvement with Melbourne Victory as a potential investor . This was alongside the two other 'Southern Cross FC' and 'Melbourne City' bids.[8]

On 25 July 2008, the 'Melbourne City' bid dropped out of the bidding process leaving the 'Melbourne Heart' and 'Southern Cross FC' bids as the last two bids standing.[9]

The winning bid for the 2nd Melbourne A-League licence

By September 2008, the Melbourne Heart[10] bid was awarded exclusive negotiating rights for the league's 11th licence, beating out the 'Southern Cross FC' bid backed by South Melbourne. Negotiations continued until Sidwell's group was awarded the licence to join the A-League's 2010-11 season by the FFA on 12 June 2009.[11]

2010-11 season

On 5 August 2010, the Melbourne Heart played its first match in the A-league against a foundation club, the Central Coast Mariners, on a cold Thursday night at Melbourne's AAMI Park. The Heart started attacking in the first 10 minutes before being on the back foot after Alex Wilkinson of the Central Coast Mariners was left unmarked in the box and headed the ball in for his first goal in the A-league in the 16th minute. At half time the score stayed 1-0 but after Central Coast dominated the first half it was time for Melbourne Heart to do some attacking, but the Heart couldn't score the goal needed and lost their first game. The Melbourne Heart's second game ended in a 1-1 draw, which was there first point and first goal of the A-league, but the goal that Melbourne Heart scored was an own goal by Newcastle Jets defender Ben Kantarovski. The first goal scored by a Heart player was by Dutchman Rutger Worm in the 42nd minute. Just over half an hour after that Eli Babalj scored in the 74th minute but it wasn't enough to win. In the following weeks the Heart kept on trying to grasp their first 3 points of the season. In round 4 Melbourne Heart were leading 2-1 until a contentious penalty was given away in the last minute. Robbie Fowler fired in the penalty and got the 1 point. The player that was awarded the penalty Michael Baird was suspended for 2 weeks for simulation. In round 5 Melbourne Heart won their first match 1-0 against North Queensland Fury.

Sponsors

On the 16th of February 2010, leading financial institution Westpac[12] teamed up with the Melbourne Heart for a three-year agreement believed to be worth close to $2 million. They will be their principal partner and the Westpac logo will appear on the Melbourne Heart kit. The club will also host 3 'Westpac' community camps across Victoria.[13]

Name, colours and badge

Alternate badge

In October 2009, an online competition held by the Herald Sun gave the public the opportunity to submit their preferences for the name of the new Melbourne team. The preferred names were released on the Herald Sun website on November 13, 2009. The four options were 'Sporting Melbourne FC', 'Melburnians', 'Melbourne Revolution' and 'Melbourne Heart FC'. Some pondered if 'Revolution' had some context considering its intimation to the Eureka Stockade, the closest Australia has come to revolution.[14] The name of the new club was to be announced before the end of 2009,[15] but this was delayed until early 2010 due to AFL objections to the use of the words Melbourne, Football and Club [16] in the name. The Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation expressed concern that the name Melbourne Heart was too similar to its annual Heart of Melbourne Appeal, and lodged a protest with IP Australia in January 2010.[17] The club's badge was lodged to IP Australia the same month by the FFA,[18][19] and on 2 February 2010, the name of the club was announced as Melbourne Heart FC.[20][21]

Initially, a colour scheme of either black and white, or red and white were the two options for the club. The eventual choice was red and white stripes, with a red sash on white for the away kit.[22]

Training facilities

AAMI Park

Melbourne Heart will base its training and administrative facilities at La Trobe University. CEO Scott Munn has indicated a preference to have the players housed at the one location.[23]

Players

Senior Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Australia GK Clint Bolton [24]
2 Australia DF Michael Marrone [25]
3 Australia DF Brendan Hamill (Youth)[26]
4 Australia DF Simon Colosimo
5 Australia DF Michael Beauchamp [27]
6 Australia MF Matt Thompson [28]
7 Netherlands MF Rutger Worm [29]
8 Australia MF Kristian Sarkies [30]
9 Netherlands FW Gerald Sibon [31]
10 Australia MF Wayne Srhoj [32]
11 Brazil FW Alex Terra [33]
No. Position Player
12 Australia GK Peter Zois [34]
14 Australia MF Kamal Ibrahim (Youth)[35]
15 Australia FW John Aloisi [36]
17 Australia MF Jason Hoffman [37]
18 Australia MF Ante Tomić (Youth)[38]
19 Australia FW Eli Babalj (Youth)[26]
20 Australia MF Josip Skoko (Australian Marquee)
21 Australia MF Kliment Taseski (Youth)[26]
22 Australia MF Nick Kalmar [39]
23 Australia DF Dean Heffernan [40]
24 Australia MF Aziz Behich (Injury replacement player) [38]

Personnel

Senior Club Officials

  • Chairman: Peter Sidwell
  • Director: David Kobritz
  • Director: Michael Catalano
  • Director: Manny Galanos
  • Director: Joe Mirabella
  • Director: Patrick Prendergast
  • CEO: Scott Munn

Senior Squad Coaching and Medical staff

  • Football Operations Manager: John Didulica
  • Manager: Netherlands John van 't Schip
  • Assistant Manager: Australia Ante Miličić
  • Assistant Manager: Denmark Jesper Olsen
  • Goalkeeping Coach: Australia Peter Zois

Youth Squad Coaching Staff

  • Manager:
  • Assistant Manager:

Records

Biggest Win = 1-0 North Queensland,4 September 2010

Biggest Loss = 0-1 Central Coast, 5 August 2010

Largest Home Attendance = 11,059 v Central Coast, 5 August 2010

Lowest Home Attendance= 4,000 v North Queensland, 4 september 2010

Year-by-year history

Melbourne League History
Season Teams Pre-Season Premiership Ladder
Position		 Finals
Qualification		 Final Ladder
Position		 ACL Qualification ACL Placing
2010–11 11 - To be played
Ladder		 - - DNQ

Supporters

The club has a supporters group known as Red & White Unite. It has its own website, events, podcast, and forum.[41] There is also a separate supporter group focused on active support (match day presence such as flags, banners, chants etc.) called Yarraside.[42]

American singer Jon Bon Jovi is the Heart's number one International Ticket Holder. Bon Jovi bought four premium memberships to the Heart's home games, ready to donate the passes to football fans that would not have the chance to sit in VIP due to financial reasons.[43]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Ritson, Jon (4 August 2009). "Victory Skipper Is All Heart". FourFourTwo (Australia). http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/109196,victory-skipper-is-all-heart.aspx. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
  2. ↑ Aidan, Ormond (4 August 2009). "'A-League Will Hit The Big-Time'". FourFourTwo (Australia). http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/109284,aleague-will-hit-the-bigtime.aspx. Retrieved 18 August 2009. 
  3. ↑ "Dome Deal Still To Be Signed". Australian FourFourTwo. 2010-03-29. http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/125447,dome-deal-still-to-be-signed.aspx. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  4. ↑ "South Melbourne wants to be second Victorian a-league club". The Age. 14 February 2007. http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/south-melbourne-wants-to-be-second-victorian-aleague-club/2007/02/13/1171128974594.html. Retrieved 12 October 2009. 
  5. ↑ "Investors Chase South Melbourne FC For A League Bid". South Melbourne FC. 2007-02-12. http://www.smfc.com.au/news/450/investors-chase-south-melbourne-fc-for-a-league-bid/. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  6. ↑ "South Melbourne's A-League Bid". Australian FourFourTwo. 2008-04-06. http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/73354,south-melbournes-aleague-bid.aspx. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  7. ↑ March 01, 2008 12:00AM (2008-03-01). "DeLutis wants soccer team". Herald Sun. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/soccer/delutis-wants-soccer-team/story-e6frfg8x-1111115684190. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  8. ↑ "A-League set for Melbourne derby". tThe Age. 2008-04-30. http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/aleague-set-for-melbourne-derby/2008/04/30/1209234956941.html. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  9. ↑ "Sidwell bid tipped to win second franchise". Melbourne: The Age. 2008-07-24. http://www.theage.com.au/news/soccer/sidwell-bid-tipped-to-win-second-franchise/2008/07/24/1216492641488.html. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  10. ↑ "Melbourne Heart FC". Melbourneheartsyn.com. http://www.melbourneheartsyn.com. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  11. ↑ Reed, Ron (13 June 2009). "Melbourne awarded licence for second A-League team". Fox Sports (Australia). http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,25629397-5000940,00.html?from=public_rss. Retrieved 12 October 2009. 
  12. ↑ "Heart and WESTPAC Unite To Bring Football To Community". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-02-16. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=32610. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  13. ↑ "Melbourne Heart signs Clint Bolton, chases John Aloisi". Herald Sun. 2010-02-17. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/soccer/melbourne-heart-signs-clint-bolton-chases-john-aloisi/story-e6frfg8x-1225831137752. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  14. ↑ "The Melbourne Heart name saga rolls on". The Roar. 2009-11-18. http://www.theroar.com.au/2009/11/18/the-melbourne-heart-name-saga-rolls-on/. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  15. ↑ "Postcard From Europe". Melbourneheartsyn.com. 2009-12-18. http://www.melbourneheartsyn.com/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=31516. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  16. ↑ Lynch, Michael (2010-01-27). "Heart to make early start, but stars may be missing". Melbourne: The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/sport/soccer/heart-to-make-early-start-but-stars-may-be-missing-20100126-mwb7.html. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  17. ↑ February 03, 2010 8:57AM (2010-02-03). "Charity protests at Melbourne Heart's logo". Herald Sun. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/battle-heats-up-for-heart-of-melbourne/story-e6frf9if-1225826211461. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  18. ↑ "Images for Trade Mark 1342740". Pericles.ipaustralia.gov.au. http://pericles.ipaustralia.gov.au/tmimages/cgi-bin/oracle_get_tm_images.pl?1342740. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  19. ↑ "Images for Trade Mark 1342741". Pericles.ipaustralia.gov.au. http://pericles.ipaustralia.gov.au/tmimages/cgi-bin/oracle_get_tm_images.pl?1342741. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  20. ↑ The World Game - Melbourne Heart FC Unveiled
  21. ↑ Melbourne Heart FC name and logo confirmed, The Roar, Retrieved on 4 February 2010
  22. ↑ "Drake International Pledges Its Heart To Melbourne As Away Strip Is Unveiled". MHFCSA. 2010-05-27. http://www.mhfcsupporters.com/drake-international-pledges-its-heart-to-melbourne-as-away-strip-is-unveiled/. Retrieved 2010-05-27. 
  23. ↑ "Heart To Establish Base At La Trobe University". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-04-01. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33296. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  24. ↑ "Heart sign Bolton". Sportal Australia. 2010-02-16. http://sportal.com.au/football-news-display/heart-sign-bolton-85994. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  25. ↑ "Marrone Signs For Heart's Inaugural Campaign". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-04-30. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33522. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 "Heart Sign Qantas Young Socceroo Trio". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-04-23. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33464. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  27. ↑ Brodie, Will (2010-05-17). "Heart signs Socceroo Beauchamp". Melbourne: The Age. http://www.theage.com.au/sport/soccer/heart-signs-socceroo-beauchamp-20100517-v7fm.html. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  28. ↑ "Joe Marston Medal Winner Simon Colosimo Joins Heart". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-03-31. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33291. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  29. ↑ "Melbourne Heart Sign NEC Attacker Rutger Worm". Goal.com. 2010-02-23. http://www.goal.com/en/news/808/australia/2010/02/23/1803999/melbourne-heart-sign-nec-attacker-rutger-worm. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  30. ↑ "Con: Matt's Off To Heart". Australian FourFourTwo. 2009-11-19. http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/117077,con-matts-off-to-heart.aspx. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  31. ↑ "Heart Sign Former Ajax and PSV Star Gerald Sibon". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-05-21. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33708. Retrieved 2010-05-21. 
  32. ↑ "Srhoj Becomes Player Number 10". Melbourne Heart FC. 2010-04-13. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=33372. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  33. ↑ "Heart Sign Brazilian Alex". Australian FourFourTwo. 2010-05-10. http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/128422,heart-sign-brazilian-alex.aspx. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  34. ↑ "Goalkeeper Zois Rounds Off Inaugural Roster". Football Federation Australia. 2010-08-04. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=34498. Retrieved 2010-08-04. 
  35. ↑ "Heart sign 17-year-old to A-League deal". News.smh.com.au. 2010-02-26. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-sport/heart-sign-17yearold-to-aleague-deal-20100226-p8gb.html. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  36. ↑ "John Aloisi signs for Melbourne Heart". Herald Sun. 2010-03-29. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/aloisi-signs-for-melbourne-heart/story-e6frf9if-1225846701761. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  37. ↑ "Hoffman moves to Heart". A-league.com.au. 2010-01-08. http://www.a-league.com.au/default.aspx?s=newsdisplay&id=31840. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 "Heart Sign Behich and Tomic". Football Federation Australia. 2010-07-26. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=34357. Retrieved 2010-07-26. 
  39. ↑ "Heart Confirm Kalmar Signing Ahead Of Oakleigh Clash". Football Federation Australia. 2010-06-19. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=34028. Retrieved 2010-08-02. 
  40. ↑ "Heart 'Snare Three More'". Australian FourFourTwo. 2009-11-24. http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/117367,heart-snare-three-more.aspx. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 
  41. ↑ http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=34659
  42. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/everton-saunters-to-20-win-over-heart-20100714-10b95.html
  43. ↑ "Bon Jovi Announced As Heart's #1 International Ticket Holder". Melbourne Heart Football Club. http://www.melbourneheartfc.com.au/default.aspx?s=aleague_newsdisplay&id=34338. 

External links

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