PFA Aussies Legends 3-0 Manchester United Legends | Full Match | 25th March 2017
PFA Aussies Legends vs Manchester United Legends 3-0 Full Match
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Manchester United's Legends suffered a 3-0 defeat against an Aussie Legends XI but the charity match provided a memorable occasion in Western Australia on Saturday.
Goals from Nick Carle, Bobby Despotovski and Con Boutsianis gave the Aussie Legends a deserved victory against the ex-Reds, who lost Quinton Fortune and Paul Scholes to injury in the first half.
But the result was ultimately irrelevant as United fans Down Under, who generated a terrific atmosphere and never stopped singing throughout, enjoyed themselves as a host of club icons dusted off their boots to raise vital funds for the club’s Foundation and DT38 Foundation.
Although fundraising was the aim of the game, it was a competitive contest from the start at the nib Stadium as around 12,000 enthusiastic fans packed into the home of A-League side Perth Glory to welcome some of their heroes in Perth.
After facing European giants Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Liverpool in the last two years in other Foundation charity games, the Reds ventured to Western Australia for the first time since a 2-1 win over an Australian Legends XI in 1975.
Former United and England captain Bryan Robson picked a strong team with a mix of younger legs and experienced men, captained by Paul Scholes and spearheaded by Dwight Yorke, who is loved by the locals in Australia following a previous spell with Sydney FC.
Meanwhile, the Aussie Legends team - with an average age of 35, nine years younger than United - was packed with former Australian all-star players - some of which had British connections, including former Sunderland striker Michael Bridges and Scottish midfielder Steve McGarry.
United, who trained on Cottesloe Beach in the morning to finalise their two-day preparations, began with plenty of early possession but the Aussie Legends unsurprisingly acclimatised better and went close to scoring on two occasions in the first 10 minutes.
First it was Archie Thompson, scorer of 28 goals in 54 appearances for Australia, who found space 10 yards out to fire a snap shot wide before Bridges brought a fine save from Reds keeper Gary Walsh after being set up by ex-Leeds United man Jacob Burns inside the box.
After scorching temperatures earlier in the day, cooler weather set in, which made conditions a little easier for the players to deal with. The Reds settled well but were indebted to another brilliant reflex stop from keeper Walsh, who denied Thompson from close range after Boutsianis raced away from Fortune.
Unfortunately for the 39-year-old midfielder, who is currently training for the London Marathon on 23 April, he pulled up earlier in the move with a hamstring injury and had to be replaced by Danny Webber after 25 minutes.
United struggled to create opportunities in the energy-sapping heat, with their first glimpse of goal coming on the half-hour mark when Yorke’s free-kick was headed towards goal by centre-back Ronny Johnsen but his effort deflected behind for a corner, which came to nothing.
On a humid evening, the Reds were understandably laborious at times and the Aussie Legends’ superior fitness told as they took the lead. After McGarry’s thunderous long-range strike was kept out well by Walsh, the Reds stopper had no answer as the corner was taken quickly to former Bristol City and Crystal Palace midfielder Carle, who curled a delightful shot into the top corner from just inside the box.
The goal fittingly came in the 38th minute, when the fans united in warm applause for former West Ham and Australian footballer Dylan Tombides, who passed away in 2014 from testicular cancer at the age of 20. A statue of Dylan is situated outside the ground and the DT38 Foundation was set up by his mother Tracy in his memory.
United upped the ante in a lively end to the first period as Mikael Silvestre headed over from a corner by substitute Lee Martin and Louis Saha rifled a 20-yard strike inches wide of the far post after linking up well with the impressive Webber, who caught the eye on his first Legends appearance.
But, within a minute of the restart, it became an uphill task for the Reds when Dean Heffernan broke away down the left and delivered a low cross, which was eventually finished off by Despotovski from close range to double the Aussie Legends’ advantage.
It was game, set and matched for the Aussies on 57 minutes when Thompson ran free into the box and laid the ball on a plate to Boutsianis, who slotted home from six yards via a slight touch off the boot of Johnsen.
A host of substitutions for both teams gave players much-needed breathers but broke up the rhythm of the game, which the Aussie Legends, coached by former Socceroos coach Frank Farina, had full control of as Bridges and Robbie Gaspar fired long-range efforts off target.
The ex-Reds, to their credit, kept going and were encouraged by a positive spell as substitute Andy Ritchie sidefooted an effort into the side netting after being set up by Bojan Djordic before Yorke poked a shot harmlessly over the crossbar from the edge of the box.
With many tired legs in red shirts, the pace of the match slowed down and chances were at a premium. Robson gave himself a run-out for the closing stages as the Reds finished strongly, with Ritchie heading straight at the Aussies’ substitute keeper Jason Petkovic before Karel Poborsky looked to be in on goal but had his route blocked by Michael Di Lima.
There were moments of promise but there was to be no final hurrah, or even a consolation goal to cheer. Nevertheless it was an occasion where the scoreline didn’t matter as the Reds fans were given a memorable day out and the two Foundations raised awareness of their work in addition to vital funds.
After the game, full-back Denis Irwin told MUTV: "The Aussies were, without doubt, the stronger team. They were stronger than us, fresher than us, younger than us. It didn’t help that Quinton [Fortune] and Scholesy got injured in the first half but they were better than us.
"The crowd have come out, they’ve enjoyed the night and we're disappointed we got beat 3-0 but it’s all for a good cause. It’s always for a good cause and the lads always love turning out. It’s been a good night. It was humid out there but I enjoyed playing."
Quinton Fortune added: "The game was for a good cause and I’m honoured to be a part of this event. They had a couple of younger players in their team but we don’t make excuses. We tried our best. We could hear the fans the whole match, it was unbelievable support but I’m not surprised.
"The turnout was fantastic and it felt like playing at Old Trafford because they knew all the songs so it was really good. I was looking forward to playing football for a long time and I’ve got to see a doctor now and make sure it’s not too bad and continue my training for the London Marathon."
TEAMS:
United Legends: Walsh; Gillespie (Beardsmore 36) (Thornley 61), Johnsen (Gillespie 50), Silvestre, Irwin (Robson 78); Poborsky, Scholes (c) (Martin 29), Fortune (Webber 25), Djordic; Yorke, Saha (Ritchie 64).
Aussie Legends: Milosevic (Petkovic 63); M Thompson, McKain (Evans 82), Zwaanswijk (Milicevic 51), Heffernan (M De Lima 79); Burns (L De Lima 82), Colosimo (c); McGarry (Gaspar 70), Bridges (Despotovski 41), Boutsianis (Carle 27) (Meredith 81); A Thompson (Harnwell 66).
Goals: Carle 38, Despotovski 46, Boutsianis 57
Referee: Mathew Cheeseman (Perth)
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