Melbourne Victory FC–Western United FC rivalry
The Melbourne Victory–Western United FC rivalry, also known as the Battle of the Bridge and the Westgate Derby, is a rivalry between Victorian clubs Melbourne Victory and Western United.
| Other names | Westgate Derby Battle of the Bridge |
|---|---|
| Location | Melbourne |
| Teams | Melbourne Victory Western United |
| First meeting | 2 November 2019 A-League Melbourne Victory 2–3 Western United |
| Latest meeting | 14 March 2024 A-League Men Western United 2–2 Melbourne Victory |
| Stadiums | AAMI Park (Melbourne Victory and Western United) |
| Statistics | |
| Meetings total | 16 |
| Most wins | Western United (8) |
| Top scorer | Besart Berisha Jake Brimmer Aleksandar Prijović (4 goals each) |
| All-time series | Melbourne Victory: 5 Drawn: 3 Western United: 8 |
| Largest victory | Western United 1–6 Melbourne Victory 2020–21 A-League (28 May 2021) |
Despite the rivalry's short existence, it has garnered a reputation for producing talking points, controversy, tension, goals and drama.[1] In the team's first meeting, in November 2019 at Marvel Stadium, Western United won 3–2 despite going 2–0 down within the first 7 minutes. In February 2021 at Marvel Stadium, despite conceding the first goal of the match and despite being reduced to 10 men for the final half-hour of the match, Western United won 4–3, with Victor Sanchez scoring in the final minute of stoppage time.
Overall, Western United has won the most games in the rivalry's history, having won eight times with three draws while Melbourne Victory having won four times. Western United's record win was a 4–1 victory in an A-League Men Finals match at AAMI Park on 21 May 2022, with the Victory's record win being a 6–1 victory in an A-League match at AAMI Park on 28 May 2021. Besart Berisha, Jake Brimmer, and Aleksandar Prijović hold the mark for the most derby goals with four in all competitions.
Background
When Western United joined the A-League for the 2019–20 season as the competition's third Victorian club,[2] they formed a rivalry with the Melbourne Victory nicknamed the Westgate Derby[3] and the Battle of the Bridge.[4]
Results
Melbourne Victory vs. Western United
| Venue | Date | Competition | Score | Home goalscorers | Away goalscorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marvel Stadium | 2 November 2019 | A-League | 2–3 | Toivonen 6', Dobras 7' | Diamanti 16', Donachie 29' (o.g.), McDonald 51' | 20,865 |
| Bankwest Stadium | 25 July 2020 | A-League | 1–2 | Roux 83' | Uskok 38', Burgess 57' | 0 (BCD) |
| Marvel Stadium | 27 February 2021 | A-League | 3–4 | McManaman 21', Butterfield 62', Gestede 82' | Sánchez 42', 90+5', Berisha 53', 58' | 7,190 |
| AAMI Park | 26 December 2021 | A-League Men | 3–1 | Geria 18', Brillante 19', D'Agostino 90+4' | Prijović 87' | 13,186 |
| 23 March 2022 | A-League Men | 1–1 | Hamill 85' | Topor-Stanley 47' | 5,022 | |
| 21 May 2022 | A-League Men Finals | 1–4 | Brimmer 37' | Prijović 18', 49', Wales 78', Wenzel-Halls 90+9' | 15,349 | |
| 13 March 2023 | A-League Men | 1–2 | Fornaroli 50' | Botic 38', Prijović 69' | 9,157 | |
| 20 February 2024 | A-League Men | 2–1 | Da Silva 90+5', 90+8' | Penha 60' | 5,442 |
Western United vs. Melbourne Victory
| Venue | Date | Competition | Score | Home goalscorers | Away goalscorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GMHBA Stadium | 8 December 2019 | A-League | 3–1 | Berisha 17', 43', Kone 24' | Nabbout 14' | 10,128 |
| AAMI Park | 30 January 2021 | A-League | 0–0 | 7,016 | ||
| 28 May 2021 | A-League | 1–6 | Diamanti 45+2' | Brimmer 12', Gestede 22', Kamsoba 33', 50', Folami 36', Butterfield 82' | 0 (BCD) | |
| GMHBA Stadium | 20 November 2021 | A-League Men | 0–1 | Miranda 75' | 8,120 | |
| AAMI Park | 17 May 2022 | A-League Men Finals | 0–1 | Brimmer 74' | 7,295 | |
| 3 August 2022 | Australia Cup | 2–1 | Timotheou 24' (o.g.), Wales 53' | Brimmer 48' | 3,670 | |
| 26 December 2022 | A-League Men | 1–0 | Risdon 45+1' | 2,867 | ||
| 14 March 2024 | A-League Men | 2–2 | Penha 43', Garuccio 90' | Folami 70', Ikonomidis 79' |
Fixture top scorers in the derby
- As of 14 March 2024
| Rank | Scorer | Club(s) | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Besart Berisha | Western United | 4 |
| Jake Brimmer | Melbourne Victory | ||
| Aleksandar Prijović | Western United | ||
| 4 | Damien Da Silva | Melbourne Victory | 2 |
| Alessandro Diamanti | Western United | ||
| Ben Folami | Melbourne Victory | ||
| Elvis Kamsoba | Melbourne Victory | ||
| Daniel Penha | Western United | ||
| Víctor Sánchez | Western United | ||
| Lachlan Wales | Western United |
Statistics and records
As of 14 March 2024, there have been 16 first-class meetings between the two teams since the first meeting in 2019, of which Western United have won eight, Melbourne Victory with five and three draws. The most goals in one game were scored in was a 4–3 away win by Western United on 27 February 2021 and a 6–1 away win by Melbourne Victory on 28 May 2021. Western United have twice won in Victory's former home Docklands Stadium. Western United's record for goals scored against Melbourne Victory is three goals by Besart Berisha and two by Víctor Sánchez.
Summary of results
- As of 14 March 2024
| Competition[5] | Matches played | Victory wins | Draws | Western United wins | Victory goals | Western United goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | 15 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 25 | 25 |
| Australia Cup | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 16 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 26 | 27 |
Players who played for both clubs
Six players have played for both Melbourne Victory and Western United in senior football since 2019, with inaugural Western United squad members Besart Berisha and Connor Pain being the first players to have played for both Melbourne Victory and Western United, with both players starting for Western United in their inaugural A-League match against Wellington Phoenix FC on Sunday 13 October 2019.
Josh Cavallo and Thiel Iradukunda had previously played for Melbourne Victory's youth team before going on to represent Western United's senior team.
Dalibor Markovic was the first player to directly transfer between the two clubs when he signed for Western United from Melbourne Victory midway through the 2020–21 A-League season, while Brendan Hamill became the first player to transfer directly from Western United to Melbourne Victory when he joined the Victory in July 2021.
| Name | Pos | Victory | Western United | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | Apps | Goals | Career | Apps | Goals | ||
| Connor Pain | FW | 2013–18 | 67 | 5 | 2019–2023 | 108 | 10 |
| Besart Berisha | FW | 2014–16 | 137 | 86 | 2019–21 | 50 | 26 |
| Sebastian Pasquali | MF | 2016 | 4 | 0 | 2019– | 34 | 0 |
| Dalibor Markovic | DF | 2020–2021 | 4 | 0 | 2021–2023 | 4 | 0 |
| Brendan Hamill | DF | 2021–2022 | 19 | 3 | 2019–2021 | 20 | 0 |
| Christian Theoharous | FW | 2017–2018 | 25 | 1 | 2021–2023 | 4 | 1 |
| Connor Chapman | DF | 2023– | 29 | 1 | 2019 | 8 | 0 |
Highest attendances
- Melbourne 2–3 Western; 20,865 (2 November 2019); Marvel Stadium
- Melbourne 1–4 Western; 15,349 (21 May 2022); AAMI Park
- Melbourne 3–1 Western; 13,186 (26 December 2021); AAMI Park
- Western 3–1 Melbourne; 10,128 (8 December 2019); GMHBA Stadium
- Western 0–1 Melbourne; 9,157 (13 March 2023); AAMI Park
Honours
- As of 1 October 2022
| Competition | Melbourne Victory | Western United |
|---|---|---|
| A-League Men Premiership | 3 | 0 |
| A-League Men Championship | 4 | 1 |
| Australia Cup | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 10 | 1 |
See also
References
- Comito, Matthew. "Rudan: United's erupting rivalry with Victory helping A-League become 'one of the best products in the world'". A-League. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
- "FFA goes west with two clubs confirmed for A-League expansion". The World Game. Retrieved 14 December 2018.
- Green, Samuel. "Berisha leads United to Westgate Derby dominance". A-League. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
- "Western United, Victory share spoils in action-packed 'Battle of the Bridge'". Football Nation Radio. 30 January 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
- "Melbourne Victory » Record against Western United FC". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 26 December 2022.