Victory continue run over Reds

The Melbourne Victory have continued their stunning unbeaten run over Adelaide United at Melbourne's Etihad stadium tonight. The Reds have been unable to snatch a win from their rivals in their past ten starts.

A strong crowd of over 16,000 turned out for what has become a healthy rivalry between the two clubs. Adelaide's dominance this season has become somewhat of a talking point, having not lost a match in 13 starts. However, the so-called "cocky" Victory brought their bogey side back down to earth after a dominant performance in the second half.

The Reds got the scoreboard ticking over in the first minute with a perfectly weighted cross from Paul Reid, which was deftly glanced into the back of the net courtesy of Iain Fyfe's head.

It appeared as though the Reds had finally developed into a side capable of taking down the evergreen Victory, until Robbie Kruse drove a ball from outside the box on the 21-minute mark to draw the Victory level.

The physical first half was a reflection of the passion both sides have for this fixture. Unfortunately, Matthew Leckie was on the receiving end of this physicality, and his knee was injured in a careless tackle from Surat Sukha, which forced the Reds to go to the substitutes bench early.

The match continued to ebb and flow with blow sides showing glimpses of dominance. Carlos Hernandez was outstanding in the second half, and quite simply had the ball on a string. Several times he challenged the keeper with long range free kicks, and in the 68th minute put the finishing touches on a three way move between himself, Robbie Kruse and Tom Pondeljak, which put the Victory in front.

The Victory's counter attack was relentless in the second half, with Robbie Kruse and Tom Pondlejak running themselves ragged, much to the delight of the vocal Melbourne crowd.

A late drive from replacement, Inseob Shin, almost brought the Reds level in the dying minutes; however, this was the Victory's night. Melbourne's winning streak over Adelaide is one of the longest in Australian sport, their win tonight helps boost them up to third on the A-league ladder, and firms them as a serious contender in this year's competition.

Adelaide remains on top, and although they were beaten tonight, still showed why they are deserved of the favourites tag to win the title.

Overall, a very positive night for the A-league. Some quality football was played, and a city that is saturated with sport was able to draw a large passionate crowd.