Sydney Olympic and South Melbourne face off

South Melbourne FC will host NSW Premier League Champions Sydney Olympic in an exhibition match on Sunday 11th December when they launch their refurbished Lakeside Stadium.

A refurbished Lakeside

South Melbourne FC and Sydney Olympic have shared a long history of derby matches in the old National Soccer League, many at Lakeside Stadium. They first met at Lakeside on 4th February 1996 South triumphed 2-1 with goals from Vaughan Coveny and Paul Trimboli. The last time Olympic played at Lakeside was in the final NSL season on the 10th December 2003, when they came from 3-0 down to trail 3-2 before Con Boutsianis hit a trademark free kick late in the match to give South a 4-2 victory.

Despite the historical advantage, Sydney Olympic will be the favorites on the day. Whilst South finished 4th in the VPL, Olympic found form in the NSW Premier League this year, securing the Minor Premiership before defeating rivals Sydney United 2-0 in the Grand Final at Belmore Sports Ground earlier this month to claim the Championship as well.

The game is one of the few opportunities these two ex-NSL sides can compare themselves with opposition from interstate - that is until the FFA Cup is rolled out. Originally aiming to start the cup competition next year, Football Federation Australia have seemingly placed the FFA Cup on the backburner until the Hyundai A-League is consolidated.

South Melbourne FC President Leo Athanasakis was delighted to officially announce the match.

"We are quite excited to host the NSW Premier League champions in what promises to be a great celebration. It will provide the opportunity for our fans to inspect the new facilities at Lakeside Stadium, and see the Club return back to its home. I encourage everyone to get to Lakeside Stadium early and enjoy the festivities".

Entry for the South Melbourne Sydney Olympic match-up is free. The Senior Mens match between the two sides will kick-off at 6pm.