View from the Victory, Volume Two: The Preseason Gauntlet and Kewell's Impact

Mehmet Durakovic's Melbourne Victory had a rushed preseason which began on July 13 against Scottish Premier League powerhouse Celtic FC. The result was a 1-0 defeat.

On July 26, Melbourne began a series of matches against Victorian Premier League and Victorian State League opponents. Their first match came against the Port Melbourne Sharks of Victorian State League Division 1.

Goals from Danny Allsopp in the 15th minute and Leigh Broxham in the 35th minute paced Melbourne to a 2-0 victory over Port Melbourne. Port Melbourne finished the 2011 season with a record of 13-5-4 (44 points).

On Aug, 3, the Victory took on VPL side Dandenong Thunder and were shut out 1-0. Dandenong finished the 2011 VPL season with a record of 12-5-7 (41 points).

Melbourne proceeded to go on a two-game losing streak when they faced another VPL outfit in Bentleigh Greens. In spite of a brace from Carlos Hernandez, the Victory lost 3-2 to a Bentleigh side that finished their VPL campaign with a record of 10-6-8 (36 points).

Determined to break their slump, Melbourne took on the Springvale White Eagles on Aug. 24 and roasted them to the tune of 5-1.

Goals from Juan Carlos Solorzano, Hernandez and Allsopp accompanied a brace by Archie Thompson. Springvale finished their VPL season with a record of 3-6-15 (15 points).

After dropping a 1-0 decision to Gold Coast United on Sept. 4, Victory rebounded with a 2-0 result over defending A-League Premiers/Champions Brisbane Roar.

Hernandez scored in the 39th minute, while Allsopp put the game out of reach in the 50th minute of play.

Melbourne wrapped up their preseason on Sept. 23 against Adelaide United. This would be the first match that would feature Harry Kewell in the lineup. Melbourne and Adelaide played to a 1-1 draw.

"I was very happy with his performance, absolutely over the moon," Durakovic told Steve Larkin of the Sydney Morning Herald. "There were about 10,000 supporters out there that would have been really pleased to see Harry. The performance that he did for 45 minutes was phenomenal—his touches, his running, his ball passing ... I'm very happy with his performance."

Hernandez scored late for the Victory in the 87th minute after Adelaide's Andwele Slory gave the home side a lead in the 40th minute of play. Kewell was substituted at halftime.

Indeed, the addition of Harry Kewell has been a boon to the Melbourne Victory, but it has stoked their jealousy of Football Federation Australia, who believe that Kewell's sponsorship deals may have crossed the lines in terms of their own.

At the same time, the possibility of a Harry Kewell vs. Brett Emerton showdown is in doubt when Melbourne take on Sydney FC on Saturday, Oct. 8, due to international action going on prior to and after the match.

"Obviously, the situation is out of my hands, but I'd love to play if I'm able to," Emerton told Christian Micolussi of The Daily Telegraph. "I'd love to be part of it, there's no doubt there will be a fantastic crowd, and it would be great for the A-League.

"Hopefully we can make it happen, and it should be a good spectacle for the whole of Australia."

Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. AEST/12:30 a.m. ET/3:30 a.m. ET.