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Melbourne and Sydney to resume hostilities

Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC will resume their rivalry this weekend in a blockbuster clash at the Telstra Dome. With comparisons to the Round 1 fixture between the clubs, Sydney will be calling on young and inexperienced players to attempt to quell the free-scoring capabilities of the Victory forwards. In that match, an undermanned Sky Blues outfit was unlucky not to take all three points in a match that provided minimal chances and ended 0-0. It was also the match that unearthed midfield talent Shannon Cole who came agonizingly close to scoring on debut. This time, Sydney will need a boost in defence after key defenders Tony Popovic and Iain Fyfe had to withdraw due to injury. It does however give an opportunity to two young players in Anthony Golec and Beau Busch, the former a member of the Youth squad. Sydney coach John Kosmina was confident the inclusions could get the job done. "Obviously we lose a lot of experience with Poppa and Fyfey missing but Anthony and Beau are both good players," he said. "They've both been impressive at training this week and I'm sure they'll do a job for us on Saturday." Sydney will also welcome back first choice goalkeeper Clint Bolton who missed last week's match. Meanwhile, the Victory will be without marquee striker Archie Thompson who will be unavailable due to suspension but will be buoyed by the return of Jose Luis Lopez who returns from international duty with Costa Rica.

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Andrew Slevison
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