Socceroos Kemp and Thompson to play for Melbourne

Melbourne Victory’s Matthew Kemp and Archie Thompson will step back into the fray of A-League football after returning from international duty.

The pair played almost the entire 90 minutes of Australia’s 2-2 draw in Asian Cup qualifying against Kuwait on Thursday morning and Victory coach Ernie Merrick expects them to slot straight into the starting line-up despite jetlag.

“It's good to see that Kempy played a full game and Archie virtually a full game and they'll come off that buzzing," Merrick said yesterday.

"It gives them plenty of time to recover, so it's good to have them back, injury-free as well.

"I thought (Socceroos coach) Pim Verbeek's squad did a great job given the conditions, the surface they played on and being away from home. They did the job. It's three-quarters of the way through our season and (Kemp and Thompson) can cope with playing a game like that and they will be ready to go on Sunday. No problems."

The Victory take on the Newcastle Jets this Sunday at EnergAustralia Stadium, kick-off is at 5:00pm.