Melbourne Victory’s playing group has sought the advice of Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith ahead of Saturday’s Hyundai A-League Grand Final.
Melbourne Victory’s playing group has sought the advice of Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith ahead of Saturday’s Hyundai A-League Grand Final.
Smith, a champion hooker and half-back who has won two Grand Finals in the NRL and has captained both Queensland and Australia, addressed the players ahead of Thursday’s training session and defender Arian Leijer said it gave the Victory boys a real boost ahead of the big match.
“It was fantastic. He’s a well-respected guy and he’s been there and done it. I think for athletes to hear it from other athletes and you take some vital bits of information from it. If we can use any of that during the game on Saturday it will be a benefit and we appreciate him coming down and the boys really enjoyed it,” he said.
While Leijer wouldn’t elaborate on exactly what Smith discussed, he said it was about re-affirming the things that the team has talked about all season.
“We don’t want to give too much away but it’s the stuff you get told throughout your whole career, but to hear it from another athlete, it just makes it sink in that little bit more. The boys really appreciated it,” he said.
“I think his last comment was ‘kick ’em in the head,'” he joked. “He’s fantastic, we all appreciate different sports and with Cam Smith, you’d say in his position he’s one of the best in the world. To have him come down is brilliant.”
Meanwhile, Leijer said he was confident that midfielder Tom Pondeljak would take the field on Saturday after recovering from a hamstring injury.
“He’s training tomorrow. He’s coming along well. He’s sick of people asking how he is. We’ve been leaving him alone. I think Tommy will be alright. He’s been around the game long enough to know if he’s right or not and if he’s out there on the park, he’ll do a good job,” he said.
Youngsters Aziz Behich, Mate Dugandzic and Nathan Elasi have all been added to the squad which claimed a 2-2 draw against Sydney in Melbourne’s most recent Hyundai A-League match, a result that proved enough to qualify the Victory for its second successive home Grand Final.
