MVFC Blog

It’s strange to see Matthew Kemp in Victory garb - stranger than it was to see Adrian Caceres with Melbourne after he came over from Perth. But when it comes to inter-club rivalries, the Melbourne-Perth one pales in comparison to the rivalry between Adelaide United and the Victory. So to have Matthew Kemp - a regular fixture for Adelaide in its past two seasons - sporting the Melbourne Victory outfit, is something that takes a little getting used to.

That said, Melbourne fans should be excited about having Kemp on board. Here’s why:

Kemp was a key player for Adelaide during the first two A League seasons. Last season, he played 19 games and started 14 of those matches, plugging the Adelaide defence on the left. To judge his success, consider one game in which he was absent: the Grand Final match against Melbourne. Kemp missed the game due to suspension, leaving Greg Owens to try and fill his spot. The Victory’s attack exposed this weakness, again and again. Kemp’s absence was referred to frequently in subsequent days as commentators tried to make sense of the 6-0 scoreline.

Like Joe Keenan, Kemp is versatile enough to be played in midfield as well as defence, though it appears that Merrick prefers to use him in the latter position. In his first two matches for the Victory, against China and Tianjin Teda, he played as a right back.

I expect that Kemp is likely to be a regular starter for the Victory this year. The fact that he is versatile enough to play as a midfielder suggests an offensive bent, something which Melbourne struggled with last year. In some ways, Kemp offers a package that is similar to what Alessandro gave Melbourne last year - an attacking defender with the ability to run down the flanks when goals are needed. But then, I think Kemp will fill that role much better than Alessandro did. Where the Brazilian’s attacking forays opened up a weakness in defence, Kemp has proven that he can play the defensive role while offering a forward push.

Read more about Matthew Kemp:

• Kemp switches to Victory, 14 July, 2007, WorldGame
• Kemp hungry for first Victory lap, July 12, 2007, The Herald Sun
• Matt on Wikipedia
• Profile on MelbourneVictory.com.au