VICTORY FEELS HEAT,

Ryan Reynolds and Mark Bogue get in the mood for tonight’s clash

RYAN REYNOLDS: Boguey, today’s the day. Finally we get rid of that white ball filth and see some proper round ball action on GMHBA Stadium. ALEX OATES: Hey! What did you say about the cricket? RR: Go away Alex, you had your moment on Wednesday! Anyway, it’s going to be a scorcher too. I hope the action on the pitch will be as hot as the temperature in the grand stands. Are you as excited as me? MARK BOGUE: You know me, I’m always excited when the A-League rolls into town. We’ve had some pretty entertaining affairs down here, 12 goals in the past few games speaks to that. But I’m worried the heat might take some of the sting out of the game this time, maybe they should leave the sprinklers on for the whole 90 minutes! Also I’m a bit jealous you’ll be in the airconditioned comfort of the media box while I’ll be sweating it out in the stands with everybody else. Do you reckon the heat will play a big part with the size of the crowd? What was it, 14-odd thousand last year? RR: I hope it doesn’t. The Kardinia Park Trust has got free icy poles, water stations, cooling mist and a heap of other things to keep ALeague fans cool tonight. I think about 14,000 would be a good number. Hopefully Victory fans make the trek down and turn GMHBA into a real cauldron. We’ve had some epic contests in recent years and Besart Berisha etching his name in history last year was a highlight! What could possibly happen in this contest? MB: Yeah, going on the size of the turnout to the Victory fan day at the waterfront on Thursday I think the crowd will be good. Nothing would surprise me on the pitch. Form lines seem to go out the window when teams come down here. Victory may be third on the table and the Mariners second last, but the gap between them isn’t huge. I’m looking forward to seeing Leroy George light the place up. Another goal like he bagged against the Mariners a few months ago would get the place rocking. RR: And who can forget last season’s blunder when they got the line markings wrong at one end! Hopefully that can get sorted out well before kick-off this time. As for the game, Victory is in great form at the moment, winning four of their past five games. Only a 2-1 loss to Adelaide is the blemish. We all know Central Coast’s struggles, but they do have some talent. It’s a shame we won’t get to see Daniel de Silva in action. He has been great for Central Coast so far, but he’s off on international duty. How can you see this playing out? MB: With the talent they have Victory should walk in, but I said that last time they played Central Coast here. I have a soft spot for the Mariners, I reckon they’ll snatch a point with a stoppage time equaliser. 2-2 for me. You? RR: I think Victory should have too much class. I’m thinking it’ll be 3-1 or 4-1, a decent sized margin anyway. Expect Besart Berisha to snare a brace as well. But your best bet will be to pack a hat, some sunscreen and buy an ice cream. What a perfect combination!