There is now TWO teams in Melbourne
August 31st 2014 will long be etched into the minds of many Mustangs fans, old and new. The day this little franchise finally grew up. No longer are they just the ‘unwanted’ baby brother of the Melbourne Ice. There’s been many challenges faced; starting as the second Melbourne team, learning to stand on their own and creating a culture that sets them out from the rest. Mustangs are out of the Ice’s shadow and casting a glow of their own. A beautiful orange championship banner will be hanging on the wall at Henke Rink in 2015.
Thanks to the Mustangs Goodall win the original quote of: ‘There is only ONE team in Melbourne has now been altered and we have suggested the new one in our quote above.
The early years of the Mustangs were filled with promise, trouble, agony and bitter disappointment. It looked like any chances of finals let alone a Goodall was a long, long way off. A mustang is wild, un-tamable and un-disciplined and those years the Mustangs would have lived up to their name. Well not for long. Enter 2013 and the signs began to show things were about to be different. With a new head coach in tow with new ideas and new system life as a Mustang was about to start brand new. While a few players remained a new group was added to the mix and thus began the new culture.
A win in the pre-season against rivals Melbourne Ice was just the first sign. Even when a pre-season game means little once the season gets under way proper it signified a new dawn had begun. Then in early May against the Ice Dogs; the Mustangs walked away with a surprise come-from-behind shootout victory 4-3. Who were these guys? How in the world did they knock off the Dogs when the game looked nearly gone? This was a new team, with new confidence and a drive to be the best. 2013 saw them show glimpses of just how good they had become as a team within a short space of time. While there were still some poor losses their wins continued to pile up and they continued to flirt with a Top 4 spot. And then came, the big game. Melbourne derby number 3 is another win that’s etched in every fans’ memory (yep even Ice fans no doubt). That day, in August, Mustangs up-rooted the Ice for the 1st time (excluding pre-season we’d already mentioned) in history.
Call it cliche if you want, but astrology played a strong part in 2014. According to the Chinese astrology this is the year of the horse. So would the Mustangs be in tune with the universe? You bet! From the outset this team looked hungry and ready to make an assault and boy did they do it. Even if they weren’t going to win Goodall in 2014 they were bound to come extremely close. Less player changes as the previous few years, and with a majority of the core group returning the Mustangs looked as strong as ever. On the back-end Jeff Grant (whom also had a short stint in the forwards) proved a good partnership with returner Jack Wolgemuth, and Viktor Gibbs-Sjodin showed he had the physique and offensive talent to balance Pat O’Kane (the pair played together on the same line later on in the season). Jamie Bourke’s play continued to go from strength to strength; and the much maligned Hughes brothers (Joey & Vinnie) left the comforts of the Ice to join the Mustangs during the off-season. It took a bit of time for the brothers esp Joey to settle in and adopt a different style of play; but once he got into the Mustang groove his prowess exploded.
Mustangs obliterated the defending champion Ice Dogs in the first game of the season (they’d get their revenge a littler later). Was that a wake up call? If no one was taking the Mustangs seriously then they did after that one. These boys meant business and they weren’t in the mood to step aside for anyone. As the old saying goes, to be a champion you have to knock of the current champions. Offensive dynamics was one of the biggest talking points for the Mustangs they were getting contributions from everyone, Hughes in particular was huge, he posted a number of doubles in games this season. The defensive end had tighten up they got stingy, refusing to let any cheap goals through making life difficult for the opposition. Fraser Carson, whom had spent last year playing backup finally getting the no:1 starters’ job has been nothing short of outstanding. He’d go close to being the teams’ own MVP. Every game he showed maturity, calmness and mental toughness. He may have a baby-faced but don’t be fooled by his good looks and charms this kid’s got the goods to be the top goalie there is in this league.
The Mustangs surged their way to the top of the league, surprising many as they left the opposition in their wake. Galloping off full ahead of steam for the finals. In between all of it they wrecked havoc on the Ice in derby 3 winning 8-3. Of course, maintaining the pace they had set was a tough task and they faced a few losses along the way, but still they were the team the beat. It was like watching the Ice Dogs of 2013. Heading into August and with the season winding down, teams like the Brave, Ice and Ice Dogs were gaining round, a top 4 finish was in sight for these teams even with a few outsiders like the Thunder & Adrenaline. It all came down to the last two weekends of the season. The Ice had, momentarily over-taken the Mustangs into 1st; but a pair of back-to-back losses proved their un-doing, while the Mustangs had to tackle the Brave. A win secured their first finals appearance in style and re-claimed their top spot permanently. Unluckily they finished the regular season in a hard fought back-to-back loss against defenders the Ice Dogs.
Finals was a whole new game and the very prospect of an all Melbourne Final was licking at the lips, but the right resulted needed to be completed. With the Mustangs disposing of the Ice again at the end like they did in the beginning them made it safely into their first Grand Final. They had already achieved so much in their 4th season with plenty of firsts. Now they awaited the Ice whom took care of and ended a dream run for the Brave. Many thought it could be a close game, and being the un-expected 5th derby it delivered much more. The Mustangs took control from puck drop scoring early and frequently leaving the Ice scratching their heads wondering how this had all happened. As the Mustangs ran wild the Ice melted into background, and in emphatic style these young bucks went on to a 6-1 victory.
1st Finals, 1st Grand Final and 1st Goodall Cup.
A new team were they no longer. These Mustangs are the breed of a new champion.
Legion of thunder Creations 