WHEN Bathurst ‘75 graduate Archie Thompson injured his knee in a Football Federation Cup match for Melbourne Victory this year, it was initially feared the star striker’s career would come to an end.

But since that incident against Adelaide United in September, Thompson was been working hard on getting back to fitness.

He is now poised to make his return before Christmas and build on a career which ranks him as the A-League’s all-time leading scorer.

“He looks after himself very well, and I’m pretty certain without being a professional that he’d be on track,” Thompson’s team-mate Lee Broxham said.

“It’s great.

“I don’t need to tell you how good a player he is. Him making good progress is fantastic. Once he’s in full flight, in training again, he’ll probably push for a spot again.”

Born in Otorohanga in New Zealand, Thompson began his football career in Bathurst, first playing for ‘75 in 1995. While he washed dishes in a Chinese restaurant to earn money, he was bound for greater things.

Thompson has since gone to earn himself a world record for the most goals in an international match – 13 against American Samoa in 2001. He also spent 54 games in a Socceroos jumper and found the back of the net for them 28 times.

He represented Australia at the 2008 Olympic Games and 2006 World Cup in Germany, he also played a role in helping the Socceroos qualify for the 2010 World Cup.

Though he is now 37, and there was some doubt surrounding his playing future at the start of the season, he and Victory came to an agreement for him to play on in 2015-16.

It was something current Australian coach and former Victory mentor Ange Postecoglou was pleased to see.

“When he warms up he still has the crowd’s attention. He’s that kind of player,” he said.

“It shouldn’t be forgotten he played a pretty key role in getting us to the last World Cup. I was delighted he was going around again at Melbourne Victory ... he has been one of the biggest stories [of the A-League] and he’s been a fantastic contributor.”

Thompson has already been part of three A-League premierships with Victory, the most recent being last season, while he scored five times in their 2006-07 grand final win.

Broxham said that the midseason injection of Thompson back into the squad would be timely, adding that the striker would bring “a bit of freshness” and for him to start pushing players again for places. 

Broxham added that Thompson’s enthusiasm remained strong despite his late-career setback. 

“He obviously went through a little tough patch there, as anyone would. But he’s always happy, he’s always jovial,” he said.