SOCCER
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FORMER Bathurst ’75 star Archie Thompson has decided to call time on his A-League career with Melbourne Victory after 11 years of service with the club.
The 37-year-old all-time leading A-League scorer is adamant this is not retirement, but broke down several times considering a future away from Victory.
“I’ve had an amazing run,” he said.
“I still feel great and I still feel like there’s something to give. I’ve still got to come to terms knowing that next year I won’t be walking out onto AAMI Park and I’m not going to be hearing the chants of Archie Thompson.”
Two astonishing striking feats will forever be associated with the fleet-footed forward.
In 2001, Thompson scored a world record 13 goals for the Socceroos in a match against American Samoa.
A five-goal haul in the 2007 A-League grand final won him the Joe Marston Medal and brought Victory their first championship.
A former Bathurst Sportsperson of the Year, Thompson said his haul of individual and team awards wasn’t what sustained him.
“As a player and an athlete, you want to win medals, you want to win trophies, you want to be remembered,” he said.
“For me it’s never been about that. It’s about putting smiles on kids’ faces and supporters’ faces. I want to be remembered for that.”
After a terrific contribution to Victory’s last championship, Thompson’s follow-up campaign was cruelled by a knee injury suffered last September in the FFA Cup.
He could only manage two starts among 14 appearances this season, scoring just once to convince coach Kevin Muscat that his time was up.
“We had a couple of weeks to talk it over and I respect Kev’s decision and the club’s decision not to sign me on for next season,” Thompson said.
The pair shared a long embrace after the media conference.
Muscat said he had nothing but admiration for Thompson.
“What he’s been able to achieve at this football club is unprecedented in our code, in our country, and it will never be repeated,” he said.
Thompson said he would consider his next move at the end of Victory’s Asian Champions League (ACL) involvement this month.
Last night’s match with Gamba Osaka loomed as his final home outing, but should Victory qualify for the ACL knockout stage, a two-legged series will sustain his time in navy and white until late May.
