FourFourTwo: Which Derby memories do you cherish the most?

Clint Bolton: We won the Christmas Derby in 2011, 3-2. Matt Thompson scored a double. That one sticks out.

I saved Carlos Hernandez’s penalty in the opening minutes. I remember the noise after that pen save, the stadium was on fire. I don’t mind silencing the Victory fans and I did it in the 2010 grand final in the penalty shootout in Sydney FC colours, so I had that same feeling again.

FFT: Were you lucky not to be sent off in the 2011 Christmas Derby when you fouled Archie Thompson?

CB: No. I thought the yellow card was more than enough. My touch on Archie was so minimal, there was barely any contact, so I didn’t even think it was a penalty to begin with. From the outside, maybe it looked like a pen and I didn’t argue with the referee. In the moment you never know what the referee is going to do and in the back of my mind I was thinking ‘ooh, it could be a red?’, even though I thought it would be harsh, but you just don’t know.

Bolton fouls Thompson in the box in 2011

FFT: What were your memories of the first ever Melbourne Derby?

CB: We won 2-1. Aziz Behich was a big centrepiece, not only because he got red carded, but because he was the guy who came from Victory along with a few other guys. Aziz was a symbol of the passion in the Derby in the way he played. He went too far clearly in that first one, we got swept up in it, not only with the atmosphere, but his enthusiasm in a lot of ways. I remember vividly, just him in the dressing room before the game and then out on the field, I’m thinking ‘yes, this is on, we need to follow that’. It wasn’t too hard because a packed AAMI Park was brilliant.

FFT: It’s 1-1 in the 90th minute in the 2012 Christmas Derby, Archie Thompson dinks it over you to win the game. What are your recollections?

CB: That was a good little finish, the bugger. There’s no disputing it went in and crossed the line. Archie scored his fair share of goals against me over the years, but that was just about the best one. Just the timing of it and the quality of the finish was a fitting way to win a Derby. I couldn’t be too upset because when you get done by a decent finish, it’s hard to be too upset.

FFT: How did you handle the Victory fans’ heckling?

CB: I copped heckles from Victory fans in my whole A-League career because I was at Sydney FC before Heart came into the scene. In the Derby atmosphere, you don’t hear the heckling or the words themselves. It’s just noise and at times, one end is louder than the other depending on momentum. But the noise was largely even in the time I played. Both sets of fans were great. I played many finals matches, so I was used to that type of atmosphere.