Leigh Broxham reckons he could play 300 games for Melbourne Victory as he prepares for his 200th Hyundai A-League match on Saturday night against Wanderers, a team he thinks are beatable.
The versatile midfielder and defender made his debut on January 7, 2007 against Perth Glory having worked at Victory prior to that as a kit man in the era before National Youth League squads.
Only Archie Thompson (217) has made more A-League appearances for Victory than Broxham, and when prompted that four more seasons might be enough to take him to a triple-century of games, the 28-year-old was bullish about his chances.
“Four more? Yeah, I can do four more. No problem,” Broxham told reporters having signed a two-year contract extension until the end of the 2017-18 season.
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Broxham has played in two successful A-League grand finals for Victory, plus has three premierships to his name as well.
“I’ve had some wonderful memories over the past 10 years and we’ve won some championships over the time, and met some great people, made some lifelong friends,” he said.
“It’s been an amazing experience and I’m hoping it keeps going for a few more years to come.”
Western Sydney, who lead the A-League, sit six points ahead of fourth-placed Victory but with just seven points separating first and sixth, Broxham is convinced the reigning champions are still a contender for the Premier’s Plate.
“We said at the start of the year that we wanted to go back-to-back and it’s a still a possibility and still in our control,” he said.
“A [good] result this weekend will really kick-start that… it’s all very tight at the moment and these last games coming into the end of the season will be very important.”
The Wanderers defeated Victory’s cross-town rivals Melbourne City 4-3 last week to stay top of the table.
Last time Victory met Tony Popovic’s side, Western Sydney triumphed 2-0 at Pirtek Stadium, but Broxham insists his team did enough to at least get a draw in that match.
“I think everyone who watched that game was very much entertained,” Victory’s stand-in skipper said.
“I think it was on a knife’s edge for a long time and we had a few chances that we didn’t take, and in the end they took theirs.
“It’s [Pirtek Stadium] a hard place to go but we took a lot of positives from it and I think they’re definitely beatable.”
