Aftermath of victory

The atmosphere here is something to behold following yesterday's historic victory over Al Ahli in the Fifa Club World Cup as the reality of the 2-0 win hits home.

The boys are still buzzing, and everyone here with the team is in dreamland - who would have thought we'd come out on top in such convincing fashion!

The media interest has kicked into overdrive, with a lot of the day today consumed with interviews and appointments with various media outlets. 

The local newspapers have been in full swing, from a front-page picture of flag-waving UAE supporters to headlines such as "Ahli's fire is doused by Auckland" to "Coombes screamer as Ahli fluff their lines", and "Dickinson: The greatest moment of my life" as well as "Hogg the limelight - Part-timers shine on the big stage". It's been great to see, and the media have jumped on the "David versus Goliath" scenario.

I spent most of the day after the match at the Fifa Media Centre and was swamped with people coming over to pass on their congratulations, and some of the lads were stopped in the mall today for the same reason.

While perhaps not the ideal situation for the tournament with the hosts being eliminated in the first round, there is a genuine feeling of a job well done by anyone coming into contact with the team and support staff.

Within minutes of full time, Waitakere United player/coach Neil Emblen sent through a text message to City chairman Ivan Vuksich, which was followed by a message of congratulations from his club. Later in the day, Canterbury United followed Waitakere's lead in acknowledging their effort. It's estimated that the win will put $70,000 in each of the other seven NZFC clubs' bank accounts, which can only be good for the game.

It's back to business for the team now, with the match against Atlante CF from Mexico set for Sunday night.

I haven't had a chance to finish editing my videos from last night - but I have some cracking footage of being on the pitch at full time, as well as the build-up and post-match footage from the dressing rooms - I'll get this up on www.aucklandcityfc.com tomorrow.

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