Wednesday, 11 June 2008 1:40 PM
By John Kyrou
The visit of the Oakleigh Cannons to Bob Jane Stadium this Sunday will see South Melbourne put under real pressure to show the rest of the Foxtel Cup that they are serious about playing finals football in 2008. The occasion will be made even more significant for the home side if centre-back Steven O’Dor is selected to play, as it will mark the 21 year old’s 50th senior appearance for South.
Despite his young age, O’Dor has already had the honour of representing his country on numerous occasions, with both the Qantas Under-23 squad and the Qantas Young Socceroos.
In addition, he spent time throughout his junior career with the Australian Institute of Sport.
In its return to the Foxtel Cup in 2005, South was quick to sign O’Dor as a quality young centre-back and he did not let the club down, playing an important role in a defensive unit that conceded the least amount of goals in that season (17 goals in 26 matches). The following season, O’Dor missed a large amount of games due to moving to Canberra to be at the Institute of Sport, but was still a member of the South squad that won the Foxtel Cup.
In 2007, O’Dor confirmed his loyalty to the blue and whites by playing in the opening half of the season despite securing a spot on the roster of A-League franchise Wellington Phoenix. His presense in defence was missed in the second half of the season as South fell away to narrowly miss a finals position.
However at the conclusion of the Phoenix’s season, Steven decided it was best for him to stop playing full-time football in the A-League and instead return to Melbourne to finish his University studies and combine that with playing in the Foxtel Cup. There was only one destination for the big centre-back and that was to Bob Jane Stadium, where he has added experience and height to the back four.
The club wishes O’Dor the best of the luck in his 50th match for the blue and whites and hopes that the team can lift to the occasion and claim an important victory to continue the push for a spot in the top six of the Foxtel Cup.
Steven O’Dor Statistics:
DOB: 28th January 1987
Position: Defender
Seasons at Club: 4 (2005 to 2008)
Breakdown:
2005: 17 games (15 starts, 2 subs), 0 goals
2006: 3 games (3 starts, 0 subs), 0 goals
2007: 14 games (14 starts, 0 subs), 1 goal
2008: 15 games (15 starts, 0 subs), 0 goals
TOTAL: 49 games (47 starts, 2 subs), 1 goal