By John Kyrou
South Melbourne FC travels to Chapin Reserve on Saturday afternoon to play Sunshine George Cross in the Fourth Round of the Dockerty Cup. It will be the first time that the two sides have met each other in a competitive match in nearly three and a half years and the first time that the two sides have featured in the Cup this season (NPL and NPL 1 sides enter in this round).
South created a tiny bit of history last Thursday night (13 March) when it won the first ever NPL Victoria match, defeating Heidelberg United 3-0 at the Olympic Village. Debutant Matthew Theodore scored the first goal in the new competition as fellow debutants Milos Lujic and Jamie Reed also scored for the away side. Sunshine George Cross also began their League season strongly, defeating Brunswick City 2-0 at Chaplin Reserve last Sunday afternoon (16 March) in the opening round of NPL 1.
There is a big carrot dangling for all Victorian clubs in the Dockerty Cup this year – the four teams remaining at the Semi Final stage will qualify for the FFA Cup to be played later this season. George Cross may be a division below South in League status but they will have the home advantage on Saturday afternoon and will be looking to take full advantage. South Coach Chris Taylor has warned his side not to become complacent following the professional victory over Heidelberg and instead aim to go one better in the Cup than last year (South lost its Semi Final 0-1 against the eventual winners Green Gully on Wednesday 21 August 2013).
Sunshine George Cross and South Melbourne have not met in a competitive match since the final round of the 2010 Victorian Premier League season. On that day, Vaughan Coveny’s South side defeated George Cross 4-0 at Knights Stadium (Sunday 15 August 2010), with the goal scorers being Fernando De Moraes (13’, 61’), Carl Recchia (69’) and captain Rama Tavsancioglu (83’). Whilst everyone would love a similar result this Saturday, a 1-0 victory would also suffice. One player representing South on that day was Eddie Cetkin, who will be lining up in the George Cross defence this weekend.
Saturday’s Fourth Round match kicks off at 2PM at Chaplin Reserve.