Day: April 10, 2015

Following a thorough consultative process that has included all key stakeholders of the Club, South Melbourne FC confirms that it will continue to work with and support Senior player Nicholas Epifano.

Epifano breached the South Melbourne FC Player Code of Conduct following an inappropriate comment on social media and was then involved in an incident at the match at Green Gully last Saturday.

Following a review, the Club has chosen to continue to support Nicholas off the field but at the same time tighten up the Club’s Code of Conduct as a means to prevent similar incidents happening again in the future.

Over the past week since the Green Gully incident, Nicholas has shown extreme remorse at what happened. He is also seeking to repair the damaged relationships with those internally as well as elements of the South Melbourne supporter base.

The Football Department, headed by Football Director Nicholas Maikousis and Head Coach Chris Taylor, will ensure that the right form of support is afforded to Nicholas as the Club tries to assist him through this period. Other key members of the SMFC staff will also be on hand to assist and mentor Nicholas along the way, most notably the SMFC Senior Leadership Group, headed by Captain Michael Eagar who is in full support of this decision.

In the short term, Nicholas will be disciplined by the Club for his actions. He will not feature in the starting line-up for the match against the Melbourne Knights tomorrow and will also face further Club imposed sanctions.

Moving forward, South Melbourne FC has banned all Senior Squad players from commenting on official South Melbourne FC social media platforms as well as any other social media platforms concerning the Club, until such time as the Club’s Social Media policy is implemented.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was adamant that the Club as a whole needed to support Nicholas. “We have made it clear to the members at our AGM that we want a football club and playing group with a strong culture and with quality individuals. Our opinion on this has not changed and despite the outbursts over the past few weeks, we want to look after Nicholas & his welfare more than anything and guide him through this process rather than abandoning him.”

Head of Football & Senior Coach Chris Taylor added “Whilst not condoning the regrettable incidents that have taken place, we as a group (coaching staff & players) feel it is our duty of care to help and assist Nick by guiding and mentoring him through these issues. Nick is a very talented young footballer who will develop as a player & as a person. It is our responsibility as a club to support him through these issues, through good leadership, strong culture and management.”

South Melbourne FC thanks all stakeholders for their invaluable input over this past week and looks forward to seeing everyone at Lakeside Stadium for tomorrow’s big game against the Melbourne Knights

South Melbourne FC returns home this Saturday afternoon when they take on old foes the Melbourne Knights in a huge derby clash at Lakeside Stadium.

The match is a top of the table affair, with the Knights currently occupying second position on the PlayStation 4 NPL Victoria ladder behind Heidelberg United on goal difference. South enter this weekend two points off the pace in fourth, albeit with a game in hand over the rest of the competition. A victory on Saturday will see the defending Champions leapfrog the Knights on the table and possibly even end the round on top of the ladder.

Green Gully was the scene of South’s 2-0 victory last weekend, an explosive match that saw Tim Mala sent off following an incident in the dying minutes. Mala will miss this week’s clash with suspension, with Bonel Obradovic his most likely replacement at the right side of defence.

The loss of Mala is somewhat compensated by the return to fitness of star signing Jake Barker-Daish, who has been kept out of action in the first part of the season with a persistent knee injury. The former Adelaide United midfielder, who signed for the Club with much fanfare in February, has been in full training for some weeks and looks certain to play some part in Saturday’s match.

Dane Milovanovic, Andy Brennan and Milos Lujic were the stars of last weekend’s win, with Lujic scoring a late brace to take his season’s tally to six goals in all competitions in 2015. Milovanovic took full advantage of his promotion to the starting line-up with a commanding display in midfield, while Brennan was also impressive after coming on as a substitute.

The Melbourne Knights were the form team in the first few months of the NPL Victoria season, with five wins from their first five games leading some to label them as title contenders. Last weekend, Andrew Marth’s men dropped their first points in a 3-0 home loss against the Bentleigh Greens and then gave up a two goal lead to draw 2-2 at home to the struggling Oakleigh Cannons on Tuesday night.
In the inaugural FFV Community Shield in early February at Knights Stadium, South came from a goal down to defeat the Knights 2-1 thanks to late goals from Brennan and Leigh Minopoulos. South fans will be hoping for more heroics from their men, in a match that was once considered the biggest game in Australian football. 

A large crowd is expected for the match, which kicks off at 3pm on Saturday afternoon at Lakeside Stadium. Those unable to make the game can follow it with live updates on the South Melbourne FC Facebook page and on the Club’s official Twitter @smfc with the hashtags #PS4NPL and #SMFC.