Day: April 24, 2015

A goal from Nashir Hussainy in the 60th minute and some resolute tough defending was enough for the South Melbourne Under 20s to record a 0-1 victory over Hume City and deliver a third win in a row.

There were good conditions for football at ABD Stadium on Saturday afternoon, providing the opportunity for coach Sasa Kolman and the Under 20s the best opportunity to take three points home to Lakeside. It would be a very tactical game all the way through until the final whistle.

Throughout the first half both teams had multiple opportunities to score, however neither were able to find the net. This trend continued in the second half and it was only broken when a move by Guiseppe Marafioti on the half way line delivered an intercept, allowing the boys in blue to execute their typical quick-transition football. Marafioti off-loaded the ball to Eric Hauser who has been in exceptional form all season. It would be hard to find a goal this season in the Under 20s that Hauser hasn’t been involved in.

Hauser’s left foot through-ball beat four defenders and was met by a flying Nashir Hussainy that was arriving at speed into the area. His crafty touch made it around the rushing Hume City goal keeper before pushing the ball into the open net in the 60th minute.

Hume City searched deep into the match for the equaliser, however strong defence from Yianni Avramidis, Jordan Moncrief, Massimo Pesce and Dean Nicopoulos held them out.

Talking to smfc.com.au after the match, centre back Yianni Avradmidis shared his thoughts on the match, saying “I think it was a tough game. It was one of those hit outs where both teams are equal. It was a hard game and both sides had good chances. Hume were unlucky, we were unlucky a lot of times, in the end we got the goal and we got the win.”

Asked about the strengths on the pitch, Avramidis said “one of the positives was our teamwork. Playing for each other and that comradeship. The defence also did really well today. We held our own under a lot of pressure. Jordi the centre back, Massimo at left back and Dean out on the right, we did a tremendous job. Even the boys in the midfield worked hard. No individuals stood out, it was a whole team effort today.”

The South Melbourne Under 20s squad has been depleted lately and we asked Avramidis his view on having everyone back on deck. “We had a few injuries, a few  players missing, now everyone’s back on board. We’re all back at training and we’re moving forward” he said.

The Under 20s are sitting in third place on the ladder, just two points behind leaders Bentleigh Greens and Avondale FC in second. Their next fixture against Pascoe Vale has been postponed, to be rescheduled at a later date.

A solid week of football comprising three matches in seven days came to an end on Sunday with the South Melbourne Under 16 securing a win over Murray United with just three minutes left on the clock.

Having recorded a draw with Bentleigh Greens (2-2) on Wednesday night and a win against Dandenong Thunder (2-1) on Saturday, the team under the captaincy of Ryan Crisp faced a solid opposition in Murray United.

Coach Dean Stafrace had rotated players through the week to provide his boys the best opportunity to be fit and ready for the Sunday encounter. His confidence in the line-up was rewarded in the 12th minute, when Ryan Crisp rose from the pack and headed he corner kick from Aloysius Laurie into the net to give South Melbourne the lead.

The pitch conditions and winds at the State Football Centre in Darebin favoured South Melbourne as the home team with the venue being used whilst Albert Park becomes ready following the Grand Prix. With the wind at their backs, the boys applied continual pressure on goal and multiple corners forced the best out of the Murray United defenders.

Murray United adapted keeping the ball on the ground and started to make use of both flanks to reach deep into their final third. Their efforts were rewarded not once but twice in the final stages of the first half when they received two penalties. Benjamin Barlow converted the first in the 26th minute and then Lewis Greenwold followed up in the 38th minute to give Murray United the lead going into the half time break.

In the second half, the South Melbourne boys had to work a lot harder. Play was a lot more balanced with the focus in the midfield where neither side able gain the upper hand. Patience was the call for coach Dean Stafrace consistently telling the boys to keep the work rate up and the opportunities would come.

In the 65th minute, Deni Kulas whipped in a well weighted free kick that was headed forward by Jack Athanas. A missed clearance enabled Brandon Clover to put his right foot on the ball and volley it into the net to give South the equaliser.

Coach Dean Stafrace was contemplating a structural change for his line-up. Engaging with his colleagues on the side-line, he had to balance defending against a pacey Murray United with a strong wind behind them or pushing forward to go for the win.

Some timely and tactical substitutions were made, leaving the boys on the pitch to fight it out to the final whistle. With just three minutes left on the clock, Nicholas Andrianakos found space and made a run down the left into the area. He cut the ball across the face of goal, finding Brandon Clover who made no mistake with the left boot slamming it past the keeper at the near post. His strike and some resolute defence secured the points in a 3-2 win for South Melbourne.

Mikhail Capodistrias can usually be found at left back for the South Melbourne Under 16s, however with squad rotations this week he was on the sideline supporting and analysing his team mates performance.

Talking to smfc.com.au he provided his perspective on the match saying “the boys played well today, moving the ball well and we took our chances. The positives today were we moved the ball wide to give us options to go forward and when we lost the ball, our transition was good.”

Capodistrias also reflected on the progress of the team playing three matches in seven days saying “we’ve played against two of the top teams in our league and come away with seven points this week. Murray United were a solid team and showed us what they were made of.”

The Under 16 return to the pitch this week to play third placed Northcote City at John Cain Memorial Park on Sunday afternoon.

South Melbourne FC hosts eighth-placed Pascoe Vale at Lakeside Stadium on Friday night as they look to keep up the pressure at the top of the PlayStation 4 NPL Victoria table.

South enjoyed a fantastic series of results last week. Chris Taylor’s side followed up the derby win against the Melbourne Knights with an 8-0 drubbing of North Sunshine FC in the FFA Cup, before triumphing 1-0 in a gritty performance at Hume City last Saturday night.

South sit just two points behind Heidelberg United in second spot on the PS4 NPL Victoria ladder but hold a game in hand over their old foes. A win against Pascoe Vale would lift the men in blue to top spot ahead of Heidelberg’s meeting with the third-placed Melbourne Knights on Sunday afternoon.

The win against Hume last Saturday night was one that cannot be underestimated given the strength of the opposition and the difficulty of the conditions at Broadmeadows. In a superb defensive effort, South were able to record their third clean sheet in four outings, with Tim Mala in particular outstanding at the right side of defence. Mala and co will be looking to produce a similar performance this week in front of their home fans at Lakeside Stadium and against a Pascoe Vale side that contains a number of dangerous attacking options.

Pascoe Vale’s Jake Nakic has scored four times from six appearances in the League this season and the former Melbourne Victory youth captain is one of the most dangerous players in the League if given space to showcase his dribbling abilities. After losing their first four games, Pascoe Vale come into this clash on the back of four successive wins and have scored ten goals in their previous three games.

For the home side, Milos Lujic scored in all three fixtures last week and last season’s Golden Boot winner again shapes as the key man up front. Andy Brennan didn’t score against Hume but looked dangerous every time going forward. Nick Epifano will miss the match following a club imposed suspension, meaning one of Mathew Theodore, Andy Kecojevic or Leigh Minopoulos will return to the starting line-up. David Stirton, who was subbed at half-time following a groin injury against Hume, is expected to be fit for the match.

South Melbourne have won the past three encounters against Pascoe Vale, including both games last season (1-0 at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday 18 May and 3-0 at Hosken Reserve on Friday 1 August).

Friday night’s match against Pascoe Vale kicks off at 8:15pm at Lakeside Stadium. Those unable to make the match can follow proceedings on the Club’s Facebook and Twitter accounts, using the handles #SMFC and #NPLVIC.