Author: John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC encourages everyone connected with the club to attend the Kick a Goal for Joey Lynch fundraising night on Monday 15 February.

Joey Lynch is the son of The Age football writer Michael Lynch and has unfortunately been through eight years of treatment for Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The 23 year old has been told that all avenues of treatment in Australia have been exhausted but a phase clinical trial in the USA has been turning positive results and can potentially cure his disease. The only downside is that the cost of the six-month stay in the USA will cost Joey $800,000 AUD.

Socceroo Tim Cahill recently donated his entire Socceroos match fee towards Joey’s fundraising campaign and there have been many events held that have raised significant money but the $80,000 target has not been reached yet.

The Kick a Goal for Joey Lynch fundraising event on Monday 15 February begins at 7pm at Stars International Receptions (1C Bell Street, Preston) and will be hosted by Tara Rushton and George Donikian. Tickets are $90 each and include a three-course meal and drinks. All monies raised on the night will go towards Joey Lynch’s fundraising campaign.

Please call the club on 9645 9797 or email multimedia@smfc.com.au if you would like to purchase a ticket and help get Joey Lynch to the USA for his treatment.

The Mantarakis family has advised that the funeral for the late Takis Mantarakis will be held on Monday 1 February at 10:30am at St. Haralambos Church, located on the corner of Porter and Church Streets in Templestowe.

South Melbourne FC is deeply saddened to learn of the sudden passing of one of our club legends, Mr Takis Mantarakis (aged 81) on Saturday.

Mr Mantarakis was (and will always remain) a South Melbourne Hellas legend, representing our club for nearly a decade in the 1960s and winning many honours along the way. He is a distinguished member of our Team of the Century and our Hall of Fame.

Mr Mantarakis featured for Panathinaikos in Greece and played there alongside another future South Melbourne player (and coach) in Jim Pyrgolios. In 1961, he was persuaded by his great friend Antonis (Tony) Hatzieleftheriou to join him in Australia to play for the South Melbourne Hellas side that had been promoted from Division One in 1960 and was now competing in the Victorian State League.

The left back made his Hellas debut in the 1-1 draw against Ringwood Wilhelmina at Olympic Park on 29 April 1961 and scored his first goal for the club just over a month later in the 1-1 draw against Port Melbourne Slavia at Anderson Reserve (1 July). He only intended to stay for a few months in Melbourne before returning to Greece, however “I loved the people, they made me feel so welcome..so I stayed.” It was a love affair that remained for over 50 years.

Mr Mantarakis was an integral part of South Melbourne Hellas’ 1962, 1964, 1965 and 1966 Victorian State League Championship sides. He captained the 1965 team and only relinquished the captaincy in 1966 for another South Melbourne great – and in many people’s opinion the greatest South Melbourne player of all time – in Con Nestorides to lead the club to further glory.

Mr Mantarakis’ playing performances were duly noted by the Victorian state team, who selected him on several occasions in the 1960s. He enjoyed representing Victoria in tour matches in the 1960s alongside several Hellas teammates that included Hatzieleftheriou, John Bedford, John Margaritis, Ted Smith, Frank Micic and Michael Mandalis to name a few.

In his final season at Middle Park in 1969, Mr Mantarakis was part of the first South Melbourne side that won the Summer Cup (then known as the AMPOL Cup). Frank Micic opened the scoring and Leo Damianakos sealed the result with a penalty kick as Hellas defeated Croatia 2-1 in the Grand Final at Olympic Park on 7 March 1969. In an era where many famous and great players graced the playing surface of Middle Park, it is a great testament to Mr Mantarakis’ leadership and playing ability that he managed to represent the club as a player and captain for so long.

Despite having not played for the club since 1969, Mr Mantarakis always remained involved at South Melbourne, either as a coach or simply as a supporter. A softly-spoken gentleman, he enjoyed a stint as an assistant coach in South’s early National Soccer League years in the late 1970s. He was also a youth coach and happened to coach current Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou as he was making his way up the junior ranks at South Melbourne. He also enjoyed coaching stints at other clubs in Victoria including Port Melbourne, Box Hill and Oakleigh.

On Friday 22 February 2002, Mr Mantarakis was recognised for his playing ability when he was named as a substitute in the South Melbourne Team of the Century at the Crown Palladium Ballroom. He continually attended SMFC matches with several of his 1960s teammates and proudly joined Mandalis and Takis Xanthopoulos in launching the Heritage Strip worn by our players in the Westfield FFA Cup in July 2015.

South Melbourne FC President Leo Athanasakis was deeply saddened at learning the news. “We are devastated that one of our famous Number 3s has left us. My father and his generation vividly remember seeing Mr Mantarakis represent South Melbourne and Victoria with such distinction in the 1960s. Any player that is nominated for inclusion in our Team of the Century – let alone be part of the squad – must be an exceptional player and character. We have truly lost one of our greats and I wish to extend our club’s sincerest condolences to the Mantarakis family and their friends.

“Our media team were with Mr Mantarakis only as recently as December to film him as part of a historical documentary of the club, so the Mantarakis name and his legacy will always live on at our club.”

Mr Mantarakis is survived by his wife Angela, their son Yianni, daughter Nadia and their children.

We bid farewell to one of the best players to wear the South Melbourne Number 3 shirt. Vale Takis Mantarakis, 22 June 1934 to 23 January 2016.

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South Melbourne FC is excited to announce Mitre as our Official Ball Sponsor and Platinum Partner for the next three seasons.

Mitre balls are currently used in the English Football League and Scottish Premier League, with those leagues using the Delta Hyperseam footballs. Our NPL Senior Teams will also use the Delta Hyperseam footballs during the 2016 season.

Mitre will also be catering for our Youth sides by providing the club with 300 footballs for trainings and match days. This will enable all registered SMFC players to enjoy the benefits of the new partnership.

SMFC Operations Manager George Kouroumalis spoke with smfc.com.au about our new Official Ball Sponsor. “Mitre is a large brand throughout the world and many people will recall playing with the Mitre footballs whilst growing up here in Australia. We are very excited that we will be using the highest grade of ball for our matches and having our Youth enjoy the benefits of the sponsorship too. We are more than delighted to have Mitre on board with SMFC for the next three seasons.”

You can purchase your Mitre ball directly through our supplier by visiting http://sptgrpwholesale.com.au/.

South Melbourne FC is excited to announce that Mathew Theodore will once again be playing for the club as we enter the 2016 season.

The 26 year old midfielder arrived at Lakeside Stadium from the Dandenong Thunder at the beginning of 2014. He had a very consistent start to his South Melbourne career that season, playing in 29 of South’s 32 matches and scoring six goals.

Theodore spent most of the 2014 off-season recovering from hip surgery. Other minor injuries restricted him to 25 appearances in South’s 37 matches during the 2015 season. Overall he has made 49 league appearances for the club (54 in all competitions) and scored eight league goals (nine in all competitions).

Speaking with smfc.com.au, Theodore was delighted to have extended his stay at the club. “It was very frustrating not being able to do a proper pre-season last season and missing games…my body is feeling good now and I am looking forward to finally having a proper pre-season and a big 2016 season.”

SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was equally thrilled to have Theodore back for another season. “We really missed Matty during those tight games last season when a player of his class may have made a difference.. I am very pleased that he will be back in 2016.”

South Melbourne FC confirms that Dimitri Tsiaras has resigned as Assistant Coach.

Dimitri joined SMFC as a player in 2012. He made 34 League appearances (40 across all competitions) and scored one goal. Although he made limited appearances in his final season in 2014, he still played a significant leadership role within the squad as South won the League Championship.

Recognising these leadership qualities, Senior Coach Chris Taylor appointed Dimitri to replace the outgoing Graham Hockless as Assistant Coach in 2015. In yet another successful season, Dimitri assisted Taylor in guiding South to the Community Shield, the Dockerty Cup, the NPL Victoria Premier’s Plate and an appearance in the 2015 NPL Victoria Grand Final.

Dimitri has decided to resign in order to devote more time to his increasing professional work commitments and to support his new family, with his wife due to give birth in 2016. Speaking to the playing group, Dimitri confessed that “with work commitments and a new born on the way, time would be a real issue and I wouldn’t be able to give my all. Best of luck for the new season and I will see you boys from the stands!”

We thank Dimitri Tsiaras for everything he has done for our club and wish him and his family the very best for the future.

An announcement regarding our support staff will be made shortly.

South Melbourne FC wishes to announce the signing of Jason Hicks ahead of the 2016 National Premier League season.

The 25 year old midfielder arrives at Lakeside Stadium from the Wellington Phoenix, where he played 30 League matches and scored two goals. Previous to his time at the Phoenix, Hicks played for several clubs in New Zealand as well as Sunshine Coast in Queensland. He is a player that can play in various attacking positions on the park.

Although he is a New Zealander, Hicks was born in England and represented the English Under 17s before switching to play for New Zealand at Under 23 level. He made his senior international debut for New Zealand off the bench in the 0-0 draw against South Africa on 30 May 2014.

Hicks will join the likes of Steve Wooddin (1981-1983), Grant Turner (1982), Vaughan Coveny (1995-2006 & 2009) and James Musa (2014) as players that have represented both South Melbourne and New Zealand at senior international level.

SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was delighted with the signing. “Jason is an experienced player who has done quite well at a higher level and will give us a versatile option throughout the front third of the park, whether that is just behind the strikers or as a wide player in a supporting role. He trained with the club throughout the latter part of 2015 and has already settled well as part of the playing group. We are excited to have him join us.”

We welcome Jason Hicks to Lakeside Stadium and wish him all the best in 2016.

South Melbourne FC is pleased to announce that its former goalkeeper Zaim Zeneli has returned to the Club ahead of the 2016 NPL season. He will be a direct replacement for young goalkeeper Fraser MacLaren, who has moved to Dandenong Thunder seeking greater game time.

Zeneli made his SMFC debut in the 2-1 win against the Oakleigh Cannons at Jack Edwards Reserve in March 2011 and assumed the number one goalkeeping spot for most of that season. In August that year, he made a memorable penalty save deep into injury time as ten-man South Melbourne defeated Heidelberg United 1-0 in the Elimination Final at SS Anderson Reserve. Overall he made 19 League appearances (21 across all competitions) in 2011 before leaving the club.

Zeneli spent the 2012-2015 seasons at the Dandenong Thunder and enjoyed immediate success there under current SMFC coach Chris Taylor. Although he was second-choice goalkeeper in the League fixtures in 2012, Zeneli played in Thunder’s Dockerty Cup fixtures as they reached the Cup Final. He again made another big penalty save as the Thunder beat Port Melbourne 5-4 on penalties.

From 2013, Zeneli established himself as the number one goalkeeper at the Thunder. In 2016, he will be compete with Nikola Roganovic for the number one goalkeeping spot at SMFC, however the 26 year old is looking forward to the healthy competition. “Nikola had a great 2015 season so it’s now up to me to try and claim the number one spot next season.”

He is also looking forward to linking up with Taylor and some former teammates at Lakeside Stadium. “Tim Mala, Iqi Jawadi, Matty Theodore and Nick Epifano were some of my former teammates at Dandenong, so I think it won’t take me long to settle back into the environment at South Melbourne.”

“I’m happy to be back and I hope to play my part in bringing more success to Lakeside Stadium in 2016.”

SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was happy to see Zeneli back at Lakeside. “Zaim is a fantastic addition to the squad. Just like Marcus Schroen, he is an individual who has performed well in the NPL throughout 2015 and is also someone who is quite familiar with the club already given his previous stint. We look forward to seeing him in our colours once again”

We welcome Zaim Zeneli back to the Club and wish him well in 2016.

South Melbourne FC is pleased to announce that midfielder Nick Epifano has signed with the Club for the 2016 season.

Epifano arrived during the 2013 mid-season transfer window and was one of the players that followed Coach Chris Taylor from the Dandenong Thunder to Lakeside Stadium. Since then, the 21 year old has represented South Melbourne in 62 League matches and scored 16 goals. Across all competitions, he has made 73 appearances for SMFC and scored 22 goals.

So far in 2015, Epifano has scored 14 goals in 29 games across all competitions. He has scored some very important goals this season, with the equalising goal against Bentleigh (20 March), a wonder strike against the Melbourne Knights in FFA Cup qualifying (5 June), two late goals against Heidelberg in the Dockerty Cup Semi Final (15 July) and another brilliant goal against Hume City (19 August) that was a replica of his Cup goal against the Knights.

Speaking with smfc.com.au, SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was pleased about the news. “Nick has certainly had a big year with some ups and downs for us. I am very comfortable that he has turned things around and has helped the team in some big games this season. We are hoping that he fires over the coming weeks as undoubtedly Nick is a talented footballer.”