Author: Skip Fulton

The Under 13s took on the highly rated Whittlesea Ranges at ABD Stadium on Sunday in the NPL Grand Final. Perfect weather conditions, the large main pitch and vocal supporters welcomed the boys as they made their way on to the ground. A spirited performance resulted all the way through to the final minute however Whittlesea was too strong running out victors by two goals.

Whittlesea were a physically stronger and larger team however the speed of the South boys provided opportunities through the midfield to press forward in attack. The defence was consistently bombarded with long balls booted up the pitch and the back four did well to cover  and clear their lines. On one such occasion Whittlesea striker Giovanni Stellitano broke through and made his way into the left side of the area. His shot was deflected by South keeper Marcus Ellul but the ball still found its way into the net.

South continued to attack throughout the first half with Ethan Rosemond consistently stretching the Ranges defence down the right flank. Opportunities were tough to come by and an amazing run by Weeam Zeitoune as he rounded four defenders presented the best of them.

The second half began positively however after just two minutes Whittlesea found themselves forward in numbers. A run down the left took the ball almost to the by-line before being cut across the face of goal. Ata-Khan Cetin was hovering near the back post and his tap in doubled the lead for Ranges and sparked excited celebrations for the boys in red.

Our squad didn’t drop their heads and would have done the Clarendon Corner proud with their efforts of ‘South Melbourne right till the end’. It wasn’t to be however and Whittlesea Ranges secured the title as 2015 NPL Under 13 Champions.

South Melbourne coach Brian MacNicol spoke to smfc.com.au after the match saying “I thought our boys did very very well. It just came down to Whittlesea being a little bit more physical and stronger than us, a bit more developed. I was proud of the boys and the performance they put in today. ”

Reflecting on the season overall MacNicol said “We have developed into a very good footballing side. Today in patches we played very well and the boys will continue to develop. I think there are certainly some future players for the South first team that were out there today. Billy and Yianni were both Under 12s and got promoted into the Under 13s halfway through the season. They have developed well and we continue to develop all our young boys for the future.”

Under 13 Captains Corban Baker told smfc.com.au “We played well as a team but didn’t go in hard enough. They just outplayed us today.”

There is little rest for the squad as they are back on the pitch for 2016 Selection Trials this week, then straight into Spring  training in preparation for a tournament in Shepparton in just a few weeks time.

After the match, the South Melbourne FC squad were presented with their NPL Grand Final runners-up medal, their NPL East Champions medal and the club pennant for winning the NPL East Championship.

The South Melbourne FC Under 13s wrapped up the NPL East title with a few rounds to spare. Four days out from a Grand Final against a dominate Whittlesea Ranges, coach Brian MacNicol bought in friend and former NSL player and now race horse trainer Manny Gelagotis to talk to the boys about personal accountability, preparation and working hard.

At dusk on Thursday evening at Albert Park, the squad were introduced to Gelagotis for a bit of a chat. At first glance Gelagotis seemed an odd choice however his playing history and current experience in the horse racing industry delivered highs and lows that would reinforce the value of preparation and hard work as well as personal responsibility.

Gelagotis spent six years at the Gippsland Falcons as a player and as the club’s Development Officer. In the fourteen years since his time at the Falcons came to an end in 2001, Gelagotis has continued to run his own restaurant business as well as being a core component of the families Moe-based horse racing business.

His opening message to the successful playing group was the premise they are old enough now to understand what their aspirations and football dreams should be. They are growing in maturity and have the responsibility to work hard and be diligent in their approach to football and family life – be good kids , work hard , encourage each other and focus on the job in hand.

Gelagotis spoke on the importance of supporting and encouraging each other even when things are difficult, to ensure they won their personal positions on the field, to not have any regrets for the weekend and to prepare like little professionals to ensure they have no excuses. If they delivered on that with confidence, the rest will take care of itself. Focus very hard on training and to train the way you play.

“Experiences such as playing in a Grand Final, at such a young age and for a big name club like South Melbourne FC would invaluable in these boys lives. The players are a great group and I reinforced to them the main thing is to make sure they respect their family, their parents, their team mates and their coach for what they do for them. Carry that respect into this week’s game with passion and desire to give themselves every chance of ultimate success” Gelagotis told smfc.com.au.

The Under 13 squad had a very successful season in the NPL East under the guidance of coach Brian MacNicol. The squad won 29 of 34 matches with an impressive 113 goals, conceding just 20 and finishing 19 points clear at the top of the table on 90 points. Talking to smfc.com.au, MacNicol said “I am really impressed and proud of all the players, both as individuals and as a team. It was a mixed group who came together at the start of the season and they have grown together in skill level, tactics and teamwork. They deserve their success throughout the year.”

On Sunday the team will walk on to the main ABD Stadium pitch at Broadmeadows Valley Park for the NPL Youth Gala Day. The NPL Grand Finals brings together the winners from the East and West conference against each other throughout the day. South Melbourne FC will take on Whittlesea Ranges and despite our very successful season, we will go into the match as underdogs.

Whittlesea Ranges have had a dominant season in the NPL Under 13 West. They went through the season undefeated, with 27 wins from 28 matches. They found the net 149 times and conceded just 14 goals.

The Grand Final for the NPL Under 13s kicks off at 10:20am.

Perfect conditions at Kingston Heath on Saturday created an exciting atmosphere for the Preliminary Final of the 2015 Women’s Premier League. A vocal South supporter base on the sideline was regularly called into action as disciplined structure, quality passing and attacking football was on display by the girls in blue. Tiffany Eliadis and Jamie Pollock both found the net and their three goals catapulted South Melbourne into the Grand Final, creating the opportunity to go back-to-back.

The opening stanza of the first half demonstrated why Ashburton United were on the pitch and a force to be reckoned with. They controlled possession and spread the ball wide on both flanks to create early opportunities. The defence of South held strong and around the fifteen minute mark the defending title holders started to settle. From there on, it was classy, it was impressive and it was all South.

The first to strike was Tiffany Eliadis, who made a run down the grand stand side of the pitch, past the Ashbuton bench, beating two defenders into the area and firing a shot across the face of goal and into the net.

The positive football continued and on the brink of half time, Jamie Pollock found herself free with the ball gently rolling across the grass, just outside the area almost directly in front. Two steps and her right foot launched an unstoppable rocket through the defence and into the net. At the break, it wasn’t so much the two goal lead but the imposing presence South had on the pitch which signalled there was no doubt about the outcome of the match.

In the second half it was more of the same. Ashburton lifted and displayed glimpses of brilliance common throughout their successful season. United were unable to break down South, whose free-flowing passing game provided possession and dominance. A free kick lofted into the area by Lisa Farquhar found Pollock at the back post, who was able to tap the ball down under the outstretched arms of Ashburton keeper Melissa Maizels .

The third goal appeared to break the spirit of Ashburton. With twenty minutes left on the clock they didn’t give in and continued to stretch forward into the final third searching for that elusive goal. It wasn’t to be their match or their day as the final whilst bought an end to their 2015 campaign.

For South Melbourne, the journey continues and a place in their second consecutive Grand Final has been secured. Preventing back-to-back titles are the high flying Boroondara Eagles. The Eagles’ 2015 season has been impressive, successful and amazing to say the least. The star studded purple machine has had a week off and will be a formidable opponent in the decider.

The Grand Final will be at the David Barro Stadium at the Veneto Club in Bulleen. Kick off is 2pm on Sunday 27 September.

Stephen Hatzikostas made a successful return onto the Lakeside Stadium pitch last weekend against Werribee City, having recovered from an injury sustained in the 2014 NPL Finals Series match against South Hobart FC.

Last week against Dandenong Thunder at George Andrews Reserve, Hatzikostas came off the bench during the Under 20s match. He gained a valuable 30 minutes of match preparation and in typical Hatzikostas style, picked up a yellow card along the way.

This week he was in the starting line-up for the Under 20s on the pristine Lakeside Stadium pitch for the match against Werribee City. Playing sixty minutes in the midfield, Hatzikostas was an imposing figure in the centre of the pitch.

Speaking to smfc.com.au after the match, Hatzikostas said “I’ve been tracking really well, it felt good today. Just a matter of fitness and sharpness now. The more minutes I can get in the 20s, the closer I am to playing senior football. When that is I don’t know, it will be up to Chris Taylor but I’ll work as hard as I can in the 20s until I’m required in the first team.”

Playing a senior squad member in the Under 20s is a rarity at South Melbourne. Coach Sasa Kolman refelcted on the 0-0 draw with Werribee City and specifically the influence Hatzikostas had on the match. “We were lucky we had Steve in the team. He knows how to stop the ball and how to deliver the ball with great accuracy. Once we took him out, we didn’t have the same structure anymore. As long as he was there, everything for us was working perfectly fine. We were pressing, having the ball, creating the chances. You can’t wish for more than that” he said.

Kolman was asked about how much of an impact it was for the younger players to have an experienced and senior player such as Hatzikostas on the pitch. “A massive impact. He is probably one of the best players there anyway. The boys can learn a lot from him. He is a really nice kid who is giving instructions to the young ones. They can get a lot out of it if they are smart. I think that’s a bonus for us over the weeks he is with us” Kolman said.

The structure of the NPL in 2015 at a Youth level provides a significant increase in the amount of football being played throughout the season. This is seen as a positive by the club and our coaches in delivering greater opportunities for our players to advance their individual techniques and team match play.

A long thirty four round season is now approaching the half way mark and already our players are performing on the pitch both as teams and individuals. Looking purely at the results our six teams from Under 12s to Under 18s have amassed forty six wins, eleven draws and twenty losses whilst scoring two hundred and fifteen goals and conceding eighty five. Whilst these are all but numbers on the page, the focus has been entirely on player development and progression.

The success of our Under 20s under coach Sasa Kolman has seen four of our players recruited into senior NPL/NPL1 clubs during the mid-season transfer window. This has in turn created vacancies in the squad and the club has strongly prioritised using our own Under 16 and Under 18 youth players to fill these spots rather than bringing in external players.

This player progression approach extended through all of the age groups and we now have multiple players advancing to the next age group. Matthew Borowicz is the club’s Youth Coordinator and he spoke to smfc.com.au about the success of the program this year saying “I am very happy how our program is going this year. We have experienced and talented coaches guiding our teams and providing each of our players with an individual football pathway. This enables us to closely monitor player progress to ensure we are continually challenging them”.

Borowicz explained one aspect of the pathway saying “we assess the suitability of our boys as they develop and look to provide opportunities at different levels. This could mean exposure to different coaches, specialist sessions or advancement to the next age group. Once the boys reach the Under 15s we are looking to position them to be ready for the Under 20s as early as possible. We map their individual playing style, technique and capability to identify the best development opportunity for them.”

The clubs partnership with Keiser Training is another avenue for player development. At an appropriate age, players may access the experience and professionalism of Keiser Training to help them with their physical fitness and strength conditioning.

Personal Development off the pitch is as important as on the pitch. Leadership training on an individual basis comes through a variety of avenues and the strength of our media team is just one example of this. Providing our youth players with regular media engagement helps prepare them for the future in their football activities but also assists them with self confidence and public speaking. “Standing in front of a microphone and video camera often seems like a great fun thing to do when asked however once the boys are standing there being asked questions, the attitude suddenly changes. ‘What do i say’ is usually the first response but once the boys have been interviewed a few times, it’s amazing to see their confidence grow” says SMFC Marketing Manager George Kouramalis.

Under 20s coach Sasa Kolman reflecting on the progress of his players told smfc.com.au “the last twelve months has been very encouraging for us. Some of our Under 20s players have progressed to the National Youth League, NPL and NPL1 seniors. Our squad is constantly changing with our players in demand, especially around the time of the transfer window. We now have a very young Under 20s squad where the average age is under 17 and we have three players training with Chris Taylors and the Seniors squad. Whilst we are sitting two games behind the league leaders with two games in hand, my focus is getting boys into our senior squad.”

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.

Under 18s player Simon Sesay returned to the pitch with a vengeance on the weekend and delivered a goal and an assist on the way to a 3-3 draw with Murray United.

The classy forward has been out of action recently with injury but you couldn’t tell it from his performance against Murray United. Sesay provided pace down both flanks and his deft touch on both feet proved challenging for the United defence.

South Melbourne started the match positively and with the windy conditions favouring them in the first half, they made the best of their opportunities.  In the 32nd minute, the first goal came when Lachlan Beever went streaking down the right wing into the area. Faking out and cutting behind his marking defender, the left foot strike from Beever went across goal beating the outstretched arm of the Murray United keeper and into the side netting.

Just two minutes later, Beever would earn his second goal on his way to a man of the match performance. This time however it came on the back of an excellent run by Simon Sesay. Sesay was electric down the left flank overtaking his defender and less than a metre from the byline planted a powerful cross to the centre. Beever beat both a defender and the goalkeeper to the ball, with his left foot toe poke securing his brace.

Sesay and Beever continued to apply pressure in the final third well into the second half. With the match winding down into a 2-2 draw, Sesay cut loose down the right and found himself with two defenders on the inside and the keeper to beat. With his pace he moved ahead of the two defenders and from the corner of the six yard box, his right foot strike was perfectly aligned to go across the keeper and into the side of the net, giving South what was surely to be the winner in the 89th minute.

Glory wasn’t to be however as in the final minute of play, Murray United won a corner shortly after the restart. With the final play of the match the ten man visitors scored to earn themselves a point.

Regardless of the result, Sesay’s performance on the pitch this weekend was just a glimpse of the talent the forward has to offer. It is this talent that has the seventeen year old in Sasa Kolman’s Under 20s squad, a position he is looking to return to in the coming weeks.

Talking to smfc.com.au after the match, Sesay was positive about the teams performance saying “it was a hard game. Both teams had good chances and as it happens, they went a man down, still played hard and it was a good draw. Our counter attacking was positive today, our midfield at key points in the game was good with one touch passing.”

Asked about the injury that has kept him from the game, Sesay said “I’m going pretty well actually. I just came back from a fractured bone in my foot and now I’m playing well, scored a goal today and got an assist.”

The team under the leadership of coach Matthew Borowicz takes on fifth placed Northcote City on Sunday afternoon at John Cain Memorial Reserve.

This weekend marks the start of the 2015 NPL Victoria season for our Youth teams. Our six teams from the Under 12s to Under 18s will travel to play the Springvale White Eagles on Sunday 15th March.

One of the coaches, Matthew Borowicz, took time out of his busy schedule to talk to smfc.com.au about the upcoming season.

“We went through quite a few organisational activities to set up this year from a footballing perspective. We feel that we are quite ready and organised. From the Under 18s down, we can see the consistency of what we want to achieve, striving for each side to have the same way of playing. We are definitely recognising that improvement slowly… of course, with the younger boys there is a long way to go, however it’s a very positive start.”

The Youth teams are sporting a number of new faces. There are a number of new coaches and new players who are pulling on the South Melbourne jersey for the first time. Every year is a balancing act between retaining a core group of players for each team, pushing talented players to the next age group to aid their development and finally identifying new players to bring into the Club.

Borowicz spoke of the changes the Youth program has experienced, saying that “on average we have about sixty to seventy percent of each squad being the same as last year. So there was not a big changeover of players, which is what we want so we can continue to develop them as a team and as individuals. We prefer to keep as many as possible and it was very positive for us that most of the guys we picked up came from community clubs. We recognise there is a lot of talent in the community clubs so we are giving opportunities to these players.”

The expansion of the National Premier League Victoria in 2015 has resulted in the introduction of a number of new teams at the Youth level. The League has been split into two conferences, being East and West. In the East conference, South Melbourne will participate in a very long season that comprises 34 rounds and a number of gala weekends, with matches on both the Saturday and the Sunday.

Talking about the changes purely from a football development perspective, Borowicz says that “there are definitely challenges for such a long season but the challenges are the same for all of the clubs. Personally, I am looking forward to it as I have been pushing for a longer season for the boys and now we’ve got it. The competition is improving in terms of the level and the opposition… I think its getting better and better.”

This weekend a number of South Melbourne Youth teams will make the trek to ABD Stadium at Broadmeadows Valley Park to take on Hume City, Moreland Zebras and Olympia FC from Hobart.

We have six age groups involved giving our NPL teams yet another opportunity for pre-season competitive matches. On Saturday each team will play against Moreland Zebras and then on Sunday we will play against either Hume City or Olympia FC depending on the results.

South Melbourne Youth have a healthy and friendly rivalry with Moreland Zebras which includes multiple match-ups at the Heritage Youth Cup which Moreland hosts each year. The club has met Olympia FC once in a friendly back in 2009 when we travelled to Hobart and our Seniors were victorious with a 9-0 score line.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, South Melbourne Technical Director Sean Gale said “this is another exciting opportunity for match practice and to continue the players development we have been working on during the pre-season”.

Saturday fixtures:
9:30am Under 12 vs Moreland Zebras
10:30am Under 13s vs Moreland Zebras
12:00pm Under 14s vs Moreland Zeabras
3:00pm Under 15s vs Moreland Zeabras
3:00pm Under 16s vs Moreland Zebras