Author: SMFC Media

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC will be aiming for a fourth straight National Premier League Victoria win when it hosts Hume City at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. With ten matches to go in the NPL season, victory for Chris Taylor’s side will at the very least maintain a six point cushion at the top of the NPL ladder ahead of the Oakleigh Cannons.

South goes into the game having defeated Green Gully 1-0 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday evening thanks to a headed goal by Mathew Theodore in the 12th minute. Hume City also head into the game in winning form, having defeated Dandenong Thunder 1-0 at Broadmeadows Valley Park last Sunday afternoon. It was Hume’s second win in succession and lifted them to fifth place on the NPL ladder.

Nick Epifano rolled his ankle against Green Gully last Sunday but should be available to play on Sunday. Apart from the absences of Dimi Tsiaras and Leigh Minopoulos (both overseas), Taylor has almost a full squad to choose from for the Hume match. Taylor noted post-match last Sunday that he was going to start rotating his squad around more, which may give the likes of Andrew Mullett, Kobbie Boahene and Dion Kirk the opportunity to play. Goalkeeper Jason Saldaris has enjoyed eleven clean sheets in the 19 matches he has played so far this season and will be hoping for another one on Sunday evening.

In the meeting between the two sides earlier this season on Sunday 13 April at Broadmeadows Valley Park, second half goals from Epifano (60’, 75’) and Milos Lujic (78’) gave South Melbourne a commanding 0-3 win. In the corresponding match between the two sides at Lakeside Stadium last season (Sunday 11 August 2013), South smashed Hume City 6-1 thanks to a hat-trick from Luke Hopper (62’, 85’, 88’), a double from Trent Rixon (34’, 45+1’) and a ripping free kick from Nick Soolsma (89’).

Sunday’s match kicks off at 5PM 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 #NPLVIC and #SMvHC.

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC recorded its third straight National Premier League Victoria win in succession when it defeated Green Gully 1-0 at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. Mathew Theodore’s first half header proved to be the difference between the two sides as South managed to record a third straight win against Green Gully and at the same time maintain its six point lead over the Oakleigh Cannons at the top of the NPL Victoria ladder.

The home side scored the winning goal after 12 minutes, when an inspired Jamie Reed did very well to get past his marker on the right side of the box before delivering an inch-perfect cross for Theodore to head past Gully goalkeeper Kieran Gonzalez. It was Theodore’s fifth goal of the season in what has been an excellent 2014 so far for the midfielder. Green Gully almost levelled straight from the resulting kick-off, firstly from a blocked Osagie Ederaro shot and secondly from Mathew Sanders, however luckily for the South its right back Tim Mala was on the goal line to clear Sanders’ shot. Sanders had another chance to level for the away side but South goalkeeper Jason Saldaris was on hand to make the save.

South should have wrapped the match up in the first five minutes of the second half, when centre-forward Milos Lujic found himself completely unmarked in the six-yard box but headed the ball over Gonzalez’s crossbar. He then turned provider, putting in a dangerous low cross to the back post for an incoming Reed to somehow steer the ball wide of the goal. Green Gully enjoyed a large period of possession in the second half and with that had a series of half-chances but the South defence managed to stand firm, allowing Saldaris to claim his eleventh clean sheet of the season.

Post-match, South Coach Chris Taylor said that it had been a scrappy match “but we defended well, so that’s very pleasing.” On the amount of excellent chances missed by his team, he admitted that “we made it hard for ourselves but the pleasing thing was to get the three points.” Captain Michael Eagar added that “looking ahead to the next two weeks we have a couple of tough home fixtures against Hume City and the Melbourne Knights, so it was very important to win against Gully here and set ourselves up for a big fortnight.”

The news was not so good in the NPL 20s, as Green Gully came from a goal down to defeat South Melbourne 1-2. Eric Hauser scored South’s only goal.

South Melbourne FC’s next match is against Hume City at Lakeside Stadium next Sunday 13 July, kick-off at 5PM.

FINAL SCORE: SOUTH MELBOURNE 1-0 GREEN GULLY (HT: 1-0)

Goal Scorer:
1-0: Mathew Theodore (12′)

South Melbourne FC:
1. Jason SALDARIS (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Michael EAGAR (C), 7. Nick EPIFANO (10. Tyson HOLMES 26′), 8. Mathew THEODORE (11. Brad NORTON 64′), 9. Milos LUJIC, 12. Iqi JAWADI (15. Kobbie BOAHENE 90+3′), 14.
James MUSA, 17. Jamie REED, 25. Shaun TIMMINS, 77. Stephen HATZIKOSTAS.

Green Gully:
1. Kieran GONZALEZ (GK), 2. Daniel JONES, 4. Mathew REID, 5. Roddy VARGAS, 7. Jeffrey FLEMING, 8. Jason HAYNE, 10. Ratip CILELI (11. Jem BERKANT), 12. Mathew SANDERS, 16. Thomas DENG (9. Brent FISHER), 17. Andy VARGAS, 20. Osagie EDERARO.

SMFC Man of the Match: Jamie Reed
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
Date: Sunday 6 July 2014

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC hosts Green Gully at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening in what will no doubt be another tough match for the home side. South’s inconsistent form in June, coupled with Gully’s now traditional mid-season run of winning form and their good record against South at Lakeside Stadium, makes Sunday’s game a very difficult one for Chris Taylor’s men.

South goes into the game having won two National Premier League Victoria matches in succession, with the 3-0 win against Heidelberg on Sunday 22 June followed up with a 2-1 win against Port Melbourne last Sunday 29 June (both games at Lakeside Stadium). South extended its lead at the top of the NPL Victoria ladder to six points ahead of the second-placed Oakleigh Cannons and at this present time will be confirmed as League Champions should they win ten of their last eleven matches. However, there is still a long way to go yet in the season and the first hurdle to overcome will be a Green Gully side that has enjoyed a good run of form in recent weeks. After losing four of their opening fives League matches in 2014, Gully has begun their now traditional mid-season revival and have picked up four wins and a draw from their last six matches. This has elevated them to equal fifth spot on the NPL Victoria ladder with 22 points, though they still trail South by a whopping 18 points.

The two sides met earlier this season at Green Gully Reserve on Saturday 5 April. On that day, South raced to a 0-4 lead in the opening half hour before a ten-men Green Gully (who had their goalkeeper Kieran Gonzalez sent off early in the second half) pulled the score back to 3-4. Luckily for South, substitute Leigh Minopoulos scored deep into injury time to confirm the three points and a 3-5 win. In their last meeting at Lakeside Stadium (Sunday 29 September 2013), Tyson Holmes’ 91st minute winning goal saw South overcome Gully 1-0 in the Elimination Final amid wild celebrations from the South supporters. In the ten League meetings between the two sides at Lakeside Stadium, both South and Gully have won four games each, with the other two games ending in draws. These previous results show how tough Gully are to defeat and how South needs to be very sharp on Sunday if they are to overcome them.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 5PM 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 #NPLVIC and #SMvGG.

Last time we met

South Melbourne FC and BenQ Australia are excited to team up to offer its corporate partners and fans an exceptional promotion, including the opportunity to win cash prizes!

As part of BenQ’s FIFA World Cup promotion, South Melbourne supporters who purchase any BenQ W Series Projector until13th July 2014 will go into the draw to win one of five $1,000 cash prizes. 

In addition to the FIFA World Cup promotion, BenQ Australia is offering an exclusive offer to all South Melbourne fans. Simply by clicking here, South Melbourne corporate partners and supporters will be able to save big on purchasing the following BenQ W Series projectors:

W1300 Projector – $1,399 (saving of $399)
W7500 Projector – $2,999 (saving of $599)

As an added bonus, both projectors will come with a FREE 100-inch screen!

To redeem this exceptional promotion, please enter the following voucher codes:

W1300 Discount Voucher Code: SMFCW1300
W7500 Discount Voucher Code: SMFCW7500

Please ensure you quote the above voucher codes to take advantage of this exciting promotion.

South Melbourne FC would like to advise that due to the heavy rain in Melbourne over the past few weeks, the next two Under 20’s matches have been moved to Field 18 and 19 in Albert Park.

The match details will now be as follows:

SMFC Under 20 vs Green Gully Under 20
Sunday July 6th
Albert Park Field 19
Kick-off: 2.45pm

SMFC Under 20 vs Hume City Under 20
Sunday July 13th
Albert Park Field 18
Kick-off: 2.45pm

U12s lost 1:4
Goal: Dusan Pavlovic

U13s won 2:1
Goals: Alan Fogel and Hayden Korn

U14s won 2:1
Goals: Keegan Garrow and Tristan Meaker

U15s won 1:0
Goal: Julian Zinni

U16s lost 1:4
Goal: Tom Baker

U18s won 3:1
Goal: Edwin Stangherlin and Kalebh Horrocks

By John Kyrou (Photo by Cindy Nitsos)

South Melbourne FC extended its lead at the top of the National Premier League Victoria competition with a comfortable 2-1 victory against Port Melbourne at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. South’s win, coupled with Oakleigh’s 1-1 draw against Heidelberg last night, gives Chris Taylor’s side a six point lead at the top of the NPL Victoria ladder with 11 League matches remaining.

Following the disappointing Dockerty Cup loss against the Melbourne Knights midweek, South were keen on winning the Port Melbourne game in order to officially move on from its exit in the Cup. Taylor made three changes from the Knights game as he started with Jamie Reed (for Leigh Minopoulos), Stephen Hatzikostas (for Tyson Holmes) and new left-back signing Shaun Timmins (for Brad Norton) as the other three players took up a spot next to Dimi Tsiaras and Chris Maynard on the substitutes’ bench.

After a slow start to the match, Port Melbourne took the lead when a stray square pass by the South defence was intercepted by the away side and the ball was played through for Zois Galanopoulos to slot past the advancing Jason Saldaris and into the back of the net. South levelled only minutes later when Tim Mala played the ball to Reed on the right side of the penalty area and the striker cut the ball back for centre-forward Milos Lujic to tuck past Stjepan Gal and into the back of the net. From there, South took control of the game and were awarded a spot kick less than five minutes from the halftime break when Iqi Jawadi was brought down in the area by Stefan Nigro after
taking on and beating the defender for pace. Reed was under a great deal of pressure to score the spot kick after his penalty was saved against Goulburn Valley two weeks ago and he coolly stepped up and blasted the ball past Gal to complete the scoring on the night.

South were dominant in the second half but could not score another goal to wrap up the three points, thanks to both wayward finishing and excellent saves by Gal. Nevertheless, the job had been done in the opening half and the South defence were minimally troubled as the home side confirmed its second League win in a row. Taylor was relieved post-match and thought his side thoroughly deserved the three points. “Wednesday night was very disappointing, however it was good to bounce back with a win tonight and put that Cup game behind us. We can now focus on the League and making sure we stay at the top of the ladder come the end of the season.” With regards to his new signings and rotating his squad, Taylor added that “now is the time of the season to start rotating the squad a bit more, we have brought in some new guys (Hatzikostas and Timmins) who both played well, which is good because it keeps everyone else on their toes.”

In the NPL 20s match, South Melbourne and Port Melbourne played out a 1-1 draw, with Stefan Zinni the goal scorer for South.

South’s next match is against Green Gully on Sunday 6 July at Lakeside Stadium. Kick-off is at 5PM.

FINAL SCORE: SOUTH MELBOURNE 2-1 PORT MELBOURNE (HT: 2-1)

Goal Scorers:

0-1: Zois Galanopoulos (11′)
1-1: Milos Lujic (13′)
2-1: Jamie Reed (41’p)

Key Stats (Provided by Steven Orchard):

Shots: SMFC (14) – PMFC (3)
Turnovers: SMFC (69) – PMFC (77)
Balls into Final Third: SMFC (35) – PMFC (11)
Clearances: SMFC (7) – PMFC (14)

South Melbourne FC:

1. Jason SALDARIS (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Michael EAGAR (C), 7. Nick EPIFANO (27. Leigh MINOPOULOS 79′), 8. Mathew THEODORE, 9. Milos LUJIC (10. Tyson HOLMES 90′), 12. Iqi JAWADI, 14. James MUSA, 17. Jamie
REED, 25. Shaun TIMMINS (11. Brad NORTON 72′), 77. Stephen HATZIKOSTAS.

Port Melbourne:

1. Stjepan GAL (GK), 3. James RICCOBENE, 6. Chris GROSSMAN, 8. Zois GALANOPOULOS (4. Timothy PATON 77’), 9. Nicky MCNAMARA (23. Connor REDDAN 67’), 11. Nicholas KROUSORATIS (19. Anthony Ianchello 90’) 15. Stefan NIGRO, 17. Phillip RICCOBENE, 20. Milos RIDESIC, 26. Lambros HONOS, 27. Andrew MILICEVIC.

SMFC Man of the Match: Jamie Reed
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
Date: Sunday 29 June 2014

South Melbourne FC is pleased to announce the signing of Shaun Timmins for the remainder of the 2014 National Premier League Victoria season.

An extremely tough and uncompromising defender, Timmins joins South Melbourne after a short stint with A-League side Wellington Phoenix and Green Gully in last year’s Victorian Premier League.

Throughout the early part of his career, the English born Timmins came through the Birmingham City academy, where he was rewarded by signing a professional contract for the then English Premier League club.

He has also represent the Republic of Ireland at both Under 17 and Under 19 level.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis said “we are pleased to have Shaun join our club, with his tough nature and ability to play both in defence and midfield a big asset for the squad”.

South Melbourne FC welcomes Shaun Timmins to the Club and wishes him the best for the rest of the season.

By John Kyrou (Photo by Cindy Nitsos)

South Melbourne FC will look to get back to winning ways when it hosts Port Melbourne at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. Having gone through a very inconsistent month of form that has yielded one win, one draw and two losses – including the disappointing Dockerty Cup defeat to the Melbourne Knights on Wednesday – Chris Taylor and his side need to defeat Port Melbourne in order to maintain at least a four point lead over the Oakleigh Cannons at the top of the National Premier League Victoria ladder.

Despite its midweek Cup loss, South is in winning form in the League, having defeated Heidelberg United 3-0 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday 22 June. Transfer window signings Stephen Hatzikostas (midfield) and Shaun Timmins (left back) will be available for selection and it is likely that both will start on Sunday following the poor performance by the team in the Cup on Wednesday night. Port Melbourne also head into Sunday’s game in winning form, with Eric Vassiliadis’ side having recorded a professional 1-3 victory against Dandenong Thunder at George Andrews Reserve last Saturday 21 June. That win brought an end to a four-match losing streak in the League for Port and took it five points clear of the relegation zone, giving them great confidence heading to Lakeside to face a wounded South on Sunday.

Port Melbourne has defeated South Melbourne in both meetings between the two sides at Lakeside Stadium. As a State League 1 side at the time, Port recorded a famous 1-2 victory against South in the Fifth Round of the Dockerty Cup in 2012 and then defeated South 0-1 in their first League meeting in 2013. The two sides met earlier this season at SS Anderson Reserve and it was South that recorded a come-from-behind 2-3 win thanks to two late goals from substitute Leigh Minopoulos. South fans will be happy if they record another victory like that on Sunday evening to maintain their winning form in the NPL.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 5PM 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 #NPLVIC and #SMvPM.

Last time we met

South Melbourne FC would like to confirm the departure of Slaven Vranesevic from our 2014 National Premier League squad.

Vranesevic made six appearances for the club in 2014, including scoring against Berwick City in the fifth round of the Dockerty Cup.

We would like to wish Slaven all the best for the future.