Author: SMFC Media

South Melbourne FC would like to confirm that it has signed 25 year old Brazilian Oliver Minatel for the 2018 season.

The attacking midfielder joins us following a time in the highly regarded PSV Youth System, as well as throughout the USA and Canada, where he last featured for the Richmond Kickers in 2017. He also had stints prior with Ottawa Fury and Puerto Rico FC, while also spending time in Portugal’s top division for Nacional. Through his time in Portugal’s top flight, he broke into the senior team playing numerous matches in the top European league and making an immediate impact. This included being selected as part of the Europa League squad.

His ability to play in any position throughout the attacking third, as well as his eye for goal and blistering pace is something that appealed to new coach Sasa Kolman.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, Football Director Nicholas Maikousis was once again pleased with the acquisition. “We are excited to welcome Oliver to Australia, and to our club. We hope to see him link with our already potent front third throughout the upcoming season. With his experience and ability, we are hoping he can make an impact both by creating and by finding the back of the net himself.”

We wish Oliver all the best for his time in Australia and SMFC.

South Melbourne put three past Chinese Super League opponents Guangzhou R&F F.C. last night at Lakeside Stadium.

In a unique opportunity for the NPL Victoria side, it took only ten minutes for Milos Lujic to draw blood against Guangzhou.

Iqi Jawadi continued his impressive pre-season form, winning the ball in the middle of the park and releasing Nick Epifano. The midfielder did well to draw the attention of oncoming defenders, finding Jawadi again who set up Lujic for the opener.

A familiar combination would rekindle between Lujic and Andy Brennan, with South fans excited to see the pair linking in a similar fashion as they did only a few seasons ago.

Brennan continued to be involved in the play, and was the catalyst behind the second goal of the evening.

After the eventual goalscorer, Kristian Konstantinidis, disrupted a Guangzhou attack, the defender would stay upfield as Matthew Millar broke forward. His pass out to the right wing found Brennan, who’s cross found the head of Konstantinidis for a well-worked second goal ten minutes before the break.

The game was put to bed with Brennan himself getting amongst the goals, with Millar finding the striker beating the offside trap just after the hour mark. A confident finish a sign of big things to come in his second stint at the club.

Nick Epifano would again cause chaos amongst the Guangzhou defenders moments after, as he looked to set up Brennan for a second, in an attempt that was well foiled by the goalkeeper.

A final flurry of chances would fall to the visitors, however Alastair Bray stood strong to maintain a clean sheet.

Head coach Sasa Kolman was impressed with his sides performance on the night, but was quick to play down the occasion as he spoke to SMFC TV post-match.

“It’s only a pre-season game. We had certain tasks today. The boys executed them perfectly, I’m really proud of them,” Kolman explained.

In his first interview, he expressed his delight with being named the new head coach after his first full week in the position.

“How am I feeling? Very simple. This is the club I love… I’m privileged and honoured to be at the helm of this club.”

South Melbourne FC would like to confirm that it has re-signed Championship Winner Iqi Jawadi for the 2018 season.

Jawadi returns to the club following 18 months away, having stints at both Oakleigh Cannons and Dandenong Thunder. Prior to this, he played in 95 matches for South, scoring on 9 occasions and being an integral part of the 2014 NPL Victoria Championship win and 2015 Dockerty Cup win.

After performing well and training extremely hard throughout the pre-season, Jawadi has been offered a place on the club’s senior roster by Sasa Kolman. He is expected to play a role in the midfield and link up with former teammates Nick Epifano and Andy Brennan.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, Football Director Nicholas Maikousis welcome Iqi back to the club. “Iqi has had a fantastic pre-season and his attitude towards being part of the group throughout the last few months has been extremely positive. We hope that he can re-capture the form that saw him as one of the key members of our championship winning squad in 2014. He has much to prove to himself and to all those around him at the club, so we look forward to what the season brings for Iqi.”

We welcome Iqi back to the club and wish him all the best for 2018.

South Melbourne FC are delighted to announce Sasa Kolman as Senior Coach for the 2018 NPL Victoria season.

Kolman is a familiar face to those at the club. He joined the South family for the 2014 season as a youth coach and has held numerous youth based positions since that time. He was elevated to Under 20s coach mid way through the 2014 season and has worked closely with the development of our young footballers for the past four seasons.

Prior to his involvment in South Melbourne, he coached in Europe including a stint at Deportivo Alaves in Spain and as the senior coach of FC Suduroy in the Faroe Islands. It was at FC Suduroy where he was recognised as the youngest first division coach in Europe. Kolman holds a UEFA Pro Licence and a Bachelor Degree of Sport from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia.​

In 2017, Kolman took the u20s mens side to the Championship, as well as being assistant coach to the outgoing Chris Taylor.

Speaking to smfc.com.au Club President Leo Athanasakis spoke highly of Kolman in announcing the appointment of the Senior Men’s Coach: “Our objective at South Melbourne FC is to win titles and continue the strong history of success the club has. As a part of achieving this, our strategic direction is one which will continue to focus on building​ ​a closer working relationship between our youth and senior teams.”

“This will ensure the senior team philosophy and program is integrated at all levels of the club and appropriate opportunities are available at a senior level for our future stars.”

“The youth program has continued to improve over the years and we want to ensure our young players can take the next step to senior football at South Melbourne FC.”

“Sasa has been an integral part of both the youth and senior program for numerous years and we are excited to offer him a full-time position to be the senior team coach for the 2018 season.”

“As well as holding a UEFA Pro License, Sasa has a large amount of experience both as a player and coach throughout Europe, whilst also having an in depth understanding of the local game and our club. We welcome him to the role and wish him all the best for the upcoming season.”

South Melbourne FC can today confirm that the club has parted ways with head coach, Chris Taylor.

Taylor’s coaching journey at South Melbourne comes to an end after four and a half years, having joined in July 2013 from Dandenong Thunder.

During his time at the club, he secured the league and entrance into the Westfield FFA Cup, including a run in the competition that culminated in an historic Semi-Final against Hyundai A-League outfit Sydney FC.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC President Leo Athanasakis thanked Taylor for his efforts at SMFC: “Chris has been an integral part of the club and the Senior team over the last four and a half years. We would like to place on record our appreciation of Chris’ contribution and we wish him well in his future endeavours.”

South Melbourne FC is delighted to announce the selection of Giordano Marafioti in the Young Socceroos Squad for it’s upcoming tour of Qatar.

Over the past few seasons Marafioti has grown into a dynamic and explosive striker, including dominating through the NPL Victoria Under 20 competition in 2017. With 22 league goals to his name, he has also been an integral part of Sasa Kolman’s side reaching the top of the table.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC Youth Director Andrew Messourouni was excited for the young striker. “The selection of Marafioti indicates the strength of the SMFC Youth Program, which is starting to bear fruit after many years of hard work. We expect Marafioti to play a big role in the Senior Squad in 2018 after having a break out year in our Under 20s, scoring over 20 times and leading the Under to a Championship”.

Mesourouni praised the work of Under 20’s coach and mentor Sasa Kolman. “Under the guidance of one our best coaches Sasha Kolman, Marafioti has been able to further develop into a powerhouse forward, which has culminated in Young Socceroos call up and selection, Furthermore the future of the clubs senior team success is in it’s youth program and we are really excited about the kids that are about to come through the system over the next couple of years.”

We wish Giordano all the best in his time with the Australian team.

South Melbourne FC would like to welcome all of its members for a special club information session at the 1959 Bar & Grill on Tuesday 12th September.

The session will aim to allow the Board of Directors to engage with its members, while being able to receive feedback regarding many areas of the club at this point in time. This includes the use of the Social Club and Futsal centre.

The information session will also give members an opportunity to raise any issues and concerns with the Board of Directors.

Furthermore, the club has numerous ideas to engage supporters for the FFA Cup match on the Gold Coast, many of which will be discussed on the night.

SMFC Members Information Session
Tuesday September 12th
1959 Bar & Grill @ Lakeside Stadium
Commences at 6.30pm.