Author: SMFC Media

Thursday, 25 February 2010 11:21 AM

South Melbourne FC was delighted to host the soccer clinics of the Trevor Barker Sports Camps at Bob Jane Stadium recently.

The camp is designed to give kids with cancer and their brothers and sisters an opportunity to have some time-out from cancer treatment and the rigours of hospital visits through participation in a range of sports activities and workshops.

South Melbourne FC was more than happy to support this charitable cause and play a major role in trying to put a smile on the faces of these brave children.

Players that represented South on the day included Sebastian Petrovic, Stefaan Sardelic, and Mackie Simmons. Throughout the day, South’s players conducted multiple clinics, teaching the kids a number of training and warm up drills, ball skills training, as well as playing a series of mini games, which lifted the spirits of the kids and players alike.

Nicholas Szkilnik, SMFC representative who coordinated the organisation of the soccer clinic, spoke with smfc.com.au, and commented on the event that “it was great chatting with the kids and they enjoyed telling us stories of other sports and camps Challenge were doing. We took a photo at the end of the clinic, and the Challenge staff thanked us for hosting the event, hoping to continue our relationship in the future. The kids had a fantastic time on the pitch showing that football has no boundaries and anyone can play, while the SMFC players had a great time entertaining them. Seeing the smiles on their faces despite the difficulties and hurdles they face in dealing with cancer, made it all worthwhile”.

South Melbourne FC is proud to support this wonderful cause and urges all fans to check out the Challenge website (www.challenge.org.au) to learn more about what can be done to support these inspirational kids.

Thursday, 25 February 2010 9:42 AM

Please click here to view the squad with profiles

South Melbourne FC is pleased to announce their squad for the 2010 Victorian Premier League season.

The team is brimming with a combination of youthful exuberance, talent and experience.

A number of core players have been retained in addition to being reinforced with a number of talented and experienced players. South has entered the transfer market strongly, recruiting Peter Zois to replace Tommich, James Stefanou and Marinos Gasparis from Heidelberg United, Carl Recchia from Altona Magic, Daniel Vasilevski  from A-League club Newcastle Jets and Joe Keenan from Hibernian in the Scottish Premier League.

Departing from South at the end of the 2009 season included Andrew Sfetkopoulos (Altona Magic), Tommi Tommich (Altona Magic), Shane Nunes, Nic Curtis (Northcote City), Con Blatsis (retired), Vaughan Coveny (retired), Francesco Stella (Siena, Italy), Danni Radojicic (Altona Magic) & Goran Zoric (Royal Thai Police United FC, Thailand).

Rookie coach and club legend, Vaughan Coveny will lead a strong side into the 2010 VPL season.

SMFC Director of Football Ange Dallas, speaking to smfc.com.au, stated “there has been a lot of hard work gone into recruiting and preparing a team that the South faithful can be proud of in 2010. We have completed an extensive process where players from all over Australia have trialed at the club in the hope of securing a spot in our squad. There are some young exciting prospects which are set to make their mark throughout the year. We hope that our passionate supporters get behind the team from the outset and support those who have been entrusted to wear the South Melbourne shirt .”

The 2010 senior squad is as follows:

1. Peter Zois
2. Stiven Mrkela
3. Rhodri Payne
4. Steven O’Dor
5. Daniel Vasilevski
6. Eddie Cetkin
7. Joe Keenan
8. Carl Recchia
9. Gianni De Nittis
10. Joseph Youssef
11. Yusuf Yusuf
12. Sam Torrens
13. Sasha Vranesevic
14. Ramazan Tavsancioglu
15. Fernando De Moraes
18. Marinos Gasparis
20. Nathan Caldwell
21. Stefaan Sardelic
22. James Stefanou
23. Sebastian Petrovic

Please click here to view the squad with profiles

Wednesday, 24 February 2010 11:19 AM

Last Sunday saw hundreds turn out to the South’s Community Family Day at BJS.

The picturesque setting provided an ideal backdrop for what was a fantastic day had by all with the local fire brigade, face painting and small sided games all part of the many attractions. This year, many of our junior teams held their training on the day, providing a fantastic start to the day’s festivities.

Many fans and new members made their way to purchase their 2010 memberships and merchandise.

To view a selection of photos of the SMFC Community Family Day, please click here.

SMFC would like to thank all staff and volunteers who assisted in making the day a fun and successful event.

Monday, 22 February 2010 11:17 AM

By James Belias – Photo by Cindy Nitsos

Bentleigh Greens were crowned Hellenic Cup Champions for 2010 after the South Eastern side defeated South Melbourne in a thrilling penalty shoot-out after regulation and extra time could not separate the two.

Gianni De Nittis and Sasha Vranesavic missed two spot-kicks to win the Cup for South after goal keeper Peter Zois had put South in a commanding position during the shootout.

South had been the better of the two sides, despite having played most of the game with just ten men after new signing James Stefanou was given a dubious straight red card for alledgedly pushing an opponent midway through the first half.

Kingston City’s Grange Reserve was the scene as large crowd flocked to see the last season’s Cup winners (South) and the newly promoted Bentleigh Greens (who are back in the Victorian Premier League).

The souvlaki was fresh, the beer was chilled and the enticing carnival atmosphere of the ground was warm as fans flocked from all over Melbourne for the match. Only the key ingredient was lacking; Goals.

Both South and Bentleigh failed to find the back of the net until the penalty shootout.

Blustery conditions, a poor pitch and stifling heat made conditions for the players tough. South Melbourne was without Brazilian ex-patriot Fernando De Moraes (away on Australia Futsalroo duties) and new signing Carl Recchia who was rested.

South found their rhythm more quickly with Englishman Joseph Keenan seeing most of the ball for South. He linked well with Joseph Youssef and Danny Vasilevski throughout the match but despite the South midfield enjoying a lion’s share of the possession, the side’s final pass forward was lacking.

The turning point of the half was the Stefanou send-off, which briefly allowed Bentleigh to regain their footing in the match. But whenever Bentleigh threatened, South defenders Rama Tavsancioglu, Steven O’Dor and Eddie Cetkin were there to clean up.

When the second half picked up, it was more of the same, with both sides failing to fashion any meaningful chances. Bentleigh’s George Stavridis in the right back position was particularly impressive while his team mate Tony Ouliaris was lively but spurned a good chance for the Greens with a long shot.

The game was turned on its head when Tex Apostolakis was sent off for Bentleigh by the referee after head butting South keeper Zois in the face. Zois took exception to a very late body check after he had comfortably caught a floating ball.

The match levelled in terms of personnel on the park, South wasted little time in re-exerting its authority on the match.

The best chance of the game fell to South Melbourne after the Albert Park side caught Bentleigh on the counter attack in the second half.

De Nittis had a shot saved well by the Greens’ custodian, with the rebound falling to another of South’s new signings, Danny Vasilevski.

His shot was blocked by a Greens defender, with the second rebound saved by the goalkeeper. The triple chance would be the closest South got to breaking the deadlock.

Yusef Yusef was brought on by South and with a searing run down the right flank, the nimble-footed speedster cut in between two defenders but failed to put his shot on target.

Despite the loss, South Melbourne look forward to tomorrow evening’s game at Bob Jane Stadium against NTC. Kick-off is at 7.45pm.

Monday, 15 February 2010 6:44 PM

As of today, South Melbourne FC will be directly managing all of our club’s Girls’ Sub Junior (Under 7s, 9s, 11s teams) and the Junior Girls’ Under 14 team as well.

The SMFC Girls’ teams will be playing out of the Albert Park Precinct.

All coaches will be appointed by Ange Dallas (SMFC Director of Football) and Maryanne Rizopoulos (SMFC Girls’ Coordinator), and will sign SMFC contracts which include:

1. Performance Review mechanisms
2. Responsibilities schedule
3. Football Federation Victorian (FFV) Code of Conduct provisions
4. Annual player written report processes
5. Adherence to the new SMFC Curriculum

In our 51st year, the club is entering a new phase of development both in the construction of new facilities at the Albert Park precinct and more importantly in the design and implementation of the new Youth program. 2010 will be an exciting new year and earmarking the foundation process of many new initiatives in both boys’ and girls’ junior development. As part of the implementation of the ‘One Club Policy’, all junior boys’ teams have come under the SMFC umbrella, as are the junior girls’ teams as well.

Our Women’s Senior, Reserves, State League 3, and Under 16 teams will continue to be operated by SMWFC for the 2010 season.

For any further enquiries regarding the Junior Girls’ junior teams, please contact our SMFC Girls’ Coordinator, Maryanne Rizopoulos on 0411 968 826 or womens@smfc.com.au

Monday, 15 February 2010 4:50 PM

For the third time in four years, South Melbourne has qualified for the final of the pre-season Hellenic Cup tournament after defeating rivals Heidelberg United 2-0 on Saturday.

In blustery conditions at Yarraville’s McIvor Reserve, South overcame a physical opening period to control the game midway into the first half.

It wasn’t until late in the half when a Joseph Keenan free-kick was nodded into the path of Gianni De Nittis by Steven O’Dor. With the striker open in the area, he calmly swiveled on one foot and slammed the ball past Steven Tilovski in the Heidelberg goal.

South sealed the victory and a place in the final early in the second half after a sublime turn by Fernando De Moraes culminated in the Brazilian playing an amazing twenty-five metre ball through the stagnant Heideberg back line and into the path of Keenan.

With the keeper to beat, the Englishman maintained his composure and neatly guided the ball into the back of the net.

South now looks forward to playing Bentleigh Greens in next Saturday’s final, after the VPL newcomers defeated Oakleigh in a highly controversial penalty shootout.

Kick-off at The Grange Reserve is at 6pm.

Friday, 12 February 2010 10:06 AM

South Melbourne FC has stormed into the Hellenic Cup Semi Final after a resounding 3-0 win over Northcote.

With South missing Carl Recchia, Daniel Vasilevski, Nathan Caldwell and Sebastian Petrovich, the Blues relied on new boys Joseph Keenan and Marinos Gasparis to command the middle along side familiar faces Fernando De Moraes and Joseph Youssef.

In a dominant display, South controlled the game from the onset with Gianni De Nittis and Joseph Keenan scoring in the opening half to give South a 2 goal advantage at the break. Keenan’s stunning goal from outside the area capped off a superb opening half for the Englishman who had spent much of his time controlling the midfield.

South continued to dominate in the second half with the reward coming when a sublime move by Keenan on the right hand flank culminated in Gianni De Nittis scoring his second goal of the match.

The win means South progresses and has been drawn to play old foe Heidelberg United on Saturday at Yarraville. Kick-off for the Semi Final is at 4.30pm.

Match Details: 
South Melbourne FC vs. Heidelberg United
Saturday February 13th – 4.30pm
McIvor Reserve Fogarty Avenue, Spotswood (Melway REF 41F10)

Tuesday, 9 February 2010 11:44 PM

South Melbourne FC has progressed to the quarter finals of the 2010 Hellenic Cup, and is scheduled to take on sister club Northcote City Iraklis.

South in the group stage was drawn against Lalor Florina, Altona East PAOK, Keon Park Panathinaikos, and Essendon United Kos. In its first group match against Altona East, South fought off a gritty and determined Altona to open its campaign with a 2-0 victory. The second match was against minnows Essendon United Kos. In what proved to be the upset of the tournament, an excellent performance by Essendon saw it earn a well earned 2-2 draw against an under-strength South side. Given the shock result, South needed to win its remaining matches to ensure it clinched first place in the group. The shock draw against Essendon proved to be a turning point, with South winning the remaining preliminary matches in devastating fashion. A polished performance saw South defeat Lalor Florina 5-0, and crush the resistance of Keon Park Panathinaikos 10-0.

Northcote City remains undefeated in the tournament, and the match up against Northcote promises to be an interesting encounter, as both teams continue their preparation for the upcoming 2010 Victorian Premier League season. 

Match Details: 
South Melbourne FC vs. Northcote City Iraklis
Wednesday 7pm
McIvor Reserve Fogarty Avenue, Spotswood (Melway REF 41F10)

Monday, 8 February 2010 11:55 PM

In clinical fashion, IBM took all before it as it clinched the second SMFC Corporate Challenge Cup at Bob Jane Stadium over the weekend.

On a glorious sun drenched day, the combatants took to the field to see who would be crowned Champions at Lakeside. Twelve teams entered the Corporate Challenge, with the teams allocated into three groups of four. Group 1 was comprised of reigning champions Coffex Coffee, Dallas 7, IBM, and AVC. Group 2 was headed up by Pitcher Partners, GPZ Legal, Melbourne Mail Management, and Lucky 7. The third group contained K & A Accountants, Commonwealth Bank, miRoamer, and Karponi Web Design / Web Panache.

The Corporate Challenge was a five a side tournament, with the first placed team in each group, plus the best second placed team across the three groups would progress to the semi-final round. After the preliminary matches were completed, and many sore legs and a number of players just glad to get through the three match preliminary stage, the first-placed teams from each respective group were IBM, Melbourne Mail Management, and the Commonwealth Bank. The second best placed team across the groups was K & A Accountants from Group 3. The semi-final pairings were Melbourne Mail Management vs. Commonwealth Bank, and IBM vs. K & A Accountants. After playing some great football in the preliminary stages, Commonwealth Bank was bundled out by Melbourne Mail Management 6-1, while IBM and K & A Accountants battled it out in a classic. In an entertaining and high scoring affair, IBM proved to be too strong just pipping K & A 11-10 in the end.

The day began with twelve teams, and it was down to the last two teams. IBM started strongly in the preliminary stages playing some terrific text book football. In an entertaining affair, the match was even early on, but the class and skill of IBM shown through. Like a well-oiled machine, IBM meticulously took Melbourne Mail Management apart, winning the final and clinching its maiden SMFC Corporate Challenge Cup.

A jubilant IBM captain Tom Kalas speaking to smfc.com.au said “it was a team effort and all the boys played well. Bad luck to the Melbourne Mail Management, but our training and planning paid dividends. Well done to all the teams for a great day of football. We are looking to go back-to-back champions”.

South Melbourne FC would like to congratulate all the participants of the 2010 SMFC Corporate Challenge Cup for making it a fun, enjoyable and successful day.

Tuesday, 2 February 2010 11:20 AM

South Melbourne FC is delighted to announce the return of the 2010 SMFC Victorian Premier League Tipping Competition. There are some great prizes up for grabs, with first prize being a signed SMFC replica shirt signed by the 2010 SMFC squad and coaching staff.

Its easy to enter, and lots of fun. In each round you will tip for a home win, draw, or away win. You will get 1 point for a correct win or 1 point for a correct draw. The current round will close 1 hour before the first game of each round is to be played. If you forget to submit your tips in for a round, you will get the lowest score of the round minus 1 point. If you start late, you will be allocated the average points of the competition.

To enter the tipping competition, please go to http://tipping.smfc.com.au/