Category: News

Thursday, 9 January 2014 12:19 PM

South Melbourne FC would like to wish all its members, corporate partners, media, supporters and volunteers a happy festive season, and a safe and prosperous new year.

A reminder that the Club office will be closed from Tuesday 24 December and will re-open on Monday 13 January 2014.

We look forward to welcoming you back to Lakeside Stadium for another exciting season in 2014.

Regards

Peter Kokotis

General Manager

South Melbourne FC wishes to extend its deepest condolences to the Vetouladitis family on the recent passing of Louis Vetouladitis.

Mr Vetouladitis was a prominent and active member of the business community, and a passionate and generous supporter of the Club. Mr Vetouladitis’ company, Rocket Batteries, was a long-term sponsor of the Club in both the National Soccer League and Victorian Premier League eras.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC president Leo Athanasakis said “we are saddened to hear the passing of a valued and respected member of the South Melbourne family. On behalf of everyone at the Club, I would like to pass on my deepest condolences to the Vetouladitis family.”

Photo by Kostas Deves

South Melbourne FC is delighted to announce that it has entered into a partnership with Alphington Grammar to develop an educative training schedule, which provides a comprehensive and fully supervised football program. This program will be open to Alphington Grammar students only, and will promote excellence, maturity, and success in all facets of the students’ development.

The program will aim to deliver high performance, technically and tactically proficient junior football players with improved personal match performance. Participants will be monitored, mentored, and assessed by the Club Youth Development Coaches. The Program will run for 30 weeks during the academic year and will be open students enrolled in Years 7 to 12.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC Youth Development Director Andrew Mesourouni said “we are quite excited to launch our partnership with Alphington Grammar in establishing the Football Program, which will further strengthen the sporting curriculum of the school. This will provide students with an opportunity to enrol in an intensive skills and tactical program that will play a role in the school offering a sporting and academic balanced environment”.

Dr Vivianne Nikou, Principal of Alphington Grammar School told smfc.com.au “this new initiative would now see young girls and boys take their skill development to the next level and having access to such an elite training program would further enhance the students social, emotional and cognitive abilities within a supportive learning environment that understands the needs for students to have broad skills and attributes if they wish to better prepare for the future.”

President of the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria, Bill Papastergiadis also speaking to smfc.com.au said “the football program implemented with SMFC coupled with the recent outstanding VCE results at Alphington, create a real and defined point of difference for the school. Alphington Grammar will be in a position to offer excellent academic and sporting opportunities to students. Such specialist football training will set Alphington apart from its school competitors.”

The advanced Football Program will commence in March 2014. For all enquiries, please contact Alphington Grammar on 9497 4777.

South Melbourne FC is pleased to advise that Dimi Tsiaras, Tim Mala and Nick Epifano have all re-committed to the Club for the 2014 season.

Dimi Tsiaras arrived at Lakeside Stadium from the Richmond Eagles for the beginning of the 2012 Victorian Premier League season. The defensive midfielder has since represented South Melbourne FC on 31 occasions in both League and Dockerty Cup matches, scoring one goal in the process. Although he only made nine senior appearances in 2013 largely due to a nasty injury sustained against Green Gully on Sunday 7 July, Dimi has shown faith not only in Coach Chris Taylor but also in the Club by extending his stay at Lakeside Stadium.

Tim Mala arrived at the Club from Dandenong Thunder in the 2013 mid-season transfer window. The right-back made 12 appearances for South in the second half of the season and played his part in South’s rise from mid-table mediocrity to an eventual Preliminary Final finish.

Like Mala, Nick Epifano also joined South from Dandenong Thunder in the mid-season transfer window. The left-sided midfielder made 13 appearances and scored three goals for his new Club, with his debut goal coming against the Bentleigh Greens at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday 21 July.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis said “we are quite excited to commence announcing the re-signing of a number of our existing players. All three players were required by Chris Taylor, and we are looking for a big season from the boys in 2014. We have been working very hard in the off season to further strengthen the squad, and we will be making further announcements of new player signings shortly.”

South Melbourne FC ended its 2013 season with a glittering and successful Gala Ball at Lakeside Events (formerly Albert by the Lake) at Lakeside Stadium.

Over 220 guests were in attendance to celebrate the Club’s achievements. The event was opened by the Master of Ceremonies, and SMFC Director, George Triantos who reflected on the achievements and success stories of the season that had just ended.

Following the opening address, South president Leo Athanasakis spoke about the challenges ahead for the club as well as recognising the hard work the Board had put in throughout the year. In addition, Leo thanked all the major corporate partners of the Club, as well the SMFC Media Team who had put in a tremendous effort this season.

The highlight of the evening was retiring Club legend Fernando De Moraes being honoured for his distinguished and extraordinary service to the Club. Guests were treated to video highlights of some of De Moraes’ greatest moments on the playing field, which showcased his talent and skills which troubled many defences over the years. A visibly emotional De Moraes had to hold back the tears as he fondly discussed memorable moments of his career, and spoke about the passion for the shirt and for his dedication to the South Melbourne faithful.

The Sam Papasavas Award, which is awarded for service, dedication, and contribution to the Club, was awarded to Paul Zarogiannis for his outstanding work in the production of SMFC TV. Paul had produced the video highlights packages for the Club’s 50th Anniversary Gala Ball in 2009, and the following year was instrumental in the production of SMFC TV which first premiered on Channel 31. Throughout the last three years, the quality of content and production had improved dramatically, and has been one of the success stories of the Club’s multimedia platforms.

DJ Johnny Mav took over as his funky tunes saw many make their way to the dance floor and kick up their heels.

It was a night of great celebration, as the curtain fell on the 2013 season. South Melbourne FC would like to thank its guests for attending a memorable event.

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC regrets to advise that Goalkeeper Peter Gavalas has retired effective immediately due to professional work commitments.

Gavalas arrived at Lakeside Stadium for the beginning of the 2012 Victorian Premier League season, joining South Melbourne FC from the Bentleigh Greens. He made his debut on Sunday 25 March 2012 and enjoyed a clean sheet as South defeated the Moreland Zebras 4-0 at Lakeside Stadium. Gavalas made 21 League appearances in 2012 before backing that up with 23 League appearances in 2013. At the halfway point of the 2013 season, South was struggling to get consistency going but that changed following the arrival of new Head Coach Chris Taylor for the second half of the season. Gavalas made some vital saves in crucial games (with his finest performance being in the 2-1 win against the Oakleigh Cannons at Jack Edwards Reserve on Sunday 18 August) as he helped South end the regular season in fourth place before going as far as the Preliminary Final.

Gavalas’ individual efforts were recognised when he was announced as the 2013 Victorian Premier League Goalkeeper of the Year, joining Dean Anastasiadis (2005, 2006) and Peter Zois (2010) as the South goalkeepers to have won that award. Overall he represented South Melbourne FC 47 times across all competitions (44 League games and 3 Dockerty Cup matches) and enjoyed ten clean sheets.

Peter Gavalas told smfc.com.au “it’s disappointing to have to move on at such an exciting time for the club. There is a strong unit forming within the inner sanctum at Hellas and no doubt the boys will achieve a high level of success in 2014. Thanks to Nicholas Maikousis for his dedicated efforts in assisting the playing group’”.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, Football Director Nicholas Maikousis said “the Club was disappointed to hear the news that Peter had decided to hang up his gloves and retire. Peter has just completed his tertiary studies, and will embark upon a new career in the field of physiotherapy, and will not have the time to devote to his training and playing committements. We wish Peter all the very best in this new chapter in his life establishing his new business called Physiohealth located at both Essendon and Williamstown, and look forward to seeing him on the terraces supporting the team”.

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC is delighted to announce that midfielder Tyson Holmes has committed to the Club for another two seasons.

Holmes arrived at Lakeside Stadium at the beginning of 2013 and made an immediate impression on the South supporters with his commitment and never-say-die attitude. Overall he made 27 appearances for the Club across all competitions (25 League games and 2 Cup games) and scored five goals during the course of the season. Tyson’s first goal for South was a wonderful overhead kick against the Richmond Eagles on Sunday 12 May and he went on to score another goal as South fought from 0-2 down to win 3-2. He scored another crucial goal on the final day of the regular season (Sunday 22 September) with a header to open the scoring against Port Melbourne, as South went on to win 4-0 and qualify for the finals series. Without doubt Tyson’s finest moment of the season arrived seven days later in the Elimination Final against Green Gully (Sunday 29 September), with his strike from outside the box in the 91st minute sparking scenes of delirium in the Lakeside Stadium grandstand as South progressed to the Minor Semi Final at Gully’s expense.

Speaking to smfc.com.au SMFC Football Director Nicholas Maikousis said “we are quite excited to have Tyson with us for another two years. He had a stellar year with the Club, and who could forget that injury time winner he scored against Green Gully in the finals series. We look forward to seeing more of Tyson’s attacking qualities next season.”

South Melbourne FC congratulates Tyson Holmes not only for his commitment to the Club but also for getting married to his partner (now wife) Teniele last weekend.