Category: News

Thursday, 22 August 2013 2:18 PM

By John Kyrou (Chris Taylor quotes obtained by Football Federation Victoria reporter Matthew McNamara)

Green Gully progressed to the 2013 State Knockout Cup Final after defeating South Melbourne FC 1-0 in the first Semi Final at SS Anderson Reserve on Wednesday night. Jason Hayne’s winning goal on 57 minutes proved to be the difference between the two sides as Gully now advances to play the winner of Dandenong Thunder and Sunshine George Cross in the Cup Final on Saturday 7 September.

South coach Chris Taylor was forced to make several changes to his team for the Semi Final, with Bryan Bran, Tim Mala, Iqi Jawadi, Nick Epifano and Luke Hopper all Cup-tied after representing Dandenong Thunder in the earlier stages of the competition. Taylor decided to give goalkeeper Peter Gavalas a rest and recalled Chris Maynard in between the sticks. Jonathan Munoz – who made his South debut as a late substitute against Oakleigh in the Victorian Premier League match last weekend – started for South at right-back in place of Mala whilst youngster James Karvelis replaced Bryan Bran at centre-back, as Brad Norton and Shaun Kelly retained their places in defence. Andrew Cartanos and Rhys Meredith were both given starts whilst Fernando De Moraes and Baggio Yousif (with 11 goals in his last six Under-21s matches) were on the substitutes’ bench.

South had the better of the first half but could not convert their possession into goals on the scoreboard. The closest that South got to scoring was a header from Shaun Kelly that went over Keiran Gonzalez’s crossbar after the goalkeeper had fumbled the ball. Despite the domination, Gully should have gone into the break with the lead after some quick feet by Osagie Ederaro on the left side resulted in a dangerous low cross played in for what seemed to be an easy tap-in for former South man Hamid Basma. Luckily for South, Maynard was on hand to pull off an outstanding double-save by blocking Basma’s point-blank shot and then quickly recovering to get in the way of Hayne’s follow-up shot.

The second half was almost identical to the first half, with South pushing forward in numbers but unable to seriously put Gonzalez under pressure. The breakthrough goal came just shy of the hour mark, when Shaun Timmins pounced on the loose ball that South’s defence failed to properly clear before releasing Hayne inside the box to smash home past Maynard. Taylor introduced De Moraes and then Yousif for more attacking options but Gully were able to comfortably grind out the result. Disappointingly for South, Gonzalez was hardly tested.

In the end it was an effective Gully that progressed to the Cup Final, leaving Taylor angry that his side did not put more pressure on the opposition in the second half when a goal behind. “We went back to what we were doing when I first came to the Club – ‘ticky taka’ football – and we take a corner with a minute to go and we stuff around and lose the ball after we pushed everyone up into the box” he said in disappointment. In response to his team selection for the match, he mentioned how with five players Cup-tied “a lot of other boys got the opportunity to show what they were made of… some of them did OK and some of them let themselves down.”

With no Cup glory to look forward to in 2013, South must quickly turn its attention to League matters, starting with the visit of Pascoe Vale to Lakeside Stadium on Sunday afternoon. There are four matches remaining in the VPL season and with South sitting in fifth place on the ladder, there is no room for error if the side wants to play finals football in 2013.

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

Goal Scorer:
0-1: Jason Hayne (57’)

South Melbourne FC:
21. Chris MAYNARD (GK), 9. Trent RIXON, 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON (C), 12. Rhys MEREDITH, 16. Alan KEARNEY , 17. Nick SOOLSMA, 18. Jonathan MUNOZ (26. Baggio YOUSIF 84’), 19. Shaun KELLY, 20. Andrew CARTANOS (8. Fernando DE MORAES 65’), 22. James KARVELIS

Green Gully:
Kieran GONZALEZ (GK), Daniel JONES, Shaun TIMMINS (Sean HARDING 67′), Mitchell BISSINGER, Rodrigo VARGAS, Jason HAYNE (Christopher DIB 87′), Brent FISHER, Matthew SANDERS, Hamid BASMA (Liam BRAIN 65′), Osagie EDERARO, Brian VANEGA

SMFC Man of the Match: Alan Kearney
Venue: SS Anderson Reserve
Date: Wednesday 21 August 2013

Wednesday, 21 August 2013 10:26 AM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC and Green Gully clash in the Semi Final of the State Knockout Cup at SS Anderson Reserve on Wednesday night, with a meeting against either Dandenong Thunder or Sunshine George Cross in the final on Saturday 7 September at stake.

South goes into the match on the back of consecutive Victorian Premier League wins (6-1 against Hume City and 2-1 against Oakleigh) whilst Green Gully comes into the match in losing form, having lost 2-1 against Port Melbourne last Friday night at SS Anderson Reserve despite taking the lead.

Chris Taylor’s team selection will be interesting, considering that several of his first-choice starting eleven players are Cup-tied. Tim Mala, Bryan Bran, Iqi Jawadi, Nick Epifano and Luke Hopper all played for Dandenong Thunder in the early stages of this competition and therefore cannot play on Wednesday night. However this gives players such as Rhys Meredith, Fernando De Moraes, Andrew Cartanos, James Karvelis, Jonathan Munoz and even Baggio Yousif (with 11 goals in his past six Under-21s matches) an opportunity to showcase their talents. Dimi Tsiaras has made a good recovery from the nasty hamstring injury he sustained against Green Gully in the League match on 7 July and may also play a part in the Semi Final.

The match kicks off on Wednesday night at SS Anderson Reserve at 7:30pm. If the match is drawn then extra time will be played and if the scores are still level then a penalty shoot-out will determine who progresses through to the 2013 State Knockout Cup Final.

South Melbourne FC’s Cup Run 2013
Fourth Round: 3-0 v Oakleigh Cannons (Saturday 4 May at Lakeside Stadium)
Fifth Round: 3-2 v Northcote City (Monday 10 June at Lakeside Stadium)
Quarter Final: 4-2 v Preston Lions (Tuesday 23 July at Lakeside Stadium)

Green Gully’s Cup Run 2013
Fourth Round: 5-1 v North Geelong Warriors (Saturday 4 May at Elcho Park )
Fifth Round: 2-1 v Keilor Park (Saturday 8 June at Keilor Park Recreational Reserve)
Quarter Final: 3-2 v FC Clifton Hill (Tuesday 23 July at Green Gully Reserve)

Last Round – State Knockout Cup Quarter Final vs Preston

Tuesday, 20 August 2013 9:37 AM

By John Kyrou (Photo by Cindy Nitsos)

South Melbourne FC stormed into the top five after defeating the Oakleigh Cannons 1-2 at Jack Edwards Reserve on Sunday afternoon. In testing conditions, centre-forward Trent Rixon’s first half goal and Luke Hopper’s second half penalty was enough for South to get the three points despite Dusan Bosnjak giving the home side a lifeline in the final fifteen minutes. South had their goalkeeper Peter Gavalas to thank for making several outstanding match-winning saves throughout the whole game in what was South’s first away win since the 1-2 win against the Bentleigh Greens on 19 April.

South came into the game having disposed of Hume City 6-1 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday and Chris Taylor’s side knew that a win against Oakleigh and favourable results in other games would see the Club end the round in the top five. Oakleigh needed a win against South to realistically keep alive its 2013 finals aspirations. Despite having a game in hand, a loss against South would put the Cannons seven points behind fifth spot with only four League matches remaining.

The home side was unable to take advantage of kicking with the wind in the first half and it was South that opened the scoring in the sixteenth minute. Ross Jarvis’ horrible back pass was pounced on by Rixon and he fired a shot over the advancing Lewis Italiano and into the back of the net to make the score 0-1. It could very well have been 0-2 a short while later in almost exactly the same circumstances, when Hayden Doyle’s awful back-pass was intercepted by Nick Epifano, however the winger’s placement was off-target and the ball went out for a goal kick. Oakleigh had two excellent chances to score in the first half, firstly when Goran Zoric was put through one-on-one but had his shot blocked by Gavalas and secondly when Dusan Bosnjak’s shot beat Gavalas but not the far post as South went into the sheds at halftime with the lead.

Gavalas was at his brilliant best early in the second half when he made another one-on-one save, this time gloving Doyle’s shot over the crossbar. Only minutes later, Oakleigh charged forward again and Gavalas made a double-save before Tim Mala cleared the ball off the line. The danger was still not over yet and again Gavalas was called upon, this time to save from Zoric. The home side were still wondering how they had not equalised when South went down to the other end of the field and won a penalty. Luke Hopper cut into the box from the left side and was adjudged by the referee to have been fouled in the area by Steven Gray. Hopper stepped up and coolly slotted the penalty away for a remarkable fifth goal in four games for the Club. Rixon had worked hard all game and was nearly rewarded with a second goal after being put through one-on-one with Italiano but the Oakleigh goalkeeper managed to get a touch and deflect the ball out for a corner.

Just when South looked like it would comfortably see out the rest of the game, it failed to clear an Oakleigh corner and the resultant goalmouth scramble saw Bosnjak poke home to halve the deficit and ensure the final fifteen minutes would be extremely uncomfortable for the away side. Despite a few difficult moments, including five minutes of injury time played by the referee, South had done enough to win the three points and jump Hume City and Green Gully into fifth spot on the VPL ladder. Post-game, Taylor was delighted with the victory but remained realistic. “There is no room for error…we’ve got to keep winning. It’s a case of grinding away because we’ve got teams around us who have got games in hand.” When asked about the failure to keep a clean sheet again, Taylor was – unlike the previous week – not as fussed. “I thought Gavalas was outstanding today…he kept us in the game at times and did what he had to do.”

In the Under-21s, Oakleigh took the lead before a double from Baggio Yousif put South 2-1 up; however a late goal by Oakleigh saw the game end 2-2.

South has a big week this week, starting with the State Knockout Cup Semi Final against Green Gully at Anderson Reserve (Port Melbourne) on Wednesday night at 7:30PM before another important League match against Pascoe Vale at Lakeside Stadium at 5PM on Sunday. Another victory on Sunday will consolidate South’s spot in the top five and give it three League wins in a row.

FINAL SCORE: OAKLEIGH CANNONS 1-2 SOUTH MELBOURNE (HT: 0-1)

Goal Scorers:
0-1: Trent Rixon (16′)
0-2: Luke Hopper (64’pk)
1-2: Dusan Bosnjak (74′)

Key Stats (provided by Steven Orchard):
Shots: Oakleigh (12) – South Melbourne (18)
Saves: Oakleigh (6) – South Melbourne (6)
Turn Overs: Oakleigh (74) – South Melbourne (61)
Balls into Area: Oakleigh (23) – South Melbourne (40)
Clearances: Oakleigh (12) – South Melbourne (21)

Oakleigh Cannons:
Lewis ITALIANO (GK), Casper ANDERSEN, Jamie CUMMING (C), Steven GRAY (Laurent CORALIE 68’), Andrew MULLETT, Hayden DOYLE (John McLEAN 65’ [Jesse KRNCEVIC 76’]), Ross JARVIS, Evan CHRISTODOULOU, Goran ZORIC, Alex SMITH, Dusan BOSNJAK

South Melbourne FC:
1. Peter GAVALAS (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Bryan BRAN, 5. Nick EPIFANO (12. Rhys MEREDITH 85′), 7. Luke HOPPER (16. Alan KEARNEY 67′), 9. Trent RIXON, 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON (C), 13. Iqi JAWADI, 17. Nick SOOLSMA (18. Jonathan MUNOZ 90+1′), 19. Shaun KELLY

SMFC Man of the Match: Peter Gavalas
Venue: Jack Edwards Reserve
Date: Sunday 18 August 2013

Monday, 19 August 2013 10:24 PM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC stormed into the top five after defeating the Oakleigh Cannons 1-2 at Jack Edwards Reserve on Sunday afternoon. In testing conditions, centre-forward Trent Rixon’s first half goal and Luke Hopper’s second half penalty was enough for South to get the three points despite Dusan Bosnjak giving the home side a lifeline in the final fifteen minutes. South had their goalkeeper Peter Gavalas to thank for making several outstanding match-winning saves throughout the whole game in what was South’s first away win since the 1-2 win against the Bentleigh Greens on 19 April.

South came into the game having disposed of Hume City 6-1 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday and Chris Taylor’s side knew that a win against Oakleigh and favourable results in other games would see the Club end the round in the top five. Oakleigh needed a win against South to realistically keep alive its 2013 finals aspirations. Despite having a game in hand, a loss against South would put the Cannons seven points behind fifth spot with only four League matches remaining.

The home side was unable to take advantage of kicking with the wind in the first half and it was South that opened the scoring in the sixteenth minute. Ross Jarvis’ horrible back pass was pounced on by Rixon and he fired a shot over the advancing Lewis Italiano and into the back of the net to make the score 0-1. It could very well have been 0-2 a short while later in almost exactly the same circumstances, when Hayden Doyle’s awful back-pass was intercepted by Nick Epifano, however the winger’s placement was off-target and the ball went out for a goal kick. Oakleigh had two excellent chances to score in the first half, firstly when Goran Zoric was put through one-on-one but had his shot blocked by Gavalas and secondly when Dusan Bosnjak’s shot beat Gavalas but not the far post as South went into the sheds at halftime with the lead.

Gavalas was at his brilliant best early in the second half when he made another one-on-one save, this time gloving Doyle’s shot over the crossbar. Only minutes later, Oakleigh charged forward again and Gavalas made a double-save before Tim Mala cleared the ball off the line. The danger was still not over yet and again Gavalas was called upon, this time to save from Zoric. The home side were still wondering how they had not equalised when South went down to the other end of the field and won a penalty. Luke Hopper cut into the box from the left side and was adjudged by the referee to have been fouled in the area by Steven Gray. Hopper stepped up and coolly slotted the penalty away for a remarkable fifth goal in four games for the Club. Rixon had worked hard all game and was nearly rewarded with a second goal after being put through one-on-one with Italiano but the Oakleigh goalkeeper managed to get a touch and deflect the ball out for a corner.  

Just when South looked like it would comfortably see out the rest of the game, it failed to clear an Oakleigh corner and the resultant goalmouth scramble saw Bosnjak poke home to halve the deficit and ensure the final fifteen minutes would be extremely uncomfortable for the away side. Despite a few difficult moments, including five minutes of injury time played by the referee, South had done enough to win the three points and jump Hume City and Green Gully into fifth spot on the VPL ladder. Post-game, Taylor was delighted with the victory but remained realistic. “There is no room for error…we’ve got to keep winning. It’s a case of grinding away because we’ve got teams around us who have got games in hand.” When asked about the failure to keep a clean sheet again, Taylor was – unlike the previous week – not as fussed. “I thought Gavalas was outstanding today…he kept us in the game at times and did what he had to do.”

In the Under-21s, Oakleigh took the lead before a double from Baggio Yousif put South 2-1 up; however a late goal by Oakleigh saw the game end 2-2.

South has a big week this week, starting with the State Knockout Cup Semi Final against Green Gully at Anderson Reserve (Port Melbourne) on Wednesday night at 7:30PM before another important League match against Pascoe Vale at Lakeside Stadium at 5PM on Sunday. Another victory on Sunday will consolidate South’s spot in the top five and give it three League wins in a row.

FINAL SCORE: OAKLEIGH CANNONS 1-2 SOUTH MELBOURNE (HT: 0-1)

Goal Scorers:
0-1: Trent Rixon (16′)
0-2: Luke Hopper (64’pk)
1-2: Dusan Bosnjak (74′)

Key Stats (provided by Steven Orchard):
Shots: Oakleigh (12) – South Melbourne (18)
Saves: Oakleigh (6) – South Melbourne (6)
Turn Overs: Oakleigh (74) – South Melbourne (61)
Balls into Area: Oakleigh (23) – South Melbourne (40)
Clearances: Oakleigh (12) – South Melbourne (21)

Oakleigh Cannons:
Lewis ITALIANO (GK), Casper ANDERSEN, Jamie CUMMING (C), Steven GRAY (Laurent CORALIE 68’), Andrew MULLETT, Hayden DOYLE (John McLEAN 65’ [Jesse KRNCEVIC 76’]), Ross JARVIS, Evan CHRISTODOULOU, Goran ZORIC, Alex SMITH, Dusan BOSNJAK

South Melbourne FC:
1. Peter GAVALAS (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Bryan BRAN, 5. Nick EPIFANO (12. Rhys MEREDITH 85′), 7. Luke HOPPER (16. Alan KEARNEY 67′), 9. Trent RIXON, 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON (C), 13. Iqi JAWADI, 17. Nick SOOLSMA (18. Jonathan MUNOZ 90+1′), 19. Shaun KELLY

SMFC Man of the Match: Peter Gavalas
Venue: Jack Edwards Reserve
Date: Sunday 18 August 2013

Friday, 16 August 2013 9:12 AM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC faces another crucial match when it travels to Jack Edwards Reserve on Sunday afternoon to play the Oakleigh Cannons. A win for South could see it end the round as high as fourth on the Victorian Premier League ladder whilst a loss would be a major blow in the Club’s quest for finals football.

South goes into the match having dispatched of Hume City 6-1 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday afternoon. A hat trick from Luke Hopper, a first-half double from Trent Rixon and a wonder free kick from Nick Soolsma completed the rout for a South side that has now scored 12 goals in its last two home games. Oakleigh goes into the match having been defeated 3-1 by Dandenong Thunder at George Andrews Reserve last Friday night, the Cannons’ first loss since the 0-1 home defeat by the Melbourne Knights on 30 June.

Several of the teams around South on the VPL ladder (Green Gully, Dandenong Thunder and Oakleigh) have a match in hand and could go ahead of South with a victory in their catch-up games. Having said that, these teams along with Port Melbourne all play each other in the remaining few rounds of the season and will take points off each other, meaning that Chris Taylor’s side should qualify for the finals series provided they just keep winning their matches. The 1-1 away draw against Richmond on 2 August cost South a spot in the top five that weekend but the side made up for it with the 6-1 win against Hume last Sunday to put it just two points behind fifth-placed Green Gully.

Three points against Oakleigh on Sunday is imperative not only to continue the good form from the Hume game but to also make the Cannons’ finals aspirations even harder to achieve. A South victory will put it seven points clear of Oakleigh with four matches to go (though the Cannons have a game in hand) whereas a Cannons win will put them only a point behind South.

In the League fixture played between the two clubs earlier this season on 26 May, two goals from Dimi Hatzimouratis resulted in a comfortable 2-1 victory for South at Lakeside Stadium.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 3:15pm at Jack Edwards Reserve.

Last time we met

Monday, 12 August 2013 5:01 PM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC scored six goals for the second successive home game when it destroyed Hume City 6-1 at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday afternoon. A hat trick to Luke Hopper, a double from Trent Rixon and a wonderful free kick from Nick Soolsma completed the rout for the home side.

South came into the game on the back of a thoroughly disappointing 1-1 away draw against Richmond last Friday night, a result that has cost the side a spot in the top five. Hume came into the match in fourth place on the Victorian Premier League ladder; however they were defeated 0-1 at home by Dandenong Thunder last Sunday and a loss against South would make Lou Acevski’s side vulnerable to being overtaken in the top five in the next few weeks.

The first 30 minutes of the game were reasonably uneventful, however the match sprung into life when Rixon won the ball on the left side and cut inside before curling an effort past the outstretched hands of Hume goalkeeper Chris Oldfield and into the back of the net. In first half injury time, Baki Efi’s back header fell short of Oldfield as Hopper beat Oldfield to the loose ball before squaring across for an unmarked Rixon to tap the ball into the empty net. Hume did have some chances in the first half, firstly when the South defence cleared a goal-bound shot off the line and secondly when Peter Gavalas made an important block after Ersin Kaya was put through one-on-one. South could have been further ahead at the halftime break but for some important saves by Oldfield.

Hopper got on the score sheet just after the hour mark when Tyson Holmes released Rixon on the right side before the centre-forward fired in a low cross for the in-form Hopper to bundle across the line for South’s third goal of the afternoon. Holmes then scored but the goal was disallowed because Rixon had apparently fouled a Hume defender in the lead-up. Holmes had another chance to score shortly after but his spectacular overhead shot smashed into the crossbar and Hume cleared the danger. From the resultant clearance, the away side zipped down to the other end and gave themselves a lifeline when Atilla Ofli headed home past Gavalas, who had been a virtual spectator in the second half but unfortunately could not finish the game with a clean sheet.

Any chance of a Hume fight back was destroyed in the final five minutes of normal time as South tore them apart with three quick goals. Hopper made it 4-1 when he took control of a through-ball and made a mockery of the Hume defence before blasting across Oldfield and into the far corner of the net. Substitute Alan Kearney then won the ball in midfield and with one Hume defender playing four South players onside, Kearney released Soolsma down the right side. The Dutchman had an eternity to decide his target before squaring the ball for Hopper to put away his third goal of the afternoon and the remarkable statistic of four goals in three appearances for the Club. With the match in its final minute of regular time, Soolsma stepped up and brilliantly buried his free kick from outside the area into the top left corner.

South coach Chris Taylor was delighted with the six goals and the three points but was unhappy to have conceded a goal, adding that “I’m not happy with that… we need to get clean sheets, we haven’t had one since I’ve been here so I’m disappointed about that.” In regards to his forwards scoring, Taylor was very pleased, noting that “we’ve got the result today and seeing the strikers score goals is very good.”

It was a different story in the Under-21s as South Melbourne FC was defeated 1-2 by Hume City . Baggio Yousif was the goal scorer again and has now scored nine goals in his last five League games for the Under-21s.

South has another game of huge importance next week when it travels to Jack Edwards Reserve to face the Oakleigh Cannons. Kick-off is next Sunday 18 August at 3:15PM.

FINAL SCORE: SOUTH MELBOURNE 6-1 HUME CITY (HT: 2-0)

Goal Scorers:
1-0: Trent Rixon (34′)
2-0: Trent Rixon (45+1′)
3-0: Luke Hopper (62′)
3-1: Atilla Ofli (75′)
4-1: Luke Hopper (85′)
5-1: Luke Hopper (88′)
6-1: Nick Soolsma (89′)

South Melbourne FC:
1. Peter GAVALAS (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Bryan BRAN, 5. Nick EPIFANO (20. Andrew CARTANOS 89′), 7. Luke HOPPER, 9. Trent RIXON (16. Alan KEARNEY 75′), 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON (C), 13. Iqi JAWADI, 17. Nick SOOLSMA, 19. Shaun KELLY

Hume City :
1. Chris OLDFIELD (GK), 2. Shaun ROMEIN, 3. Scott MUIRHEAD, 4. Isyan ERDOGAN, 6. Alan MULCAHUY (14. Cem CIL 71’), 7. Atilla OFLI, 10. Nick HEGARTY, 18. Ersin KAYA, 21. Turhan SUMBUL (22. Tristan THOMPSON 45’), 23. Craig SIVES, 26. Baki EFE (9. Devon BONNE 68’)

SMFC Man of the Match: Luke Hopper
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
Date: Sunday 11 August 2013

Monday, 12 August 2013 10:48 AM

South Melbourne FC wishes to confirm that the Round 18 clash against the Oakleigh Cannons at Jack Edwards Reserve has been moved from Friday August 16th to Sunday August 18th.

Kick-off for the Senior Match is at 3.15pm, while the kick-off for the Under 21 match is at 1.00pm.

In other news, the Semi Final Clash against Green Gully in the FFV State Knockout Cup has been scheduled to be played on Wednesday August 21st.

Kick-off at Port Melbourne’s SS Anderson Reserve will be at 7.30pm.

We encourage all fans to get behind the club as we strive to make the top five, as well as qualify for the FFV Knockout Cup Final.

Friday, 9 August 2013 11:33 AM

By John Kyrou (Photo by Cindy Nitsos)

South Melbourne FC hosts Hume City at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday afternoon in what is simply a must-win game for the home side. With six rounds of the 2013 Victorian Premier League season remaining and with South currently two points behind fifth-placed Green Gully on the League table, three points are crucial on Sunday.

South goes into the match having played out a frustrating 1-1 draw away against second-bottom Richmond last Friday night. Luke Hopper scored his first goal for the Club just after the half-hour but Tom Cahill leveled in the second half to earn the home side a point. Andy Vlahos and Dimi Hatzimouratis departed the Club during the week but Coach Chris Taylor still has plenty of players to choose from. Peter Gavalas and Chris Maynard are fighting for the goalkeeping spot whilst the back four of Brad Norton, Bryan Bran, Shaun Kelly and Tim Mala looks settled, however Jonathon Munez and James Karvelis are more than capable of filling in as well. Iqi Jawadi came off the bench against Richmond and may return to the starting eleven on Sunday although Taylor can always rely on Fernando De Moraes to step into the side as well. If Rixon overcomes his injury he will most likely start against Hume as the centre-forward. Should he not be available, Taylor may opt to play Tyson Holmes in a more attacking role up front alongside Hopper like he did against Richmond .

Hume goes into the match having lost 0-1 at home to Dandenong Thunder last Sunday. Despite this loss, Lou Acevski’s side sit comfortably in fourth place on the League table, four points ahead of fifth-placed Green Gully and six points ahead of seventh-placed South. Hume are level on 28 points with Bentleigh Greens (second place) and Melbourne Knights (third place), meaning that a win on Sunday could see it end the round in second place on the ladder. In contrast, a loss could see Hume’s lead over South reduced to just three points with five games to go in the season. Hume will go into the match confident, having defeated South 3-2 at Broadmeadows Valley Park earlier this season on Sunday 19 May. Hume raced to a 2-0 lead thanks to two goals from Turhan Sumbul (25’) and Atilla Ofli (28’); however a penalty in first-half injury time from Hatzimouratis and then a header from Kelly leveled the scores just before the hour mark before substitute Sean Canham won the game for Hume with nine minutes remaining.

In the corresponding fixture played at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday 5 August 2012, Rhodri Payne’s cross from the left was flicked home by Steve Burton in the opening minute of the second half and then minutes later De Moraes put Vlahos through to score one of the individual goals of the season. Nick Hegarty scored a consolation goal for Hume after 71 minutes as South triumphed 2-1. Taylor will be more than happy with a similar result on Sunday.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 3pm at Lakeside Stadium.

Last time we met

Monday, 5 August 2013 4:22 PM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC endured a disappointing 1-1 draw against the Richmond Eagles last Friday night in a game that Chris Taylor’s side was desperate to win. Despite taking a first half lead through Luke Hopper, South could not stop Tom Cahill from leveling the scores in the second half and must feel that it was more of a case of two points dropped than one point gained.

South went into the game on the back of a superb 6-2 win against Dandenong Thunder the previous weekend, whilst Richmond were also confident following a hard-fought 1-1 draw against VPL leader Northcote City. South needed a win to stay in touch with the top five whilst Richmond needed three points to try and get out of the relegation zone.

The away side opened the scoring just after the half hour when Hopper superbly controlled Bryan Bran’s long ball before rounding goalkeeper Aaron Romein and putting the ball into the empty net. It was Hopper’s first goal for South since transferring from Dandenong Thunder three weeks ago. Richmond could have leveled the scores only minutes later but for Chris Maynard making a sharp block from Josh Groenewald’s shot after he was put through one-on-one.

South should have iced the game early in the second half but Trent Rixon’s header smashed into the crossbar and Bran’s follow-up shot was blocked by the Richmond defence. Rixon suffered an injury and had to be substituted five minutes later as South lost its target man up front. Former South man Kliment Taseski then hit a fierce shot that Maynard could only parry into the path of Cahill, who had no problems putting the ball into the net for the equalising goal.

Hopper had been solid all game but missed the chance to score the winning goal when his one-on-one shot was hit straight at Romein when a shot either side of the goalkeeper surely would resulted in a goal. At the other end, Maynard stepped up to make an outstanding injury-time save that would have won the three points for Richmond . In the end, a draw was not a favourable result for a South side that would have ended the round in fifth spot had it defeated Richmond .

Chris Taylor agreed that it was a case of two points dropped than one point gained, adding that “we did more than enough to seal the win…we need to cut out mistakes at the back.”

It was even more disappointing in the Under-21s as Richmond took a 4-0 first half lead before eventually defeating South 4-1. Baggio Yousif was again the goal scorer, delightfully chipping the goalkeeper for a consolation goal in second half injury time.

South faces a must-win game against Hume City at Lakeside Stadium this Sunday 11 August. Kick-off is at 3pm.

FINAL SCORE: RICHMOND EAGLES 1-1 SOUTH MELBOURNE (HT: 0-1)

Goal Scorers:
0-1: Luke Hopper (33′)
1-1: Tom Cahill (65′)

Key Stats (provided by Steven Orchard):
Shots: Richmond (11) – South Melbourne (17)
Shots on Target: Richmond (7) – South Melbourne (5)
Shots off Target: Richmond (4) – South Melbourne (12)
Balls into Area: Richmond (19) – South Melbourne (48)
Clearances: Richmond (24) – South Melbourne (11)

Richmond Eagles:
Aaron ROMEIN (GK), Petar FRANJIC, Gareth WHELAN, Sam SHEPHERD (Nicholas KROUSORATIS 86’), Ari RITZ, Kliment TASESKI, Mate ETEROVIC, Tim PURCELL, Josh GROENEWALD (Hamlet ARMENIAN 80’), Tom CAHILL, Geoff ANDREW

South Melbourne FC:
21. Chris MAYNARD (GK), 2. Tim MALA, 4. Bryan BRAN, 5. Nick EPIFANO (12. Rhys MEREDITH 78′), 7. Luke HOPPER, 9. Trent RIXON (13. Iqi JAWADI 52′), 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON (C), 16. Alan KEARNEY , 17. Nick SOOLSMA, 19. Shaun KELLY

SMFC Man of the Match: Nick Soolsma
Venue: Kevin Bartlett Reserve
Date: Friday 2 August 2013

Friday, 2 August 2013 9:27 AM

By John Kyrou (Photo by Cindy Nitsos)

South Melbourne FC travels to Kevin Bartlett Reserve on Friday night to play Richmond in what is shaping as a vital game. A win against Richmond together with a few other favourable results going its way may see South end the round in fifth spot.

Richmond is currently in the relegation zone in second-last place and is seven points behind third-last Pascoe Vale albeit with a game in hand. Winning its game in hand plus a victory over South on Friday could elevate Richmond to just a point behind Pascoe Vale with six matches remaining in the season. They will be further encouraged by the excellent 1-1 draw achieved against Victorian Premier League leaders Northcote City at John Cain Memorial Park last Sunday. Northcote opened the scoring before Hamlet Armenian leveled the scores late in the second half to earn a point for Richmond. Despite its lowly position on the table, Grant Brebner has had his side playing some decent football but for little or no reward on the points tally in 2013.

South will also go into Friday’s game confident following the 6-2 thrashing of Dandenong Thunder at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday. Doubles from Nick Epifano and Trent Rixon, plus further goals from Bryan Bran and Captain Brad Norton ensured South’s first VPL win since Sunday 26 May. With such a commanding second half against one of the better VPL sides in the Thunder, South coach Chris Taylor will be expecting his side to play the same way on Friday night. With Shaun Kelly having returned to centre-half last week after a hamstring injury and with Luke Hopper making a solid debut against his old club last week (he was involved in two assists), plus several experienced players on the bench such as Fernando De Moraes and Andy Vlahos, there are plenty of options for Taylor to use against Richmond. Goalkeeper Peter Gavalas is also available after serving his one-match suspension against Dandenong and will face competition from youngster Chris Maynard who replaced him in goal last weekend and was quite solid.

When the two sides met earlier in the season on Sunday 12 May at Lakeside Stadium, South came from 0-2 down to defeat Richmond 3-2 thanks to second-half goals from Tyson Holmes (48’, 69’) and Rhys Meredith (73’). In the corresponding fixture played at Kevin Bartlett Reserve last season on Friday 20 April 2012, a first half goal by Trent Rixon gave South a 1-1 draw against a spirited Richmond side that battled for an hour with only 10 men after Michael Ferrante was sent off and then with 9 men when Liam Cannell also saw red in the 88th minute.

Friday’s match kicks off at Kevin Bartlett Reserve at 8:30pm.

Last time we met