Category: News

Friday, 24 May 2013 9:14 AM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC hosts the Oakleigh Cannons at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening in what is a must-win game for the Club.

Peter Tsolakis’ men go into the game having suffered a 3-2 defeat against Hume City at Broadmeadows Valley Park last Sunday afternoon. Two quick goals from Turhan Sumbul and Atilla Ofli gave Hume an early 2-0 lead in the first half, however a first half injury time penalty by Dimi Hatzimouratis and a powerful header by centre-half Shaun Kelly on the hour mark drew South level, before substitute Sean Canham gave Hume the three points with a goal nine minutes from time. It was South’s second away defeat in a row. Oakleigh Cannons also head into Sunday’s match on the back of a defeat, having lost 0-1 against Dandenong Thunder at Jack Edwards Reserve last Friday night.

A major positive for South last week was the return of centre-forward Trent Rixon, who managed to play out the full game and win the penalty that got South back into the contest. Rixon had not played for the Club since coming on as a substitute in the final game of last season against Heidelberg United on Sunday 16 September 2012. Right-back Tom Matthews also appeared in the Senior side for the first time since that Heidelberg match, coming on as a substitute after 82 minutes last Sunday. South is sorely missing the services of Alan Kearney, who has not played since picking up an injury against Southern Stars on 13 April but there is a chance that he will play on Sunday. Dimi Tsiaras copped a few nasty challenges against Hume but is expected to be available for the Oakleigh match on Sunday, as will Renco Van Eeken, who came off the bench against Hume having pulled up sore from the Richmond game on 12 May.

Sunday evening’s match gives South an excellent opportunity to win its second home match in the Victorian Premier League this season as Oakleigh are currently struggling in ninth spot on the ladder. However new coach Miron Bleiberg has plenty of players capable of defeating South, with the likes of Lewis Italiano in goal as well as former South players Ricky Diaco, Goran Zoric and Jesse Krncevic. Italiano in particular has been outstanding since returning to the Victorian Premier League and will prove very difficult to get past on Sunday. In the 17 matches that the two sides have played against each other in the Victorian Premier League, South has won eight, Oakleigh has won six and there have been three draws. In the corresponding fixture at Lakeside Stadium last season on Sunday 8 July 2012, a superb Glen Trifiro free kick (13’) and a Tsiaras back post tap-in from Trifiro’s corner (62’) gave South a two goal lead before Diaco’s late free kick (89’) gave the home side a brief scare before it held on to deservedly win 2-1.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 5PM at Lakeside Stadium. Memberships and merchandise will be available for collection and purchase.

Last time we met

Monday, 20 May 2013 4:51 PM

By John Kyrou (Photo courtesy of Breathing Football)

Hume City defeated South Melbourne FC 3-2 at Broadmeadows Valley Park on Sunday in what was ultimately disappointing afternoon outing for the Club. First half goals by Turhan Sumbul and Atilla Ofli were cancelled out by a Dimi Hatzimouratis penalty and a Shaun Kelly header. However, the home side eventually secured the three points thanks to a winning goal from Sean Canham nine minutes from time. The result means that South has lost its last two away matches in the Victorian Premier League.

South travelled to Broadmeadows Valley Park in winning form, having come from 0-2 down to defeat the Richmond Eagles 3-2 at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday evening. In contrast, Hume entered the contest having lost their previous two Victorian Premier League matches by a combined total of eight goals; losing 1-4 at home against Bentleigh on 28 April and then losing 4-0 away against Dandenong Thunder on 11 May. Their record read two wins from five Victorian Premier League matches in contrast to South’s four wins from five, including three away wins.

Lou Acevski’s side took control of the match on the scoreboard with two quick goals in the first half. In the 25th minute, a long throw-in from the left side by Jarryd Barnes caught the South defence napping and Sumbul took advantage by heading the ball past Peter Gavalas’ near post. The home side then doubled its advantage only three minutes later, when Ofli smashed the ball into the back of the net following a scramble in the penalty area after Gavalas initially saved a shot. For the second week in a row, South was trailing by two goals and needed a quick response to get back into the match. That moment arrived in first half injury time when Trent Rixon – making his first Senior appearance in 2013 – was bundled over in the area by Naum Sekulovski and Hatzimouratis coolly dispatched the resulting spot kick.

The away side took control of proceedings in the second half as it searched for an equalising goal. South eventually equalised just before the hour mark, when Kelly rose highest to head home Marinos Gasparis’ corner from the right side. With half an hour to go and with all the momentum, South looked like they were going to pull off yet another come-from-behind victory. Andy Vlahos and Renco Van Eeken – who had pulled up sore from the Richmond match – were introduced to the match as South added more experienced firepower up front in search of a winning goal. However, Hume had other ideas and was proving to be dangerous on the counter-attack. The home side also came in with some bruising challenges on the South players, including one that forced Dimi Tsiaras to hobble off and be replaced by Tom Matthews.

With nine minutes of normal time remaining, a fast break forward by Hume caught the South players off-guard. Gavalas pulled down Sumbul in a challenge and may have conceded a penalty but the substitute Canham was on hand to score anyway to give the three points to the home side. With the match deep into injury time, Alan Mulcahy pulled down Tyson Holmes and received his marching orders after picking up a second yellow card. Hume managed to hold on though and the full-time whistle moments later confirmed that it had broken its two match losing streak in the Victorian Premier League.

There was more disappointment in the Under-21s this weekend, as Hume came from 0-1 down to defeat South 2-1. Andrew Cartanos scored South’s goal with a free kick.

South needs to pick itself up next week as it faces an out-of-sorts Oakleigh Cannons at Lakeside Stadium. Kick-off is at 5PM next Sunday 26 May.

FINAL SCORE: HUME CITY 3-2 SOUTH MELBOURNE (HT: 2-1)

Goal Scorers:
1-0: Turhan Sumbul (25′)
2-0: Atilla Ofli (28′)
2-1: Dimi Hatzimouratis (45+1′ pk)
2-2: Shaun Kelly (58′)
3-2: Sean Canham (81′)

Hume City :
1. Chris OLDFIELD, 4. Isyan ERDOGAN (2. Shaun ROMEIN 69’), 6. Alan MULCAHY, 7. Atilla OFLI (13. Onder SIMSEK 50’), 8. Steven PACE, 10. Nick HEGARTY, 12. Jarryd BARNES (9. Sean CANHAM 80’), 16. Naum SEKULOVSKI, 18. Ersin KAYA, 21. Turhan SUMBUL, 28. Craig SIVES

South Melbourne FC:
1. Peter GAVALAS (GK), 6. Dimi TSIARAS (2. Tom MATTHEWS 82′), 7. Joe KEENAN (14. Andy VLAHOS 73′), 9. Trent RIXON, 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON, 12. Rhys MEREDITH (23. Renco VAN EEKEN 75′), 13. Luke BYLES (C), 15. Dimi HATZIMOURATIS, 18. Marinos GASPARIS, 19. Shaun KELLY

SMFC Man of the Match: Rhys Meredith
Venue: Broadmeadows Valley Park
Date: Sunday 19 May 2013

Friday, 17 May 2013 10:25 AM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC is back on the road this weekend, as Peter Tsolakis’ side travel to Broadmeadows Valley Park to play Hume City. The match is South’s fifth away match in the opening six rounds of the Victorian Premier League season, with the side having already played at Green Gully, Southern Stars, Bentleigh and Dandenong. A win on Sunday would give South its fifth win from six Victorian Premier League matches.

South Melbourne goes into the match on the back of a thrilling 3-2 victory against Richmond at Lakeside Stadium last Sunday evening, with South winning despite going behind 0-2 early in the second half. A double from Tyson Holmes – including a wonder overhead kick – and a goal from Rhys Meredith secured all three points for South in its first home Victorian Premier League match in 2013. The goals were both Holmes and Meredith’s first for the Club, with the Queenslanders having moved to Melbourne over the summer.

Hume City goes into Sunday’s match having lost their last two Victorian Premier League matches and having been in inconsistent form throughout 2013. Lou Acevski’s side has a record of two wins and three losses from its opening five matches this season and desperately needs a win on Sunday, having lost their last two matches 1-4 at home against Bentleigh on 28 April and 4-0 away against Dandenong Thunder on 11 May. One thing that Hume can use as a positive going into Sunday’s game is that they defeated South 5-0 the last time the two sides played each other at Broadmeadows Valley Park. On that day (Sunday 17 April 2011), Jesse Krncevic and Ljubo Milicevic were both sent off in the first half and Carl Recchia badly rolled his ankle as South could do nothing to stop a rampant Hume scoring five goals. Former South played Steven Weir scored twice that day before joining South in the transfer window later on that season.

Alan Kearney trained during the week but is still 50-50 about selection this weekend. Trent Rixon and Tom Matthews may still be given game time in the Under-21s to get back to match fitness or could be included in the Senior squad. Hume City used Epping Stadium as their home ground in 2012 and in the corresponding fixture there last season (Friday 11 May 2012), a goal from former Captain Steven O’Dor after 87 minutes won the three points for South. Coach Tsolakis will gladly take the same result on Sunday afternoon.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 3PM at Broadmeadows Valley Park .

Last time we met

Friday, 17 May 2013 9:52 AM

Last Friday night saw South Melbourne FC hold its annual fundraising event, 2013 Player Auction Night at Beachcomber at the St Kilda Baths, which provided guests with picturesque views over Port Philip Bay with close to 200 guests in attendance. The event proved to be extremely successful with the frenzied bidding raising a significant sum of money. In fact, the player auction event was one of the most successful since the Club’s return to the Victorian Premier League.

There were a number of dignitaries and past players in attendance including Hall of Fame members such as Takis Mantarakis, Douggie Brown, Ulysses Kokkinos, and Michael Mandalis.

Club President Leo Athanasakis welcomed the guests and thanked the Principal Partners for their continued support, and invited everyone to get behind and support the Club. In addition, Mr Athanasakis also highlighted some of the Club’s great achievements over the past 12 months, and touched on the Club’s recent bid for the A League licence of the Melbourne Heart.

The MC for the evening was SBS journalist David Basheer. David spoke with both Head Coach Peter Tsolakis and Senior Technical Director Mehmet Durakovic and covered their playing careers with the Club and current challenges in their roles.

The main purpose of the event was a fundraising theme. The auctioneer for the evening, George Metax from Barry Plant Preston took over and sought to secure the highest bid for each player.

South Melbourne would particularly like to thank Steve and Jim Paraskevas, and Neil Stacey from Beachcomber for their tremendous support and warm hospitality in assisting the Club to hold this successful event. Furthermore, the Club would like to thank its corporate partners who contributed to the fundraising activities on the night, and all guests who were in attendance.

Click here to view a selection of photos of the event.

The following corporate partners which were successful in the auction are listed below:

Peter Gavalas – Holmesglen TAFE
Seb Mattei – Office Fix
Tom Matthews – Veale Partners
Rhodri Payne – Holmesglen TAFE
Matko Budimir – AIS Insurance
Phil Petreski – Blue Thunder Security
Dimitri Tsiaris – Holmesglen TAFE
Joe Keenan – GPZ Legal
Tyson Holmes – Star21
Dimitri Hatzimouratis – Moray Agnew
Trent Rixon – Mirabella Lighting
Rhys Meredith – Tom Kalas
Brad Norton – Office Fix
Luke Byles – K&A Accountants
Fernando De Moraes – Holmesglen TAFE
Marinos Gasparis – Star21
Andy Vlahos – Global Gypsum
Alan Kearney – Global Gypsum
Carl Recchia – Dandanis & Associates
Shaun Kelly – MW Group
Renco Van Eeken – George Leondis
Andrew Cartanos – Commercial & General
James Karvelis – Commercial & General
Baggio Yousif – Blue Thunder Security
Anthony Giannopoulos – Office Fix
Peter Tsolakis and Robert Graboski – Holmesglen TAFE
Mehmet Durakovic – Mirabella Lighting

Thursday, 16 May 2013 10:04 AM

By George Kouroumalis

For many who have attended any our opening five matches of the season, they would have noticed a new face on the bench of the Under 21 side.

That man was Felipe Endres, a native of Brazil and an accomplished developer of junior footballers throughout Brazil and Portugal, including Juventude, Internacional and Boavista, as well as working closely with Ronaldinho in recent times.

Felipe arrived in the country earlier in 2013 and has since taken charge of the Under 21 Group, along with former Under 21 Championship winning coach Gus Caminos. Caminos returns to Lakeside primarily to control the Under 18 purple side, however is also part of the Under 21 squad’s off field staff after a successful assistant coaching stint with Dandenong in 2012.

Speaking exclusively to smfc.com.au, Felipe could not contain his excitement with working along side Gus Caminos and Marcelo Koslowsky in nurturing the future stars of tomorrow.

“In only a few months with the club i have already enjoyed working with many fantastic coaches and football minds that are involved with South Melbourne FC. It is so good to see a club with a fantastic history focus on junior development and to try and create future stars”, claimed Felipe.

When asked about his ambitions for 2013, Felipe claimed “Our focus primarily is to develop footballers as best as possible, in order to see them one day progress to the South Melbourne FC Senior Team. Results aren’t as important, however we feel as if we do the right thing developing footballers from the outset that results should take care of themselves”.

In 2013, South Melbourne FC have quite a few additions to the Senior Squad from those who have played in the Under 21’s previously. This includes Andrew Cartanos, James Karvelis, Phil Petreski, Matko Budimir, Anthony Giannopoulos and Baggio Yousif.

We wish Felipe all the best for 2013 and hope to see his Under 21 side continue to develop throughout the year.

Name: Felipe Endres
DOB: August 8, 1981
Nationality: Brazilian

Coaching CV:
2001-2004:
SC Internacional Coach

2006-2007:
FC Tirsense – Under 17 Coach

2007-2008:
Boavista FC – Under 17 Assistant Coach

2008-2009:
Porto Alegre FC – Senior Assistant Coach
(Won Campeonato Gaúcho Second Division-2nd Division in Brazilian State Rio Grande do Sul)

2009-2011:
Porto Alegre FC – Under 20 Coach

2012:
SER Caixas do Sul – Under 20 Coach

2012:
EC Juventude – Under 17 Coach

2013:
South Melbourne FC – Under 21 Coach

Wednesday, 15 May 2013 9:20 AM

South Melbourne FC is delighted to announce that Principal Partner AIS Insurance have been admitted as the sole Australian Insurance Broker in the Euribron network.

Brendon Davis, founder of AIS Insurance, has been a generous financial contributor to South Melbourne FC through event and signage sponsorship, purchasing players at player auctions, and general assistance over the years. Brendon commenced sponsoring South Melbourne FC in 1995/96, and was also awarded the Sam Papasavas Award for his contribution to the Club in 2006.

Euribron are a European based network comprising the leading Insurance Broker in each country structured so the member firms can provide superior insurance service to companies operating in two or more countries.

The Euribron membership also provides AIS with access to insurance markets internationally that other insurance brokers can’t secure; helping to ensure the AIS clients have both the best possible premiums and depth of cover secured from the global insurance market.

AIS Director Brendon Davis said “AIS are delighted to have been accepted as Euribron’s sole Australian representative after an exhaustive search. It’s testimony to the high technical and service standards we already operated to. Our clients will benefit from the global involvement including our access to global service, access to specialist insurance companies not readily available and access to technical expertise where ever it is in the world”.

“AIS are really honoured to have been selected as Euribron’s Australian member, companies can trust us to manage their insurance needs knowing they’ll get the best of the local service combined with the global knowledge” Brendon explained.

Speaking to smfc.com.au, SMFC President Leo Athanasakis said “on behalf of everyone at South Melbourne, I would like to congratulate Brendon and his team on this fantastic achievement, and is testament to the high quality of service and product knowledge that AIS Insurance is well known for”.

Founded in Europe in 1994 Euribron’s ethos is to provide ‘the highest standard of local and personal service with seamless international capability’.

With operations in over 60 countries Euribron service over 165,000 corporate clients, have 4,800 staff handling €3,800,000,000 in premiums. In Athens, Euribron are represented by Comergon S.A. who already working with AIS on various insurances. The global head office is located in Belgium.

South Melbourne FC congratulates Brendon Davis and his team at AIS Insurance on this marvellous achievement.

Tuesday, 14 May 2013 3:16 PM

South Melbourne FC wishes to extend its deepest condolences to the Toumbourou family on the passing of Antonis Toumbourou last week.

Mr Toumbourou was a prominent and active member in both the Greek and Cypriot communities. Mr Toumbourou, 85, left behind seven children and 14 grandchildren.

Mr Toumbourou, together with his then business partner, former SMFC President Mr Chris Christopher, provided substantial and very generous financial support to the Club in 2004, assisting it to survive the disbandment of the National Soccer League. His generosity and passionate support will always be fondly remembered and greatly appreciated by the Club and its supporters.

Monday, 13 May 2013 3:21 PM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC came from behind to defeat Richmond 3-2 in a Mother’s Day classic at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday evening. Goals from former South player Kliment Taseski and then Josh Groenewald looked to have given the Eagles the three points, however Tyson Holmes scored a double before Rhys Meredith won the contest for the home side.

South came into the match having won three of its four away games in the opening month of the 2013 Victorian Premier League season, though the last match that it played in the League was the 3-0 loss against Dandenong Thunder. Richmond ’s start to the season was a complete contrast to South’s, with the Eagles having lost all four of their opening matches in the Victorian Premier League, with the most recent being a 2-7 loss against Northcote City. This led to the resignation of former coach Jean-Marc Imbert and the arrival of new coach Grant Brebner. With new management at the helm at Kevin Bartlett Reserve, South coach Peter Tsolakis warned his players not to take the bottom-placed side lightly.

Richmond started brightly and could have opened the scoring in the opening minute of the match but for a rushed finish that was blasted over Peter Gavalas’ near post. From that moment, South enjoyed possession and plenty of positive moves forward but could not break down the Eagles defence. The home side worked hard, however, it could not get past Rani Dowisha despite having a large amount of corners and set pieces. South controlled the match but often gave the ball away sloppily to a Richmond side keen on capitalising on those mistakes. The away side finally did so in first half injury time when Taseski was put through and he chipped the advancing Gavalas to give the Eagles the lead at halftime.

Richmond doubled their advantage two minutes after the halftime break when former South man Hamlet Armenian’s low cross from the right was coolly finished by Groenewald. South were stunned but responded straight away a minute later when Holmes scored his first goal for the Club with a spectacular overhead kick to halve the deficit. The home fans found their voice again as South pressed forward for a leveling goal. It arrived with just over twenty minutes to go when Bradley Norton’s cross from the left side was headed home by Holmes for his second goal of the evening.

Tsolakis brought on Andy Vlahos following the equalising goal and it was the experienced veteran that provided the assist for the winning goal only four minutes after his introduction. Vlahos was put through on goal from a quick throw-in on the left side but his resulting shot was blocked well by Dowisha. Unfortunately for the Richmond custodian, his block could only be parried to the back post where a waiting Meredith was on hand to score the winning goal for the home side. South’s win lifts the Club into second place on the Victorian Premier League table, only three points behind leaders Northcote City .

The Under-21s also enjoyed success in their game, as goals from Trent Rixon and Anthony Giannopoulos gave South a 2-0 victory.

South is on the road again next Sunday afternoon when it travels to Broadmeadows Valley Park to play Hume City . Kick-off is at 3PM next Sunday 19 May.

FINAL SCORE: SOUTH MELBOURNE 3-2 RICHMOND EAGLES (HT: 0-1)

Goal Scorers:
0-1: Kliment Taseski (45+2′)
0-2: Josh Groenewald (47′)
1-2: Tyson Holmes (48′)
2-2: Tyson Holmes (69′)
3-2: Rhys Meredith (73′)

South Melbourne FC:
1. Peter GAVALAS (GK), 6. Dimi TSIARAS, 7. Joe KEENAN (14. Andy VLAHOS 70′), 10. Tyson HOLMES, 11. Brad NORTON, 12. Rhys MEREDITH, 13. Luke BYLES (C), 15. Dimi HATZIMOURATIS, 18. Marinos GASPARIS (8. Fernando DE MORAES 80′), 19. Shaun KELLY, 23. Renco VAN EEKEN

Richmond Eagles:
Rani DOWISHA, Erhan KARAHAN, Peter FRANJIC, Haris VRBOVAC (Sam SHEPPARD 33′), Hamlet ARMENIAN, Kliment TASESKI (Samuel VALDEVEISO 77′), Gideon SWEET (Nicholas KROUSORATIS 60′), Ariel RITZ, Timmy PURCEL, Sam GALLAGHER, Josh GROENEWALD

SMFC Man of the Match: Tyson Holmes
Venue: Lakeside Stadium
Date: Sunday 12 May 2013

Friday, 10 May 2013 10:15 AM

By John Kyrou

South Melbourne FC hosts Richmond at Lakeside Stadium on Sunday afternoon in what is the Club’s first home game in 2013.

The home side goes into the match after a week off from playing commitments due to Oakleigh Cannon’s forfeit of their State Knockout Cup fixture. Previous to that match, South lost 3-0 away against Dandenong Thunder on Saturday 27 April, which was its first loss in the 2013 Victorian Premier League season following three consecutive away victories in the opening three rounds. Richmond goes into the fixture having lost all four matches in the Victorian Premier League, with the last being a catastrophic 2-7 home loss against Northcote City on Friday 26 April. That loss led to the resignation of coach Jean-Marc Imbert and the arrival of new coach Grant Brebner.

South coach Peter Tsolakis is expecting Richmond will put up a significantly better fight against his side on Sunday and has warned his team not to be complacent against the League’s bottom side. Tom Matthews and Trent Rixon both trained with the senior side during the week and will be available for selection. Alan Kearney will still be missing for another week as he recovers from his injury.

Both sides have enjoyed reasonable success against each other – in 14 Victorian Premier League meetings, South has won 7, Richmond have won 5 and there have been two draws. In the corresponding fixture last season on Friday 20 July 2012, Richmond defeated South 3-1 at Lakeside Stadium in controversial circumstances. Shaun Kelly was sent off on debut and Trent Rixon, a substitute on 74 minutes, scored South’s goal with ten minutes to go before also being sent off.

Sunday’s match kicks off at 5PM at Lakeside Stadium. Memberships and merchandise will also be available to be purchased and collected.

SMFC TV – Last time we met

Thursday, 9 May 2013 1:30 PM

South Melbourne FC wishes to advise that Principal Partner Beachcomber Cafe will be the official post match venue for all South home matches.

At the completion of each home match, head down to Beachcomber Cafe and mingle with players and coaching staff.

Located at the St Kilda Sea Baths, Beachcomber goes beyond expectations of a casual cafe experience. Spectacular beach side views, a sprawling outdoor dining area and a gourmet menu mean this restaurant showcases St Kilda’s food culture at its best. Delicious meals are served with a touch of the Mediterranean and set in the perfect location with its uninterrupted view of Port Phillip Bay. In addition, Beachcomber Cafe is open from morning until late in the evening, and is perfect for a morning pit stop, a lazy afternoon or to watch the sun set over the water.

Beachcomber Cafe
10-18 Jacka Boulevard
St Kilda
St Kilda Baths