Category: News

Sunday, 7 May 2006 3:29 AM

By Michael Tsoukalis

South Melbourne have missed an opportunity to close in on the top three after surrendering a 0-1 lead to eventually leave Monterey Reserve with a 1-1 draw.

Captain Vaughn Coveny had given the visitors the lead in the 50th minute only for Frankston to equalize 10 minutes later.

With Dino Djulbic suspended and both Vasilios Natsioulas and Jonas Salley failing to recover from injury, South were down to a threadbare squad.

Coach John Anastasiadis sent out the following line-up. Veteran Custodian Dean Anastasiadis lined up in goal with a 3-man central defensive pairing consisting of youngsters James Stefanou and Sammy DeVito as well as Tansel Baser.

In wingback roles youngster Nick Curtis got his first senior start on the right with George Tzirtis playing on the left.

In the centre of the park, Antonio Naglieri played in the defensive midfield role with Fernando Moraes and Scot MacNicol given more license to push forward. Up front, Captain Vaughn Coveny partnered Andreas Oliveira.

The Pines came out firing no doubt eager to prove a point against South and former players Naglieri and Oliveira who along with Djulbic recently migrated to the Albert Park-based club after only 5 games with the Pines.

In the opening minutes Frankston saw a chipped effort from just outside the South box hit the crossbar with Anastasiadis caught slightly off his line. It was an early warning for South who with an unfamiliar line-up took some time to settle in.

South gradually started to get on top, beginning to dominate possession and knocking the ball around intelligently.

Nineteen minutes in and South had a great chance to take the lead after Moraes had intercepted a ball down the left wing. The Brazilian narrowed in towards goal and made the Frankston keeper work, producing a decent angled drive.

Ten minutes later and burly Frankston forward Nick Waite miscued a half-chance from near the edge of the South box, pulling his shot wide of Anastasiadis’s left upright.

South then ended the half with two well worked chances. The first arrived after a quality cross from the right by MacNicol saw Coveny rise and produce a looping header that was destined for the top right corner. The Frankston keeper managed to scramble and get a palm onto the ball, deflecting it onto the crossbar with the ball eventually being cleared.

Then right on the stroke of half time Naglieri received a square ball from Moraes 25 or so yards out. The former Perth SC man attempted a curling effort with his right foot that unfortunately for South sailed narrowly wide with the Frankston keeper again scrambling for position.

South stepped up the tempo in the 2nd half wanting to get an early goal that would send them on their way to the much sought after 3 points.

Fourty-seven minutes in and neat link-up play between Oliveira and Moraes saw the latter produce a quality low strike from 25 yards that forced the Frankston custodian into a fingertip save around the right upright.

South deservedly took the lead on 50 minutes after a long ball over the top exposed the Frankston defence who failed to clear the ball with South skipper Coveny reading the play and getting his foot to the ball first, sending his effort from 5 or so yards out in off the left hand post.

With South seemingly in the box seat the game was turned on its head after goal-scorer Coveny was sent off for a second cautionable offence after 57 minutes. The South Captain was deemed to have deliberately handled the ball when looking to break away on a counter-attacking play down the right wing. The decision appeared harsh as whilst a handball, there was definitely a question mark as to whether or not the Kiwi international had intentionally handled the ball.

Frankston wasted no time in capitalizing on their numerical advantage after a set piece from the right in the 60th minute saw a clever header into the South box leave the visitors defence exposed. A desperate lunge by Tansel Baser saw the ball deflect and fall perfectly to a Frankston player, who from 6 yards out and faced with an empty net made no mistake.

South then received a lifeline in the 69th minute when Frankston were also reduced to 10 men. The referee’s assistant had flagged for a Frankston offside with the offending player ignoring the whistle and taking a strike on goal. The referee didn’t hesitate to hand the player his 2nd caution and hence eliminate the numerical advantage the Pines had enjoyed for 20 minutes.

South now sensed a genuine opportunity to snatch the three points and pushed hard for a winner. MacNicol almost created a glorious chance when his quality 76th minute cross from the right just eluded a lunging Oliveira at full stretch, who if he had managed to make slight contact would have most probably scored.

The game ended with South wasting two golden opportunities during stoppage-time. The first was squandered by Brazilian Moraes after he was superbly played in down the right flank, the Brazilian with not a defender in sight narrowed in towards goal and appeared to take his chance quite casually, attempting to fool the keeper into believing that he intended and angle drive, yet only managing to find the side netting – at the near post – with the goal at his mercy.

Then with practically the last kick of the game, ex-Frankston striker Oliveira found destiny staring at him directly in the face. A quality low cutback from the right found the diminutive South forward all alone 6 yards out. For some reason Oliveira chose to stop the ball, looking both left and right and hence allowing the Frankston defence to close in and block his eventual drive when a quick and sharp effort towards goal was required.

Saturday, 6 May 2006 2:41 AM

By Michael Tsoukalis

South Melbourne travel to Monterey Reserve looking to build on the momentum established in last week’s triumphant 4-1 win against Bulleen.

With Frankston a game outside the top 6 and South in 6th position, the game serves as an important fixture which for South could lead to consolidating their finals status whilst a win for the Pines would see them apply heavy pressure for a spot in the six.

The game also serves as somewhat of a return for former Frankston players Andreas Oliveira and Antonio Naglieri who along with the suspended Dino Djulbic began the season with the Pines with all three players relocating to Bob Jane Stadium after only 5 games of the current Vodafone Cup campaign.

Naglieri and Oliveira can no doubt expect an icy greeting from the Pines faithful but with both players, especially Oliveira settling in well at South, the Pines will have to be cautious with their approach towards the pair.

Furthermore, with Dino Djulbic suspended after being sent off against Bulleen and Con Blatsis once again succumbing to injury, South find themselves extremely light in defence as courageous left back Rama Tavsancioglu is still serving out a 5 game suspension for his automatic send-off against Richmond.

Thankfully for South, Ivory Coast native Jonas Salley returns from injury and will no doubt take up a defensive role, joining the likes of Tansel Baser and youngsters Sammy DeVito and James Stefanou in forming a somewhat inexperienced defence.

South’s attacking stocks are also bolstered by the return of young winger Vasilios Natsioulas who missed the game against Bulleen after picking up a heavy knock on the leg against Oakleigh.

In the Pines camp, current coach and ex-South player Craig Lewis has departed the club after accepting a transfer to Dubai for work. Lewis will be replaced by Adam Jamieson who will be the Pines third coach of the season once he takes the reigns at the conclusion of Saturday’s match.

Players South must keep a close eye on include ex-South youth player Tas Psonis who is an unpredictable yet highly skilled player who possesses the ability to do something special.

Battering ram forward Nick Waite is also a threat and has proved prolific at Premier League level where his sheer size and aerial ability have seem him score quite consistently. Waite has scored twice this season and will no doubt be looked upon to fire to help ease the departure of Oliveira, who somewhat ironically remains the Pines top scorer this term with 3 goals.

Monday, 1 May 2006 1:10 AM

By Michael Tsoukalis

An Andreas Oliveira hat-trick has inspired a 10-man South Melbourne to a much needed 4-1 triumph against a battling Bulleen outfit.

With Dino Djulbic receiving his marching orders after 50 minutes, South managed to play better football with 10 men as opposed to 11, adding another two goals in this period to kill the game off and send home their loyal faithful happy.

Ivory Coast native Jonas Salley picked up an injury in training during the week and Vasilios Natsioulas succumbed to an injury picked up against Oakleigh meaning that Coach John Anastasiadis was forced to make changes to the starting 11.

Recent midfield acquisition Antonio Naglieri started on the bench with Scot MacNicol being given a starting spot in the centre of the park, in came young defender James Stefanou with the hard-working George Tzirtis also winning back a starting role.

The starting eleven read as follows, Dean Anastasiadis in goal, a flat back three of Con Blatsis, Dino Djulbic and James Stefanou with Sammy Devito and George Tzirtis playing in right and left wingback roles respectively.

The defensive midfield anchor was Tansel Baser with Brazilian Fernando Moraes and Scot MacNicol playing attacking midfield roles. Up front, Captain Vaughn Coveny partnered diminutive new recruit Andreas Oliveira.

South started the game the brighter of the two sides with Moraes testing Bulleen keeper Tomas Kovar early on, making some space for himself and unleashing a 20 yard effort in the 5th minute that Kovar managed to parry.

A minute later, sensing Kovar’s shaky handling due to the wet conditions, Oliveira struck from 20 yards, seeing his shot slip through Kovar’s hands and trickle over the line to give South the early initiative.

Bulleen however struck back soon after when midfielder Steve Martin chested a loose ball invitingly into his path and unleashed a 25 yard daisy-cutter that caught South custodian Anastasiadis by surprise, slamming into the back of the net and squaring the encounter.

Twenty-seven minutes in and South could’ve went ahead after a superb long clearance from Anastasiadis eluded the Bulleen defence with Coveny latching onto the ball but failing to connect with his angled drive, kicking the turf and failing to work Kovar.

Then in the thirty-seventh minute, Bulleen missed a glorious opportunity after ex-Essendon striker Ben Harbison peeled off the South defence superbly, just managing to stay onside and controlling well in the box and with only Anastasiadis to beat from 8 or so yards out and on a slight angle to the right. Fortunately for the home side, Harbinson failed to test the South custodian and blazed over.

South immediately made Bulleen pay for their poor finishing after Coveny broke down the right flank and sent in a measured ball to the back post that saw Oliveira do superbly well to confuse his marker with an intelligent weaving run allowing for the South forward dynamo to loose his man and volley home from 2 yards out in the 38th minute, giving South a vital 2-1 edge before half time.

Sadly for South, colossal defender Con Blatsis broke down again towards the end of the first half with what appeared to be a muscle injury. Blatsis was replaced by Antonio Naglieri who shifted into midfield with Tansel Baser dropping back into defence.

Just before the half time break Harbinson again failed to capitalize on a good opening after a ball from the right was whipped into his feet, 12 or so yards out, Harbinson did well to turn his marker and sent his low 42nd minute drive narrowly past Anastasiadis’s right upright.

During first half injury time Tzirtis did well to work some space down the left for himself, skinning his marker and entering the Bulleen box, Tzirtis’s final left foot effort was decent, but unfortunately for South, slammed in the side netting.

The second half started with a bang with Dino Djulbic receving his marching orders after 50 minutes. A South attack saw the home team cross the ball into the Bulleen box with Djulbic seemingly contesting rightfully for the ball as Kovar came out to claim, however, the referee felt that Dlujbic had followed through and made contact with Kovar, giving the South defender his 2nd yellow of the evening and hence sending him off.

South looked initially nervy with 10 men and nearly conceded in the 55th minute after Anastasiadis missed a ball he came out to glove with the subsequent goal-line scramble eventually being cleared by the South defence.

The home side started to gain confidence with Moraes testing Kovar with a stinging 20 yard drive in the 61st minute that the Bulleen custodian did well to parry to his right and out for a corner.

Up-stepped Oliveira who produced a stunning looping corner with vicious curl, eluding the Bulleen defenders on the goal-line and sailing over Kovar. Initially it appeared the referee had signaled for a foul on the Zebras’ custodian as the Bulleen players were preparing to take a free-kick but the referee then pointed to the centre and started walking towards the kick-off spot, signaling that Oliveira’s goal was indeed valid, capping off his hat-trick and giving the diminutive striker a dream home debut.

Oliveira was soon after substituted and received a well-earnt standing ovation.

South then wrapped up proceedings with a champagne goal. MacNicol had broken well down the right and sent a quality looping ball to the back post. Moraes was waiting to pick up the scraps and when the Bulleen defence didn’t header away convincingly, Moraes controlled the ball and unleashed a stunning 68th minute left-foot volley past Kovar, beating the Bulleen custodian on his near post and sending the Clarendon Corner into party mode.

South then capped off an all-round team display with Anastasiadis pulling off the save of the evening. Bulleen had produced a quality 82nd minute corner from the left that found an unmarked player who from 8 yards out saw his headed effort superbly saved by the quick reflexes – and fingertips – of Anastasiadis who parried over at full stretch.

Thursday, 27 April 2006 7:07 PM

By Michael Tsoukalis

South Melbourne returns to Bob Jane Stadium this Sunday looking to kick-start a stuttering campaign.

John Anastasiadis’s men have been unable to string a run of positive results and hence find themselves just outside the top 6 albeit with a game in hand.

Sunday’s game serves as a “six-pointer” for South as Bulleen are the team directly above them, holding the last spot in the top 6.

Bulleen coach Michael Michalakopoulos is quickly building a solid name for himself amongst the Vodafone Cup coaching circle, having done a good job at Essendon last season, the ex-South Melbourne striker took the coaching reigns from the experienced Peter Ollerton inheriting a side which was nearly relegated last season.

Michalakopoulos has managed to string together a 5-game unbeaten run which has seen the Zebras cling onto an early top-6 birth.

Bulleen’s strength lies in its vastly experienced squad with players like Frank Tramontana, Stelios Drakos and Ross Antoniadis all having played more than 150 games at this level.

Up front, the Zebras possess some decent talent with the newly acquired (from Essendon) Ben Harbison scoring twice so far this term after a productive last season with the Royals. Partnering Harbinson could be ex-A-League player Ricky Diaco who must overcome a slight knock if he is to line-up against South.

Diaco provides and aerial presence and quick feet up-front making him a large void should he not line up. Furthermore, Diaco’s race towards fitness has become more important after leading goal-scorer (3 goals this term) Hamlet Armenian received a red card against Altona and hence will not be able to line up against South.

Youngster and A-League player Billy Celeski may also miss after an injury kept him out of the game against Altona, however, his 17-year old replacement Adam Fedjevic was outstanding in the centre of the park for the Zebras, limiting the absence the Perth Glory midfielder.

Similarly to South the Zebras have conceded more goals than they have scored, with both sides only having found the net on 10 occasions thus far.

South has moved to solve its goal-scoring problems with the diminutive Andreas Oliveira scoring his first goal for the club in last Monday’s 2-1 defeat to Oakleigh.

Oliveira has looked extremely potent and sharp and with the support of veteran striker and club captain Vaughn Coveny, could form an extremely effective partnership for the Lakeside-based club that is bound to cause plenty of problems for the Zebras.

With Con Blatsis returning to first team action against Oakleigh, the challenge for Coach John Anastasiadis is to find the best balance on the park.

Rama Tavsancioglu continues to serve his suspension after receiving a red card against Richmond and with the season-ending injury to Arthur Tsonis, South’s back four takes on a relative inexperienced tone with new recruit Dino Djulbic joining the likes of Tansel Baser, Sammy DeVito and Con Blatsis in a backline that has spent little time together as a defensive unit.

Tuesday, 25 April 2006 11:20 AM

By George Kouroumalis

In front of a healthy crowd at Jack Edwards Reserve, the Oakleigh Cannons managed to do the impossible and snatch a win from cross town rivals South Melbourne.
The boys from Lakeside started in the perfect way with captain Vaughan Coveny playing an inviting ball across the box from the right hand side, which caused mayhem in the Oakleigh area.

Despite the best efforts from the Oakleigh defence and goalkeeper Stuart Webster, the ball fell to Andreas Oliviera who slotted the ball into the back of the open net.
With South in front after only two minutes played in the game, the experienced Oakleigh midfield launched an attack almost immediately to try and bring the sides level.
Much maligned midfielder Con Boutsianis, played a ball to Anthony Pelikan who launched a drive from outside the box, which was well saved by South keeper Dean Anastasiadis.
Only 2 minutes later in the 5th minute a cross by Sam Poutakidis was cleared by the South defence, however only to fall into the path of Bill Damianos.
Damianos, who had spent most of his career as a South Melbourne player, saw Anastasiadis off his line and proceeded to launch a 35 yard volley toward the goal.
To the disbelief of the crowd the ball cleared Anastasiadis and found the back of the net.

The rest of the second half proved a tough and uneventful contest between both clubs with no real clear chance falling to either side.
The second half started where the first left off with both sides playing safe and risk free football for the first 15 minutes.
However in the 61st minute, Oakleigh striker Juan Nilo was played behind the South defence by Poutakidis.
To the relief of the traveling fans the shot was strike directly into the arms of the waiting Anastasiadis.
As Oakleigh continued to press, Boutsianis was then released by Damianos and in true Boutsianis fashion launched a cracking drive from thirty five yards, which dipped and curled just wide of the outstretched Anastasiadis and for that matter the goal itself.
One minute later in the 68th minute the lights failed with an explosion occurring in the nearby area most likely the cause of this.

This delayed the game for some 20 minutes with Oakleigh officials and Police frantically trying to find a power source to supply the lights with the necessary power needed to function to an acceptable level.
Once this was achieved, both teams once again came out tentative with no real chance falling until the 74th minute, where South Melbourne’s Tansel Baser was inches wide from blasting his side into the lead.
In the 77th minute a careless back pass by Coveny gifted former teammate in Damianos with possession in his own half, only for Damianos to be fouled just outside the box by Jonas Salley.
As Pelikan and Boutsianis stood over the ball, the South Melbourne faithful who had watched these two stars of the Victorian Football play week in and week out in the NSL knew that they had to deal with two of the best free kick takers in the league.

True to the above description Pelikan stepped up and sent a perfectly placed free kick into the top corner giving Oakleigh the lead for the first time in the match.
Oakleigh nearly sealed the game in both the 85th and 87th minutes with Anastasiadis making two straight forward saves from former NSL player Esala Masi.
In the 91st minute South Melbourne had a final chance to gain a point from the contest through experienced midfielder Baser, who launched a drive from the left hand side of the box.
The shot unfortunately for Baser and South fans’ was only inches wide of finding the target.
Only moments later referee Perry Mur blew his whistle signaling the end of the contest with the Oakleigh Cannons running out 2-1 victors.

Oakleigh who sit clear on top of the table host Richmond on Friday, while South Melbourne who are placed outside the top six host the Bulleen Zebras at Bob Jane Stadium on Sunday night.

Monday, 10 April 2006 2:12 AM

By George Kouroumalis

South Melbourne overcame a committed Richmond on Sunday in what can only be described as a fiery match that could have been confused with an Essendon – Hawthorn AFL game of the 80’s rather than a game of Vodafone Cup football.

South, with new boys Oliviera, Djulbic and Naglieri came out running, dominating possession in the early stages of the contest.

However to the astonishment of the South faithful, Richmond through energetic striker
Veton Korcarevski managed the first goal of the game in the 16th minute.
Korcarevski took hold of possession just outside the area and launched a low drive that struck the post and found the back of the net.
Immediately from the restart, Andreas Oliviera in his first game for South Melbourne confused the Richmond defence weaving his way into the box, only to be fouled by the Richmond defender winning the penalty for his new club.
Moraes then stepped up and calmly slotted the ball into the back of the net.

With the game evenly poised, an innocuous foul on Tansel Baser threatened to turn the contest into a wrestling match.
South players took offence to the treatment of Baser and responded by telling Richmond player Simon Webster what they thought of his treatment of Baser.

This however lead into an all in brawl, with both sets of players confronting each other over the incident, with pushing and verbal insults being exchanged.
To the outrage of the home crowd, only one player in South fullback Ramazan Tavsancioglu was sent off, with numerous other players given a yellow card.

Leading up to half time with the game in a bit of a quiet period following the incident, Moraes came close to breaking the deadlock with a powerful strike from 20 yards that tested the Richmond keeper.

In the second half both sides came out cautiously with no real chance falling until the 61st minute when Baser and Naglieri combined to set up the Ivory Coast native in Jonas Salley, who launched a amazing drive from 30 yards.

Although the South faithful and Salley himself thought the ball was headed to the top corner, it swirved late and missed the target by a coat of paint.

In response Richmond pushed forward through former Heidelberg player Brendan Beni, who had two clear cut chances on goal in the 68th and 72nd minutes respectively.

The first chance was well held by Dean Anastasiadis in the South goal, however the second caused confusion in the South area with Beni having two cracks at the target only for his shot to strike the cross bar.

This close call sparked South Melbourne who through a well placed shot from new player Naglieri came close to breaking the deadlock in the 77th minute.

However once again the strike was only inches away from finding the back of the net.

In pushing for the winner a deflected pass from Salley lead for an inviting ball to fall between Kevin Nelson and Richmond keeper, who under pressure opted to punch the ball out of the area into the clear.

Unfortunately for the youngster the ball fell to South midfielder MacNicol, who from 30 yards steered a volley into the empty net sending the small but vocal crowd into raptures.

This was the last chance of the game with referee Senko Rasticic blowing for full time moments later.

The much needed win sent South Melbourne into sixth place on the table, but only one point behind fourth placed Heidelberg United with a game in hand, while Richmond were sent to the bottom of the Vodafone Cup Standings.

Both teams have a two week break for Easter before the next round of games.

Friday, 7 April 2006 1:28 AM

By Michael Tsoukalis

South Melbourne returns to Bob Jane Stadium this weekend looking to get their season back on track after three consecutive disappointing results have landed John Anastasiadis’s men outside the top 6 for the first time this season.

Coach Anastasiadis is likely to include new recruits Antonio Naglieri and Andreas Oliveira in the squad with both players keen to make an impression after having a hit-out last week with the Under-21 side.

Conversely, Richmond will be keen to get a positive result as they currently languish in the bottom two but due to the closeness of the Vodafone Cup a win could see Dean Hennessy’s men steer clear of the drop zone.

Richmond hasn’t tasted victory since the opening round of the season, while South’s last triumph was against Preston in round 4.

With both sides out-of-form, returning to Bob Jane Stadium could not have come at a better time for South who will be looking to win convincingly to restore supporter faith as well as build confidence in front of goal, as similarly to last season, the team is consistently carving out decent openings, however, without the expected efficiency on the scoreboard.

Players South must look to contain in the Richmond camp include the talented Brendan Beni who moved from Heidelberg in the off-season. Beni has quality technique with the ability to turn games with his vision and willingness to run at defenders through the middle of the park.

Furthermore, striker James Robinson found some form last week, bagging a double against Fawkner-Whittlesea to bring his season tally to three.

In the South camp, Naglieri and Oliveira will hopefully inject some freshness and with Captain Vaughn Coveny scoring last week against Altona and the markedly improved performance of Kevin Nelson off the bench, South should have plenty of attacking presence and goal-scoring ability on the park.

Finally, one area of concern this season for South has been the increase in goals conceded. With Arthur Tsonis out for the rest of the season and Con Blatsis still at least a couple of weeks away, added pressure and expectation will be placed on the shoulders of youngsters James Stefanou and Sammy DeVito. Both did reasonably well last week against Altona, but with South at home, a clean sheet must be the aim.

Sunday, 2 April 2006 12:23 AM

By Michael Tsoukalis

South Melbourne have continued their worrying form slump going down 3-1 to a determined Altona Magic outfit after Vaughn Coveny had put the visitors ahead with a 14th minute strike only to see referee Jim Ouliaris award a speculative penalty on the stroke of half time, allowing for Sash Becvinovski to equalize.

In the 2nd half Altona capitalized on a strong tailwind with Becvinovski fortunate to see his 75th minute strike rattle off the crossbar and onto Dean Anastastasiadis’s back with the ball eventually trickling over the line, whilst Igor Arsovski wrapped things up in the 84th minute with a close range effort.

With injury and form forcing Coach John Anastasiadis’s hand this week, a couple of personnel changes and positional adjustments were made to the starting lineup.

Trinidad and Tobago native Kevin Nelson started on the bench with the season-ending knee injury suffered by Arthur Tsonis seeing young defender James Stefanou making his first full debut for the club. Postionally, Tansel Baser was moved to a central defensive role with Ivory Coast defender Jonas Salley playing in defensive midfield. Finally, young left back Sammy DeVito also made a comeback to senior action.

South’s starting 11 read as follows, Dean Anastasiadis in goal, a central defensive pairing of Tansel Baser and James Stefanou with Rama Tavsancioglu and Sammy DeVito playing the right and left back positions.

In the centre of the park, Jonas Salley played in a defensive midfield role with Scot MacNicol the more attack-minded midfielder. On the flanks Vasilios Natsioulas and George Tzirtis played on the right and left respectively with Brazilian Fernando Moraes having a free roaming attacking role in behind Captain Vaughn Coveny who led the line up front.

The Magic started brightly creating a quality opening after only 2 minutes when an angled strike from the right-hand side of the box was well saved down low by Anastasiadis.

Then in the 6th minute Altona should’ve gone ahead after a superb cross down the left flank was met with a firm header 8 or so yards out. Anastasiadis did well to get a glove on the attempt and was somewhat fortunate to see the ball balloon up and onto his chest with the South custodian planted on his back.

A minute later South produced a counter attack with George Tzirtis finding space down the left hand side of the Altona box with his subsequent angled-drive requiring a sharp save from Altona custodian Bojo Jevdjevic.

The frenetic pace continued when a 9th minute free kick from South was sent deep into the Altona box with Tavsancioglu meeting the ball around the penalty mark, sending a sharpish header crashing onto the crossbar.

Altona then broke on the counter finding some space down the right and sending a deep back-post cross that Tomi Razov failed to connect with after the striker managed to lose Stefanou, finding himself 8-10 yards out and in plenty of space.

Thirteen minutes in and South took the lead. A searching ball was caught by the wind wrong-footing Altona defender Levent Osman and allowing Coveny to out-muscle the ex-South defender and latch onto the opportunity. Faced with only Jevdjevic to beat, Coveny made no mistake, sending a powerful drive comfortably past the Altona custodian.

The goal seemed to have a calming effect on the pace of the game, chances stopped being created and South looked destined to head into the change rooms with a valuable advantage.

However, on the stroke of half time the game was turned on its head, a hopeful through-ball over the top by the Magic caught the South defence flat-footed allowing for an Altona player to get in-behind. Faced with only Anastasiadis to beat a chip was attempted with Anastasiadis seemingly trying to punch the ball away, the ball was destined to cross the line when South managed to scurry back and clear at the last moment, only for referee Ouliaris to point to the spot. Ouliaris must’ve ruled that Anastasiadis had somehow made contact with the player, but to the majority of the crowd, the incident seemed to be a genuine attempt to get the ball.

Altona leading marksman Sash Becvinovski stepped up and comfortably slotted past Anastasiadis, hitting his drive low and firmly into the bottom left corner, leveling the ledger and giving Altona the advantage with a large tailwind awaiting them in the second half.

The 2nd half was evenly balanced possession wise, however, Altona looked the more likely to score. A 63rd minute strike from just outside the box had Anastasiadis beaten with the veteran keeper saved by the left upright.

Then in the 72nd minute, a deep back-post cross from the left was sliced by the arriving Altona player, when a shot on target would’ve heavily tested Anastasiadis.

South should’ve gone ahead in the 74th minute after excellent work down the right by substitute Kevin Nelson saw the diminutive striker produce a superb back-post cross that left Coveny with the easiest of tap-ins from 2 or so yards. Coveny however seemed to underestimate his finish, sticking out a toe but with far too little power allowing for the desperate Jevdjevic to lunge at full stretch and smother.

Immediately after Coveny’s miss Altona made South pay with Becvinovski latching onto a cross from the left by Tomi Razov, Becvinovski saw his looping headed attempt cannon off the crossbar with Anastasiadis struggling at full stretch to get a glove onto the effort. As the South keeper was falling back the ball ricocheted off his back and trickled its way over the line sending the Magic ahead.

Altona then wrapped up proceedings in the 84th minute after a searching switch of play saw a desperate lunging attempt by Tavsancioglu fail narrowly, allowing for Altona to break into the South box down the left flank with the subsequent cutback being comfortably finished by Igor Arsovski who from 6 yards out couldn’t miss.

Friday, 31 March 2006 7:20 PM

By Michael Tsoukalis

After disappointing consecutive performances against Essendon and Sunshine, South Melbourne travel to Paiseley Park this Saturday night to take on the undefeated and 2nd placed Altona Magic.

Coached by ex-South player and member of the coaching staff Ken Murphy, the Magic have started the season in outstanding fashion, producing 4 wins and 3 draws to sit only one point behind top-of-the-table Kingston City.

The Magic lost several quality players in the off-season, with goalkeeper Martin John moving to Sunshine, attacking midfielder Cameron Pino to Oakleigh and dogged defensive midfielder Marcus Stergiopoulos to Kingston.

However, Altona have managed to cover these losses, signing the likes of experienced Premier League and former NSL custodian Bojo Jevdjevic, handy midfield brotherly pairing Ivan and Tommy Razov, as well as securing the services of classy winger Daniel Vasilevski from A-League club Perth Glory.

In Sasho Becvinovski, the Magic have one of the most experienced goal-getters in the league, Becvinoski has already netted 5 times this season and will have to be closely watched if South are to keep a clean sheet.

Furthermore, twins Koce and Kole Delev are two of the more exciting players in the league with Koce Delev posing a genuine goal-scoring threat from the centre of the park.

Ex-South Melbourne players Levent Osman, Agim Sherifovski and Alfonso Opazo add quality and provide a solid spine in the defensive, midfield and forward areas of the pitch, topping off an extremely strong and competent Altona line-up.

Conversely, South Melbourne have shown worrying signs over their past two matches, lackluster displays and in-efficient finishing have cost John Anastasiadis’s men points in their last two encounters with a win – against Altona – crucial for South as it would consolidate their position in the top 6.

During the week South have moved swiftly in the transfer market in a bid to rectify their early season deficiencies, signing Western Australian natives and ex-Perth S.C. players Andreas Oliveira (striker), Antonio Naglieri (attacking midfielder) and Dino Djulbic (defender).

All three players will immediately come into contention for selection, especially with the lack of goals scored so far this season and the injuries to defensive stalwarts Con Blatsis and Arthur Tsonis.

In the case of Oliveira, he has already scored 3 goals in this season’s Vodafone Cup for the Frankston Pines, hence it is hoped that the he will be able to quickly acclimatize himself to South’s system of play and continue the good form he has shown in the league thus far.

A knee injury sustained in last week’s game against Sunshine will keep Arthur Tsonis out for the rest of the season with the colossal defender needing a knee reconstruction. James Stefanou will most likely take his place in the first 11 against the Magic.

Friday, 31 March 2006 12:15 PM

South Melbourne has moved swiftly to strengthen its playing squad obtaining the services of Western Australian natives Andreas Oliveira, Antonio Naglieri and Dino Djulbic.

Oliveira is a 25 year old striker who has scored almost 100 goals in the past 5 seasons for Perth S.C. in the Western Australian Premier League. Last season he finished a credible fifth in the competition’s player of the season award.

Oliveira began the current Vodafone Cup season at Frankston Pines where he has managed to score 3 goals in 5 games and will no doubt go a long way in bolstering South’s attacking stocks.

At 23 years of age Naglieri is considered a quality attacking midfielder with the ability to both score and create goals. Naglieri finished second in Perth’s best and fairest last season, a superb effort considering it was his first season in the colours of Perth S.C.

Naglieri has been signed with the view of providing more penetration from the centre of the park, allowing for Coach Anastasiadis to have greater flexibility in his midfield selection.

Finally, 21 year old Djulbic is a product of the Perth S.C. youth system. A defender who is very comfortable on the ball, Djulbic progressed from reserves action at the start of last season to a fully fledge member of the starting eleven by season’s end. With injuries to Con Blatsis and Arthur Tsonis, Djulbic will be looked upon to provide defensive cover.