Category: News

Tuesday, 22 October 2002 12:00 AM

Danny Wright will have his hands full this week when his chargers fly to Sydney for the 2001 Grand Final replay against the Wolves. Five players, who were missing from South’s line up against Perth, will be fighting for a ticket on this week’s flight to New South Wales.

South Melbourne was without regulars Steve Iosifidis, Vaughan Coveny, Ray Sekulovski and captain Paul Trimboli who were all sidelined with injuries. With Zeljko Susa awaiting a clearance from Croatian Club Hudjuk Split, Danny Wright will have a nice headache come selection time.

“All successful clubs need to have depth in their senior squads. This year at South Melbourne we are fortunate to have a squad of twenty players who are all capable of stepping in and doing the job”.

“We have been working hard with all our players getting them ready and understanding the systems that we play. This was nevermore evident than the weekend when some of our reserve players stepped in and competed with the best”, says Wright.

Coveny returned from International duties with a slight grade one thigh strain, which put him out of the second match against Poland and South Melbourne encounter with Perth. Trimboli, Iosifidis and Sekulovski are on the verge of returning for this weekends Round 6 match.

This week South Melbourne face 9th place Wollongong Wolves at Wade Park located in inland New South Wales in the City of Orange. Orange is located four and a half hours out of Sydney, which will make for a lengthy and tiring trip.

South Melbourne will be out to capitalise on their victory against Perth and return home to host current Champions and traditional interstate rivals Olympic Sharks in a fortnight’s time.

Monday, 21 October 2002 12:00 AM

Last night’s Man of the Match Peter Buljan made it two goals from two starts, equalling his goalscoring tally last season in South Melbourne’s 2 – 0 victory over the Glory last night.

South’s number 10 showed the Lakeside faithful what a class player he is, tearing the Perth defenders to shreds with his quick turning and prominent ball skills. Along with striking partner Michael Baird upfront, the two seemed to communicate well on the park and created numerous opportunities for one another.

During the week coach Danny Wright held optional morning shooting sessions, which both strikers attended. Their hard work was rewarded as both strikers got onto the scoresheet.

“I was happy with my performance, but it was a team performance. The whole team played well and that’s why we won”.

“When everybody’s playing well it makes it easier for the strikers. It was great to get a goal especially against my former side Perth Glory and to win against one of the leagues stronger sides is a great sign for us”, says Buljan.

Michael Baird scored his first goal for the Club after potently latching onto Buljan’s saved penalty, doubling the score line and closing the door on last season’s finalists.

“It was a great feeling when I scored my first goal for the Club yesterday. The crowd was awesome and I really enjoyed playing at Bob Jane Stadium yesterday”.

“The biggest thing about yesterday was that every player across our midfield was putting their body on the line. They hit the Perth players hard and never gave them an inch”, says Baird.

Bill Damianos had another influential match and Fausto De Amicis as usual was solid at the back helping the team to its first clean sheet of the season.

Sunday, 20 October 2002 12:00 AM

South Melbourne defeated last seasons Grand Finalists Perth Glory in a very attacking match at Bob Jane Stadium tonight. The home side played very fluent and collective football in their 2-0 victory.

South Melbourne broke a six match winless streak against the Western Australian club and earnt their first win of the season, thanks to two second half goals from Peter Buljan and Michael Baird who scored his debut goal for the Albert Park Club.

FINAL SCORE – (National Soccer League – Round 5)
SOUTH MELBOURNE 2 (Buljan 61, Baird 66)
Perth Glory 0

SOUTH MELBOURNE LINE-UP
Dean Anastasiadis, Fausto De Amicis, Mehmet Durakovic, Steve Panopoulos, Patrick Kisnorbo, David Clarkson, Peter Buljan, Vince Lia (Massimo Murdocca 83’), Nick Tolios, Michael Baird (Stephen Pace 93’), Bill Damianos.

Crowd: 6,194
Venue: Bob Jane Stadium, Melbourne

Friday, 18 October 2002 12:00 AM

South Melbourne’s last win over the Glory was on 31st of March 1999, when now retired John Anastasiadis came off the bench and scored the dramatic winner which sent a jam-packed Bob Jane Stadium into delirium.

The Western Australian team currently hold a six match unbeaten streak over the Blue and Whites (12.12.99 – 12.01.02). South Melbourne has never beaten the Glory in Perth and in Melbourne statistics are shared with 2 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses.

South Melbourne’s Vice Captain Steve Panopoulos, who wears the number seven, has only missed three encounters with the Glory since their inception into the NSL in 1996. The hard running midfielder is confident that the Club will break the Glory’s unbeaten streak and earn its first three points of the season.

“It’s a superstitious term but if “Lucky Seven” is anything to go by, we should break the hoodoo this Sunday”.

“The boys have been fired up all week and are still bitter about losing to Spirit last weekend”.

“Our start to the season hasn’t been what we hoped for but we are quite confident going into this weekends match”, says Panopoulos.

South Melbourne takes on Perth this Sunday at Bob Jane Stadium. If you haven’t already purchased your membership you can do so today or on matchday. Kick Off is at 6.00PM.

Thursday, 17 October 2002 12:00 AM

DATE: Sunday 20 October 2002
VENUE: Bob Jane Stadium
KICKOFF: 6.00pm AEST

HEAD TO HEAD (Overall):
Played: 12 South Melbourne wins 2, Perth wins 7, Draws 3

HEAD TO HEAD (at Melbourne):
Played: 6(Regular Season) South Melbourne wins 2, Perth wins 2, Draws 2

LAST WEEK:
South Melbourne 3-2 away loss Vs Spirit; Perth 1-0 home win Vs Newcastle

Position on Ladder: 12th Vs 2nd

SOUTH MELBOURNE SQUAD:
D Anastasiadis (gk), S Iosifidis, F De Amicis, M Durakovic, S Panopoulos, P Trimboli, R Sekulovski, P Kisnorbo, M Murdocca, V Lia, D Clarkson, R Liparoti, M Baird, N Tolios, E Galekovic (gk)

IN: V Coveny
OUT: M Baird (omitted)

PERTH GLORY SQUAD:
J Petkovic (gk), M Horsley, S Miller, D Tarka, T Harwell, E Junior, B Hassell, D Mori, N Mrdja, S Pryce, A Gumprecht, B Despotovski, M Mouhouti, G Faria, V Matassa (gk)

IN: Unchanged
OUT: C Deans (Knee – season)

Monday, 14 October 2002 12:00 AM

Influential midfielder Bill Damianos came on as a half time substitute in South Melbourne’s 3 – 2 loss against Northern Spirit on the weekend. His impact was immediate and had the home side reeling in South Melbourne’s vigorous second half revival.

Damianos returned to Lakeside this season after four years in the Greece. His signing a week before the commencement of the season added depth and flamboyancy to an already impressive South Melbourne squad.

The midfielder, who has played 89 matches for South Melbourne joined the Club in 1994-95, went on to be one of the leagues most exciting young talents and played an integral role in South Melbourne’s 1997/98 Championship season.

Over the past month, Damianos has been working extremely hard to improve his fitness level and is elated with his progress and match form thus far.

“To be back training and playing football is a breath of fresh air. I have been training hard to get back into form and consolidate my position in the squad”.

“I was pleased with my game on Sunday, but at the end of the day if we don’t get the points then it means nothing”, says Damianos

His vision, and ability to score spectacular goals will add a further facet to South Melbourne’s attacking style of play. He has scored 11 goals for the Club and we look forward to him scoring many more this season.

Monday, 14 October 2002 12:00 AM

South Melbourne showed great courage, fighting back from a half time two-nil deficit at Brookvale Oval on Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately a last minute slip up cost South Melbourne the away point.

Despite the loss many positives came out of the match. Peter Buljan and Bill Damianos made their first appearances for the season and according to coach Danny Wright turned the match around after half time.

Buljan began the season in great touch scoring the equaliser and setting up numerous opportunities for his team-mates. Damianos replaced Murdocca at half time and caused headaches for the home side with his precise passing and through balls.

Other players such as Kisnorbo who scored his third goal for South Melbourne and Michael Baird who got himself into great positions in front of goal were in fine form.

Danny Wright had this to say when he returned from Sydney:

“The players did well to dig themselves out of a hole in the second half. What we need to do is find the reasons that we found ourselves in that position in the first place”.

“We can speculate on this or that combination or the inclusion of other personnel but ultimately it is the player son the park on any given day that need to be accountable”.

“In spite of our slow start to the season, I will not lower my expectations I have from my playing staff”, says Wright.

South Melbourne takes on last seasons finalists Perth Glory at Bob Jane Stadium this Sunday, in a crucial game for the Blue and Whites. Coach Danny Wright understands the importance of this weekend’s Round 5 fixture.

“Our main objective this weekend is to keep a clean sheet and in doing so we will provide the platform for our natural attacking players to build on for a victory, says Wright.

Wednesday, 2 October 2002 12:00 AM

Patrick Kisnorbo is one of the National Soccer League’s finest defenders and in South Melbourne’s first home game of season 2002-2003, will play his 50th game for the Club.

Kisnorbo just 21 years of age, took the field in season 2000 – 2001 where he made an immediate impact and caught the eye of Socceroo coaches and the media. He made his National Team debut in 2001 during the NSL finals series and missed the 2001 Grand Final.

The Moonee Ponds resident had a remarkable season in 2001/2002 winning South Melbourne’s Marmaras Medal (Player of the Year Award), as well as having a trial with English giant Leeds United.

Kisnorbo’s aerial ability and silky skills are a credit to the gifted football and his willingness and hunger to further his career is second to none.

It seems inevitable that the sturdy defender is bound for a quality overseas Club, but for now is concentrating on winning a Championship with South Melbourne.

“Trialing with overseas Clubs, especially Leeds United was a wonderful experience”.

“It’s great to be playing my 50th game, but it is more important that the team get the three points this Sunday”, says Kisnorbo.

With Kisnorbo again joining Durakovic, De Amicis and Iosifidis at the back, South Melbourne’s defence will surely be solid and uphold the attacking prowess of some leading NSL’s Clubs.

Wednesday, 2 October 2002 12:00 AM

South Melbourne was held to a one-all draw in their first home match of the season this evening.

South Melbourne began the match the stronger and was rewarded in the 24th minute with a goal through Vaughan Coveny. The Lakesiders pressed for a winner after Sydney United had equalised but were unable to find the elusive goal.

FINAL SCORE (National Soccer League – Round 3)
SOUTH MELBOURNE 1 (Coveny ‘24)
Sydney United 1 (Cacic ’32)
Crowd: 4,156
Venue: Bob Jane Stadium, Melbourne

Wednesday, 2 October 2002 12:00 AM

Date: Sunday 6 October 2002
Venue: Bob Jane Stadium
Kickoff: 6.00pm AEST

HEAD TO HEAD (Overall):
Played: 39 South Melb wins 16, Sydney wins 17, Draws 6

HEAD TO HEAD (at Melbourne):
Played: 17(Regular Season) South Melb wins 8, Sydney wins 7, Draws 2

LAST WEEK:
South Melb BYE; Sydney United 2-0 home win Vs Newcastle
Position on Ladder 13th Vs 3rd

SOUTH MELBOURNE SQUAD:
D Anastasiadis (gk), S Iosifidis, F De Amicis, M Durakovic, S Panopoulos, V Coveny, P Trimboli, R Sekulovski, P Kisnorbo, M Murdocca, V Lia, D Clarkson, R Liparoti, M Baird, E Galekovic (gk)

SYDNEY UNITED SQUAD:
V Ivesa (gk), G Mendez, C Menapi, M Jedinak, B Santalab, B Cacic, P Bilokapic, D Collina, B Pavic, M Santalab, N Arrarte, L Brain, A Doumanis, M Rudan, J Perosh (gk)