SOCCER SEAFORD United has appointed star midfielder Matt Morris-Thomas as senior coach after Paulo Pinheiro’s resignation last week. Pinheiro fell on his sword with his side staring at a second successive relegation following a nightmare start to the 2018 State 3 South-East season. Morris-Thomas, 28, will be assisted by former Seaford player and reserves coach Stuart Mitchell and faces a monumental task to avoid the drop. He has decided to step down as a player which caught most observers by surprise given the lack of quality in the senior squad. “This is my first senior coaching job and I didn’t…
Author: Craig MacKenzie
SOCCER PENINSULA Strikers’ senior coach Jamie Paterson resigned last Wednesday morning and assistant coach Lenny Greenan has been appointed in a caretaker capacity. Paterson’s decision took the State 2 South-East club by surprise but president Trevor Johnston is hopeful that a decision on who will take charge of the senior squad till the end of the season will be made in the next fortnight. “We are actively looking at candidates and we will exhaust every avenue to find someone who can hit the ground running and take on a rebuilding phase for the club,” Johnston said. “We want someone who…
SOCCER Langwarrin has sacked giant second-string keeper Josh Dorron and is on the lookout for a replacement. Dorron will join State 1 South-East outfit Caulfield Cobras a week later than planned after Langy held up his clearance late last week. The local club was incensed when told that Dorron had trained elsewhere without informing Langy’s coaching staff. The good news is that long-serving Langy boss Gus Macleod welcomes three new faces at training this week. Queensland strikers Matt Heath and Chris Swain will be joined by tall central defender Lloyd Clothier. Heath is from Brisbane-based Olympic FC, Swain is from…
SOCCER ADAM Jamieson ended a 10-year association with Mornington when he resigned on Saturday morning. The news rocked the Dallas Brooks Park outfit as it prepared to do battle with visitors South Springvale in their State 1 South-East fixture. Jamieson cited work commitments as the principle reason for his departure. “I have a lot going on with business and I can’t give Mornington 100 percent commitment anymore,” he said. “It’s been my second home for a long period but I just knew that my time had come. “I want to thank the committee for everything they’ve done for me. It’s…
SOCCER MORNINGTON staged a remarkable comeback to snatch a point from Casey Comets in a controversial and spiteful State 1 South-East encounter at Comets Stadium on Friday night. Comets players trudged off the pitch at game’s end with their heads down after blowing a two-goal lead and having to settle for a 3-3 draw in a riveting contest. Comets struck first thanks to a superb Connor Belger through ball and a clinical low strike from the talented Robert Prescott in the 27th minute. Sammy Orritt was left dumfounded after a point-blank tip over from Comets keeper David Thomson in the…
SOCCER CALEB Nicholes made sure of Skye United’s first win of the season with an eight-minute goal blitz against Dingley Stars at Skye Recreation Reserve on Saturday. The veteran striker’s quickfire hat-trick underpinned Skye’s 4-1 win and ignited the club’s push up the State 3 South-East ladder. The first half was a cagey affair with Skye dominating most of the possession and it was rewarded when Mitch Blake pounced in the box and finished well to give the hosts a half-time lead. Nicholes opened his account two minutes into the second half when he tapped in from close range following…
SOCCER SOMERVILLE Eagles continued their winning ways in State 5 South with a 3-1 win over Aspendale at Tyabb Central Recreation Reserve on Saturday. Eagles’ player-coach Dave Greening refuses to discuss the club’s promotion chances but his side is doing its talking out on the pitch and now boasts a perfect start to the season. Somerville flew out of the blocks and dominated the first half-hour before a superb ball down the line from Sam Beadle found Greening. The ace striker twisted and turned past two opponents before firing a shot at goal which was parried to Louis Griffiths who…
SOCCER A FIRST-HALF hat-trick from Ryan Thompson spearheaded Peninsula Strikers’ 4-0 away win over Old Scotch last weekend. The English import became the 22nd player to get a hat-trick for the local side and former Everton striker Femi Orenuga completed the rout in the second half when he ran onto Stefan Karac’s pass and rounded the Old Scotch keeper before stroking the ball into an unguarded goal. Strikers had lost the opening league fixture after a tumultuous pre-season and the victory kick-starts its promotion campaign under new head coach Jamie Paterson. The Centenary Park outfit was the only local State…
SOCCER DANIEL Attard expects Skye United to bounce back from losing the opening match of its 2018 campaign and mount a serious promotion push. The 23-year-old striker is the longest serving player in Billy Armour’s senior squad having first played for the club in 2011. Attard started playing as a six-year-old in midfield for Glen Waverley and his first 10 seasons were spent under the tutelage of John Frantzis. “He kept me interested in the game because there were a few times I thought about not playing,” Attard said. When he switched to Skye United he played as a left…
SOCCER FRANKSTON Pines and Somerville Eagles were the only local teams to start the 2018 State League season on a winning note. Pines head coach Paul Williams gave starts to Mitch Landers, Naseer Mohammed, Aaryn Rix and CJ Hodgson and used their pace and ability to transition quickly to hurt home team Heatherton United on Saturday eventually running out a 2-0 winner in their State 2 South-East contest. Heatherton was caught on the break half a dozen times with former Pines’ keeper Alfonso Cardinale making a fine save to deny Landers from converting Pines’ best first-half chance. It took a…
SOCCER THE State League season kicks off this weekend with Mornington, Peninsula Strikers and Skye United looming as serious promotion prospects. Mornington and Strikers will underpin their promotion push with quality visa players while Skye has used the local market to bolster its senior squad. Promotion for Mornington would mean a third State 1 South-East title in four seasons and would unlock the NPL door for Adam Jamieson’s men. “If anything I was probably guilty of being overconfident last season so I’m a bit more wary this time but we know what’s ahead of us and what we have to…
SOCCER LANGWARRIN’S victory against high-flying Dandenong City and FFA Cup wins to Mornington and Peninsula Strikers highlighted last weekend’s local action. Langy went into Saturday’s league clash at Lawton Park as a pronounced underdog having come off a 4-1 thumping from Springvale White Eagles and facing the big-spending second-placed team in NPL2. But Gus Macleod’s men defied the odds and stunned the Croatian-backed visitors with a 2-1 triumph in front of a large crowd. “I keep telling people that we’re three years behind all these other NPL clubs,” Macleod said, a reference to the league’s inception in 2014. “We go…
SOCCER PENINSULA Strikers and Frankston City Council are at loggerheads over the dire state of the club’s home ground at Centenary Park. Strikers claim that their plea to council in January to water the ground fell on deaf ears. The main pitch is now unplayable and council has ordered the club not to use it. Strikers president Trevor Johnston fears that it won’t be repaired in time for the start of the league season on 24 March. “I’m having an onsite meeting with council on Monday (today) to see what can be done but I can’t see how it will…
SOCCER GOALSCORING legend David Greening led Somerville Eagles to a nailbiting FFA Cup upset over Balmoral at Somerville Secondary College on Saturday. The man dubbed “The Green Machine” scored in the 18th minute of extra time to give Somerville a 3-2 win over its more fancied State 4 opponent after scores were deadlocked at 2-2 after normal time. Balmoral started brightly and took the lead in the 26th minute with a decent strike from the edge of the box by Enver Malkic but Somerville levelled in the 35th minute via a long-range wind-assisted free kick from Greening which sailed over…
SOCCER LANGWARRIN’S much anticipated NPL2 debut and David Greening’s player-coaching bow both ended in triumph last weekend. Langy travelled to Wembley Park on Saturday and celebrated a deserved 2-0 win against a Box Hill side that enjoyed a lot of possession but whose slow and purposeless interpassing game suited the visitors. Greening’s two goals spearheaded Somerville Eagles’ 3-2 FFA Cup win against Old Mentonians at Somerville High School on Saturday. Somerville raced to a 3-0 lead thanks to Greening and Ash Scholes with the latter’s bullet header from a Matt Curd corner in the 50th minute giving him his first…
SOCCER ROSEBUD Heart dropped a bombshell last week when it told Football Federation Victoria it will not field a senior team in State 4 South this year. The decision to quit FFV after just three seasons of senior competition has stunned the local soccer community but the club was left with no choice due to a lack of players. “The big issue we had with FFV was fielding both seniors and reserves,” Heart president Tracy Riley said. “We had enough players for one team but not for two teams. “We had some players who were playing with Rosebud soccer club…
SOCCER MORNINGTON won its fifth Steve Wallace Memorial Cup on Saturday and will use its success as a springboard for a tilt at the State 1 South-East championship and an NPL berth. It was the sixth staging of the annual charity event which is a celebration of the local game and honours Stephen William Wallace, Langwarrin life-member and former club president, committeeman, coach, player and Bayside League referee who died on 19 July 2011 at the age of 54. The tournament had its fair share of controversy centring on disputed refereeing decisions and an argument over which sides should play…
SOCCER SCRIPTWRITERS for the hit TV series Vikings could draw inspiration from the goings-on at Southern United. The NPL women’s club came into being in late 2015 as a consortium comprised of representatives from Langwarrin, Casey Comets, Mornington, Peninsula Strikers and Seaford United. There was much fanfare and high expectations for a club with the largest catchment area in the elite competition. But while trying to find its feet in the newly created league Southern found itself slowly but surely immersed in a civil war that would have brought a smile to the face of Ivar the Boneless. The club’s…
SOCCER FOOTBALL Federation Victoria will announce this week that Peninsula Strikers have been reinstated in State 2 South-East after being relegated last season. The federation contacted Strikers late last week with an offer of reinstatement and the club jumped at the chance. Reports that State 1 North-West club Bendigo City had pulled its senior team out of competition and that a State 1 South-East side had taken up that vacancy remain unconfirmed. However South Springvale, which was relegated from State 1 South-East last season is understood to have been reinstated thereby creating the vacancy for Strikers. The remarkable turnaround has…
SOCCER THE draw for the 2018 Steve Wallace Memorial Cup has been conducted and this year’s tournament features eight clubs split into two groups. Group A comprises Langwarrin, Casey Comets, Peninsula Strikers and Baxter. Group B is made up of Mornington, Frankston Pines, Seaford United and Skye United. The annual fundraiser for the emergency department at Frankston Hospital will be held at Baxter Park on Saturday 3 February. The Bayside Football Association will again supply the referees and event organiser Tanya Wallace is seeking donations for the major raffle to be conducted on the day. She can be contacted on…
SOCCER SKYE United completed the first signing coup of 2018 when it convinced scoring legend Caleb Nicholes to come out of retirement and join the State 3 South-East promotion candidate. Nicholes, 35, had three stints with Langwarrin having first joined the club in 1999. He has also played with Fitzroy City, Frankston Pines, East Richmond and Springvale White Eagles and scored 192 goals for Langy. Nicholes made 249 league appearances for the Lawton Park outfit and won an unprecedented 10 club Golden Boot awards. He retired after playing in last year’s State 1 South-East championship side and scored in the…
SOCCER SOMERVILLE Eagles are flying high after last Friday’s announcement that goalscoring legend David Greening will be the club’s new player-coach for 2018. Greening is the second founding member of Rosebud Heart senior club to switch to Somerville after Neil Herd moved there at the end of the 2016 season. The switch leaves Heart firmly on the back foot without a coach, still searching for a suitable ground and now without the man who in three seasons delivered 108 goals from 57 league and cup appearances. Greening had been mentioned as a possible Heart player-coach, Baxter offered him a player-coaching…
SOCCER MERGER talks between Rosebud Heart and Bayside League club Rosebud have stalled after the latter recently applied to join FFV ranks. Rosebud is keen to join the Metropolitan Leagues so that it can continue to play on Sundays and give its players a more challenging level of competition. State 4 South outfit Heart has shown interest in merging with its neighbour and sees the move as a great opportunity to create a large club on the southern peninsula with over 300 juniors, and senior men’s and women’s teams playing out of Rosebud’s home at Olympic Park in Besgrove Street.…
SOCCER HE is preparing for his 49th straight season at Monterey Reserve and he’s one of the most recognisable characters in the local game. Tommy Mitchell is a living legend. The 66-year-old is a life member of Frankston Pines and wears his heart on his sleeve. In more ways than one. If you haven’t seen the Edinburgh-born Mitchell at a senior match wearing one of his Heart of Midlothian scarves and bonnet festooned with club badges then you’re a newcomer to the local scene. Mitchell has three brothers – Colin, Bruce and Grant and the family migrated from Scotland in…
SOCCER LANGWARRIN has finalised its under-age squads for its inaugural season in the second tier of Victoria’s National Premier League competition. The Lawton Park outfit attracted triallists from such distant climes as far north Queensland with three Cairns teenagers from Leichhardt Lions FC getting the nod to join Kevin “Squizzy” Taylor’s under-20 squad. Taylor is a former Seaford United senior coach who was appointed coach of Bentleigh Greens’ under-20s in late 2014 and guided the youngsters to the 2015 NPL reserves championship. “I’m very happy with the squad we have put together at Langy. They are a very talented group,…
SOCCER LUCAS Elliott is just a fortnight old but Mornington fans owe the infant a debt of gratitude for the part he played in his father re-signing with the club last week. Stevie Elliott is a class act, one of the finest central defenders outside NPL ranks and for the past two months the word was that his switch to Langwarrin was all but done and dusted. Until last Thursday when the 29-year-old Englishman ended a 45-minute meeting with Mornington gaffer Adam Jamieson and assistant coach Dale White by re-committing to the club for a fourth straight season. “At the…
SOCCER A CLOSER relationship with new NPL outfit Langwarrin could be the springboard which catapults Baxter into State 2 South-East. That’s the target that new Baxter gaffer Francis Beck and director of coaching Billy McLeod have set in an ambitious five-year plan for the State 4 South club. “We’re looking at two promotions in five years,” said Beck. “If we can do it then we’d call that success. “We’re not ready to be a State 1 club yet and you have to move up then consolidate but we think that what we are aiming for is achievable.” Baxter’s generosity in…
SOCCER THERE is a remarkable talent in our midst and she only turned 12 in September. Alana Murphy was five when she played her first game for Langwarrin. She scored twice at Lawton Park that day and she’s been scoring goals for fun every since. She is the second youngest member of Victoria’s mini National Training Centre squad which competed in the 2017 women’s NPL under-15 competition. Her team beat up on most opponents throughout the season losing just one game and strolling to the title with five rounds to go. Murphy was initially attracted to soccer through the involvement…
SOCCER OSCAR Marsden, Ryan Thompson and Zach Reynolds are expected to arrive in Melbourne next year to join the Andy O’Dell revolution at Peninsula Strikers. Marsden and Thompson are due here on 10 January while Reynolds may not arrive until late February. The recently relegated Centenary Park club plans to bounce straight back into State 2 and O’Dell has been tasked with effecting a major overhaul of the senior squad. The three English imports are an integral part of his plans. Forwards Thompson and Marsden play with Brigg Town in England’s Northern Counties East League Division One. Ex-Mornington striker Ryan…
SOCCER MORNINGTON gaffer Adam Jamieson has taken responsibility for missing out on NPL promotion and has vowed that he won’t make the same mistake again. “We had a squad to do a lot better but you’re probably looking at complacency being an issue,” said Jamieson. His side finished runner-up to Langwarrin by a solitary point in the race for the State 1 South-East title and while Lawton Park fans were celebrating there was a lot of soul-searching done at Dallas Brooks Park. “You get ‘Patch’ (Ryan Paczkowski) back, then Scotty Millar then you get Josh Valadon and Aaron Root in…