Younis the quiet achiever
By day Younis works in real estate in an agency in Ryde selling homes and on weekends for A.P.I.A. he is certainly clinching the deals in front of goal.
Younis is modest and, despite scoring many goals last season, he almost airbrushes his fine achievement.
?Last year was a good season because I bagged a few goals,? he said, in an understatement which is typical of the attitude at A.P.I.A. where players and coaches only modestly claim success.
Bragging is definitely not on at Lambert Park, ?This year is the same because I scored a few at the beginning of the season, but there?s always room for improvement and I am aware of that.
?I am just working hard at training, like all of us at the club, and fingers crossed we?ll have a good remainder of the season.?
Younis has been with the Tigers since he was 16 and on two occasions had the privilege of travelling to Viareggio in Italy with the club?s under-20s for the prestigious Torneo Viareggio ? Coppa Carnevale.
?Viareggio was an excellent experience and it was the experience of a lifetime to tell you the truth,? Younis said.
?The facilities there are amazing and everything was good about it, especially in terms of the soccer that is played and the career development opportunities that are possible in Italy.?
For Younis, who has now outgrown the Viareggio under-20 age limit, the focus is on matters much closer to home.
He says the attitude at A.P.I.A. is most positive and on a personal note he too, like most players in the TeleChoice Premier League, would like an opportunity at the A-League level even though he had to be pushed on his ambitions such is his modesty and down-to-earth nature.
?Our heads were a little down at the beginning of the season, but now we are picking up,? he said. ?Training sessions have been better, the team?s picking up, the attitude is there and we are better off for the experience.
?In the longer term, like others, I would love to crack the A-League; I am training hard and bagging a few goals, so hopefully somewhere there?s call up down the line.
– Joe Russo