Sydney Olympic want all guns blazing for 2009
The Blues, possibly matched only by Sutherland Sharks, reached two Finals ? Johnny Warren Cup triumph and the Tiger Turf Cup loss ? and fell at the final hurdle against Sutherland Sharks in the Preliminary Final for the League, denying the Blues a shot at Wollongong FC in the Grand Final.
2009 promises to be another exciting year for this foundation club, boasting much of the talent on show last season, along with some very experienced additions.
New boss Aytek Genc has added goal scoring machine Tolgay Ozbey to the set-up, meanwhile the addition of Bobby Dragas to the defence presents adversaries with an epic challenge of breaking through the Blues rear-guard. Dragas will slot in alongside Captain Mirko Jurlj, Michael Cindric and Emmanuel Zunino across the back-line, with Sam Emmanouil tipped to start the season as first choice goalkeeper.
Meanwhile out of midfield, following the departure of Roger Galayini, the return of Peter McPherson and the good positional sense of Paul Wither promise to provide Matthew Mayora and Ozbey with a plethora of goals.
Sydney Olympic?s pre-season has started in exceptional fashion with the Blues competing boldly in the Hellenic Cup in Brisbane.
The Blues defeated hosts Olympic FC and Northcote City before falling to Heidelberg United in the final group match. The Melbourne outfit got the better of Sydney Olympic in the tournament?s grand-final, though the signs are positive for Genc?s side.
Sydney Olympic 2009: Bobby Dragas, Emmanuel Zunino, Mirko Jurilj, Michael Cindric, Emmanuel Giannaros, Peter McPherson, Paul Wither, Anthony Hartshorn, Anthony Doumanis, Tolgay Ozbey, Matthew Mayora, Jordan Simpson, Iain Ramsay, Sam Emmanouil, Peter Zorbas, David Smith (More to be confirmed)