State League 2 Season Preview

With three newcomers and an open field, thanks to the elevation of 2010 champions Fairfield Bulls to division one, this year?s bloated 14-team competition shapes up as one of the most competitive ever. Add a global flavour with the arrival of players who have knocked the ball around in England, Germany, Scotland, Israel and South America, and the 2011 division two season is as exotic as it sounds.
Last year?s combatants Bathurst ?75, Belmore Hercules, Fairfield Wanderers, Gazy Lansvale, Hakoah, Hawkesbury City, Hurstville City, Luddenham United, Prospect United, Roosters FC and Springwood United welcome northern suburbs outfit Northbridge FC plus westerners Chopin Park Rams and Nepean FC to the division two fold in a race that will see just five teams make the final series.
Championship 2010 was about as exciting as it could get with 10 teams in finals contention just two weeks from the regular season end and the minor premiership up for grabs by four teams in the final round. The Bulls eventually won it by a point over Wanderers and then bulldozed their way over the line to grab the championship trophy (beating Hurstville 2-1 in a terrific grand final) as well as deserved promotion to division one. But who will be the team to beat this year? Here?s how the 14 coaches see it:
BATHURST ?75 PANTHERS
It would be easy to dismiss Bathurst ?75 as just a stepping stone for western NSW players to progress into the state?s higher leagues, but steady performances in recent years has Bathurst primed to at least reach finals football in 2011. The club certainly knows what it takes to win, with division two championships from 1979 and 1983 still shining in the trophy cabinet, but coach Mark Rooke would be happy with just another year of consistent improvement.
Bathurst were well in the mix for a finals berth last year before a sluggish run home halted them in their tracks. As usual, an annual exodus of players as personnel chased jobs and tertiary education opportunities in Sydney will see ?75 field an even younger first grade side this year, but Rooke can see the up and down sides of this scenario.
?It was a little disappointing not to make finals last year; we just didn?t score enough goals at the right time of year, and that comes down to experience,? he said. ?This doesn?t help with such a young side, but we have certainly worked hard on our fitness and being young could work well for us [in a longer season]. For us it?s about getting onto the ball and being patient in the final third. Hopefully it will come together this year.?
Rooke said the hardest part for Bathurst was to rebuild its team each new season as players move on. ?We?ll probably lose [leading scorer] James Christie to Manly, but that?s what it is for us. We realise we are a stepping stone to get somewhere and quite a few players have come through our club and moved onto better things. Our role is to develop players as well as the club. Personally, I feel I?m progressing as a coach. I would like to do some more courses, but every time I walk onto the pitch I learn something new.?
A new trick that Rooke would do well to implement in his 2011 outfit is how to pick up more points on the road, with Bathurst securing just one win and one draw from seven away fixtures last year. While it?s always a tough prospect for opposition teams to take points from their travels over the Blue Mountains, they seem to overwhelm the ?75 boys on Sydney turf.
However, when it came to picking this year?s championship winner the Bathurst born and bred Rooke was unsure. ?I really don?t know actually,? he said. ?Luddenham finished the season off well and I believe they have recruited well for this year. I picked Hawkesbury to do well last year and if they have better luck [with injuries and suspensions] they will also be hard to beat.?
BELMORE HERCULES
It?s been a while since Belmore Hercules were crowned state league division two champions in 1992 but new coach John Kyriazopoulos has the club primed to make further inroads up the ladder in 2011 and, hopefully, go all the way to a title win. It?s quite a remarkable intention given the club?s financial predicament just a few short years ago, but there?s a strong sense of belief at Belmore that was given more credence following last year?s positive results.
Although this is his first try at coaching, Kyriazopoulos [called in to cover for Ernesto Meduri?s move to Apia juniors and clubman Kosta Apokis? high-end shift to Greek super league club AEK Athens] has plenty to draw upon after three years in the national soccer league with Sydney Olympic and a long junior career at Marconi before that. He has also spent a decade playing in NSW State League teams, so he has learnt from some of the best coaches in Australia.
?I have been with Belmore for many years and helped them get back on board and back into state league,? he said. ?I was getting a bit older as a player and wanted to stay involved in the game, so I was happy with the opportunity to coach Belmore. It is a new challenge for me but one I am looking forward to.?
Kyriazopoulos admitted there was still plenty to glean from the game, but he remained undaunted by the prospect of learning as he went along. ?It is my first year coaching but I have played under a lot of quality coaches over the years so I am not worried about it. [As a player who become a coach] You take ideas ? a bit from here, a bit from there, and even what I enjoyed as a player ? to use as coaching skills.?
?The club?s expectations are to win the comp and get promoted into division one. It won?t be easy, but with the way the club has been going over the last two years, things are definitely getting better. l think [this year?s] team is a little bit stronger. We have a few more experienced players who have come in to lead the younger boys, and we concentrated on our on-field ball work and structure. I don?t believe in 12-minute runs, and as it?s going to be a longer season, I think there could be a real problem with burn-out if teams overdo their fitness.?
Kyriazopoulos didn?t believe there was a clear-cut favourite for this year?s division two competition. ?To be honest all of the teams are able to make the finals and there?s not one that sticks out more than the other. I think every game is always going to be a challenge, and definitely no game will be easy to win.?
CHOPIN PARK RAMS FC
They?re back and they mean business. Chopin Park Rams, an offshoot of one of Australia?s oldest football clubs, Polonia, will field a side in State League for the first time in eight years. But despite offering almost an entire team?s worth of players who are yet to taste State League football, coach Radek Czerwinski said Chopin Park will do more than just make up the division two numbers.
Chopin Park came about following a merger between Blacktown & Districts Association clubs Polonia and Plumpton-based side Good Shepherd Rams three years ago, playing out of the western-Sydney ground owned by Polonia Sports Club. But its roots go way back to 1949 when Polonia formed from a thriving Polish community in the area. A string of successes ? including titles in 1960, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1978 and 1987 through divisions one to five (and as Kosciuszko in 1999) ? unfortunately culminated in a withdrawal from State League in 2003 due to financial constraints. Fast forward to 2011 and the timing is perfect for the proud club?s return via division two.
?I was a big advocate for that because I truly believe the club?s place is in the State League,? Czerwinski said. ?I think the club?s rich culture and history deserves better than to just be in the local districts competition; we are one of a few clubs who actually own their ground [Chopin Park]. The club has now been restructured and people are excited about returning and doing well.?
Czerwinski was searching for the freedom and democracy not afforded in his native Poland when he arrived in Australia as a bright-eyed 21-year-old in 1992. It was only two years after the Berlin Wall had been torn down and the economical and political opportunities in Europe?s eastern-bloc were slow to rise from the rubble. ?Being 21 and a student you have a different outlook on life,? Czerwinski explained, ?but it just seemed like there were many more possibilities for young people in Australia, although football was completely underdeveloped here. The good thing is that more and more parents are now pushing their kids toward football and that?s starting to show in Australia?s improvements as a football country.?
Czerwinski played for Polonia for eight years and one at Minchinbury before putting his hand up to do some coaching a few years back. He was a popular choice to lead Chopin Park back into State League but he?s not expecting immediate success. ?This is transitional and I do not have any expectation on the players other than to develop as a team,? he said. ?It?s hard to measure success as a new team in uncharted waters as we have a lot of young boys who have not played at this level before. My philosophy is not results-oriented. I will be more satisfied at the quality of our play and that the players at the end of the year have played better than at the start. If you concentrate on quality, the results will come. We want to develop players; they need to learn the basics of teamwork and become more tactically aware and [as the majority are under 23] they have a lot of time on their hands in terms of football.?
Being new to division two, Czerwinski could offer little in his predictions for the championship. ?I imagine the ones who did well last year would be up at the front again, but even the new teams like Nepean FC have put a good team together, and knowing the rich football culture of the northern districts I think Northbridge will put a good team in,? he said. ?I believe it will be an open competition.?
FAIRFIELD WANDERERS
When one of only a few changes to a side that finished second by a solitary point is the inclusion of prolific striker Erick Anabalon, you can bet Fairfield Wanderers will again be a force to be reckoned with in 2011. Throw in a coach that was raised in the football rich environment of South America and it?s no wonder head honcho Leo Maturana has club officials salivating with expectation.
But Chilean-born Maturana is under no illusion that this year?s division two competition will be fraught with danger. He?s been around way too long to take anything lightly. ?I?ve been around as long as the day is long,? he half-joked. ?I?ve been in charge of Colo Colo Wanderers in the past and I decided to give it another go when they asked me to come back. But I haven?t had to change too much at all.?
And why would he. Last year?s Wanderers fell just one point short of the minor premiership before their finals campaign totally fell apart when club and coach parted ways in the lead-up to their elimination semi-final loss to Luddenham. But there?s a new buzz around the Fairfield club ahead of this year?s elongated division two season.
?We had a pretty good squad already and I didn?t want to change things too much,? Maturana said. ?We picked up a couple of good players and I believe the stability will help us. Of course we want to win it this year, that?s the aim every year, and we will give it our best shot. We?ve recruited [ex-Marconi NSL player] Erick Anabalon to give us some more firepower as we lacked a bit of goals last year, and he?ll give us the edge we need.?
?I think the extra teams will make it interesting and it?s going to be a matter of when you peak as a team. You can peak too early or too late, so it?s a matter of having the team prepared properly,? he said. As for the opposition: ?I think the Minotaurs will have a good team, and Hakoah have recruited very well; but the same as last year, it?s going to be tough all the way round.?
GAZY LANSVALE
A lack of consistency made Gazy Lansvale one of the hardest clubs to follow in last year?s division two as a string of early losses (one win in the first seven rounds) and a change in coach midway through the season undermined a stirring four-game winning streak at the end of the year that saw them fall just short of a finals berth. The long season of playing catch-up football was not lost on club mentor Safet Alispahic, who praised his team for ending a tough year on a positive note.
The spirited run home last year has also helped provide a spring to a young Lansvale step heading into this year?s competition. ?We will see what?s going on as we start the season as we are a very changed squad with younger players,? Alispahic said. ?Although we have lost some players we will be settled as it doesn?t matter what players left our club, our policy is that hard work is the only thing that brings you what you want.?
?I think the way we finished last year shows that we will never give up at Gazy. This is good because everyone here knows that anything is possible. We have proved this with both our squads and we will be hoping to start this season where we finished off last year. We are trying to build our team for three years into the future and I am very proud of what these young players have done so far; they have shown they will give me everything they have. I think everyone still has to be scared when they play Gazy.?
Alispahic held special praise for an enthralling 2010 division two competition that saw so many teams fighting it out for a top-five position. ?Last year was one of the best competitions in Football NSW, and now we have 14 very good teams involved, so I hope that Football NSW can look after us because I will guarantee it will be the best competition again,? he said. ?I am very happy with all the new teams to come into it; there are some very strong clubs and I am expecting a very hard and tough competition where I think anyone can beat each other. At this stage I cannot say any one team will make it something special; we all start on zero points. Of course you must also have some luck, so picking a winner is very hard.?
The long-time Lansvale clubman also hinted to what the future holds for Gazy in the leadership stakes with current player Ado Smajovic, 26, undergoing several coaching courses. ?He is a young man who has a big future ahead of him in coaching,? Alispahic said. ?It is all part of what we want in the future at Gazy, and that means not just to develop the teams but also the coaches.?
HAKOAH
Even by their own admission 2010 was a year to forget for Hakoah. Just two wins left them stone-cold last, some 22 points off finals consideration. Simply not good enough for a proud club that helped to forge Australian football following their establishment in pre-war 1939, going on to win three NSL titles in the early 1980s. But you can bet this year?s Hakoah side will draw plenty of inspiration from its name, which means ?Strength?. And with respected footballer Mark Robertson now at the helm, things are decidedly looking up for last year?s wooden spooners.
There?s not a stadium big enough to hide Robertson?s football pedigree. He played professionally for 14 years, starting at Marconi, and was selected into Australia?s national youth teams before being noticed by English club scouts at the 1997 under-20 world youth cup held in Malaysia. He played for Burnley in the English Championship for three seasons before returning home at the perfect time to be part of Wollongong Wolves? historic come-from-behind grand final win over Perth Glory in 2000. Robertson returned overseas for stints at several British clubs (including Swindon Town and Dundee) before coming back to Sydney FC in 2007. He now runs MRSOCCER academy in the eastern suburbs.
?I retired two years ago? it was about time to hang the boots up,? the 33-year-old crafty midfielder said. ?I had set up my own soccer academy by then and was coaching as a hobby [Robertson holds a UEFA B-licence] and I?m really looking forward to being in charge of Hakoah to be honest. We?ll have a handy squad and I would like to see them fighting for a finals berth at the end of the season.?
First of all, Robertson will have to introduce a motley crew of new players to each other. ?We got rid of nearly all of the squad [they kept four names] and have brought in players from Premier League, interstate, and even a couple of international players [including standout attacker Oren Danziger who played Champions League football in Europe for Maccabi Haifa]. There?s no pressure but it?s an ambition of mine ? and the club ? to do well this year. We?re blessed with some good attacking talent but I?d rather see the boys play consistently well; we can always push forward from here.?
Robertson didn?t offer much in terms of opposition teams to watch out for, but he did wish his counterpart at Hawkesbury City (which finished second from bottom last year) well. ?I?ve known Gary [Lewis] for a while and I?d like to see him do well as he has a young side and has been terrific at developing junior players.?
HAWKESBURY CITY
A changing of the guard has already lifted Hawkesbury City back into finals consideration following a frustrating 2010 season hanging around the division two cellar door. And opposition coaches are standing up and paying attention with several earmarking Hawkesbury for a return to the top of the leaderboard this year. But coach Gary Lewis wasn?t buying into it, especially as the majority of his team is still aged in their early 20s.
?We have signed a lot of new boys, some who have played in State League before, and I?d like to think we have a stronger side this year,? Lewis said. ?There?s a bit more strength on the middle of the park and I?ve managed to keep some strong players from last year?s squad. But we still have to bring them all together.?
?Everyone at the club is excited about the influx of new players, a bit like a changing of the guard. The boys are all keen and there is a lot more competition for starting positions. We just didn?t have the depth last year and the boys are really pushing each other to get into that first grade squad. They are all still young and will have to prove themselves, but I think they can do it.?
Lewis said last year?s dismal second-from-bottom placing will add extra motivation for the team but he realises plenty of other clubs are out to atone for missing out on a finals berth in a highly-competitive 2010. ?I?ve heard some pretty good things about Hakoah, but I really haven?t had a good look at who?s been signed by each club. A referee told me Chopin Park had a strong unit, and some Camden players I?ve spoken to talked about Hakoah as being very disciplined, so obviously they?re out to do well.?
You can bet Lewis will draw plenty from his time working alongside good friend and business partner, football guru Brian ?Bomber? Brown at Blacktown City. Lewis spent six years as a manager with Brown and won a couple of minor premierships together, but they couldn?t crack the championship ? something that is driving the well-spoken coach at Hawkesbury.
HURSTVILLE CITY
Vivacious Hurstville City Minotaurs coach Peter Sarikakis needs no introduction. After almost 40 years of coaching and achieving outstanding success with Hurstville, the man-who-breathes/talks/lives-football is showing no signs of letting up. Nor is he about to relinquish his now-famous moniker as ?The General?.
It would seem the Pied Piper of Hamlin has nothing on The General as his devoted Minotaurs crew would follow him into battle anywhere and everywhere. But there?s just one destination in mind for Sarikakis ? promotion to State League division one. They went close in 2008 when they were division two southern conference champions and then had to settle for runner-up tags the last two years.
?I have always thought we are a division one side,? he said with his usual exuberance. ?The last two years we have missed out on promotion by one win? so, again, we must do a better job on the park. I wouldn?t be in it if I didn?t think we could win it; we are not there just for fun. [Regarding his ability to retain the core of each year?s squad] Of course Hurstville players want to stay at the club. No-one cooks better than your own mother and the players never go hungry at this club.?
Sarikakis said he kept every one of his players from last year and gained 2-3 players he felt would assist in strengthening the squad. ?I?m also hoping 1-2 players will come back from injury during the season so we should have a slightly stronger side this year,? he said, ?And with The General here, it?s a big plus. I?m one of the most experienced coaches in NSW, so we?ll be there [the finals]. Remember, there?s only one General with the planning??
Never short of character, Sarikakis was more liberal with his predictions. ?I know I joke a little bit but the strong teams from last year will be the same again this year. Wanderers have to be one of the favourites again, Luddenham if they have added to their squad and Roosters are always up there, and Belmore should be stronger for the experience,? he said. ?You never really know how the boys will react to the new teams and sometimes it?s the bounce of the ball that?s the difference between success or failure [referring to a recent 1-0 loss via an own-goal to Northbridge]. But at the end of the day, that?s what football is all about.?
LUDDENHAM UNITED
Last year it was almost impossible to get a straight answer out of guarded Luddenham United coach Andrew Montgomery. All year long he refused to talk up his team?s chances, mainly due to a consistent run of embarrassments in the state?s lower divisions from Luddenham before he arrived. But a top-four placing by season-end (just four points off the minor premiership) and an amazing recruitment drive over the off-season, and it was almost impossible for Montgomery to hide the curling smile on the edge of his responses.
?We lost six first-graders,? Montgomery began, ?but we?ve brought in some high-calibre players to replace them.? This includes last year?s division two player of the year and former Roosters captain Ercan Topal (11 goals in 2010), Gazy striker Huso Merdanovic (10 goals), former Lansvale skipper Dino Imamovic to shore up the defence, plus ex-Marconi player John Masueto. ?I guess we won?t be the surprise packet anymore and will probably be given a bit more respect this year.?
Understandably, the mood has lifted further at a club who tasted finals football for the first time last year ? when they knocked out highly-fancied Roosters and Wanderers before being overpowered by Hurstville ? and this has been evident in a surge of supporters at recent trial matches. ?There is a good buzz around the club,? Montgomery said. ?Over 100 people have come down for our trials, where would struggle to get 40 turn up a few years back. It?s a sign that we?re definitely heading in the right direction.?
In terms of the long season ahead Montgomery said structure and shape would be a pivotal component of his team?s success, adding that ?the fitness will come. We hit our straps toward the middle of the season but fell away towards the end and I think teams could finish poorly because of burn-out if they go all out from the start.?
As usual, Montgomery?s tongue was never far from his cheek when offering his 2011 predictions. ?Definitely Hurstville Minotaurs should win the comp. They?re the favourites every year, aren?t they? They should go the whole season undefeated and no-one will get close to them,? he said, sparking the good-hearted banter between coaches that made for some colourful retorts last year. ?Prospect will also be strong having got two of our players from last year, and Chopin Park might be good as they have guys who have played at a higher level. Look, this year is going to be more intense than any other year because to be up at the top you will need to take 10-12 points out of every five matches.?
NEPEAN FC
Expect to be entertained whenever Nepean FC take to the field this year, with Uruguayan-born coach Carlos Camacho hoping to emulate the style of play that has seen Barcelona and Spain acknowledged as the world?s best footballing club and nation. It seems a lofty aspiration but Camacho believes that fluent, pass-based play is the way of the future for the sport. And having played goalkeeper for Uruguayan division one side Huracan Buceo in the 1980s, he certainly brings a background of flair to the newly created club in Sydney?s west.
It?s been a couple of years since former NSW Premier League club Penrith-Nepean folded due to financial reasons, leaving the football rich region without State League representation. This paved the way for a new club, Nepean, to form and give local players a more direct pathway into higher-grade opportunities.
It?s easy to see why club directors chose Camacho to help guide them in division two. He?s been goalkeeping coach for Marconi?s youth league teams for several years and knows how to work with junior talent. Personally, it has been a disrupted football journey for six-foot-five Camacho (who was born in Uruguay, came to Australia for seven years when he was three before returning to his homeland for a further nine years, ultimately returning down under as a 19-year-old and raising a family), but it?s certainly taking more shape lately.
?I didn?t play much football when I was in Australia, a little bit for Fairfield Athletics, but I probably considered myself more Uruguayan back then,? he said. ?South America was a volatile place to be in the 1980s and 90s and a lot of people moved overseas due to political and economical exile ? my parents left for a mix of both. Then when I came back here [aged 19] I started studying [eventually psychology at university], got a job, got married and raised a family.?
?I felt I was a bit too old to play in the major leagues, so I started doing coaching licences,? he said. ?I first coached my son?s under-nine team at Hazelbrook, and I even played for them at a local level. Then I coached Springwood?s senior reserve grade side before moving on to Schofields, then Marconi [under-13s], and lately as goalkeepers coach for all of their youth league teams.?
?[With Nepean] It?s the perfect opportunity to start from scratch with a totally new club, and to also prove my coaching skills. I would like to impose the type of football on the players that I like to play and watch, which is attacking but with structure, possession, short passing and ball movement. Look at Spain and Barcelona: you don?t have to be big and aggressive, but you do have to be comfortable with the ball at your feet and be patient enough. Don?t be fooled, they [the top players] make it look easy, but they do a hell of a lot of running to get back behind the ball. A lot of work is done off the ball. If it?s boring, people won?t go. And because it is so hard to score goals, I think the future of football is the entertainment in between.?
?The players are very excited and we picked them for the attractive, attacking football we want to play,? Camacho said. ?So far they all look like they want the ball and have a good first touch. We?ve started off games tremendously well with a lot of ball movement, but we have to extend that to 90 minutes.?
Camacho couldn?t offer any tips for this year?s title. ?I haven?t looked at any other teams; I?m concentrating purely on our squad. Any team that?s in this league will have some quality players and I wish them all the best. We are the unknown and in a way I enjoy coming into games in that vain. I prefer to be the underdog than have the pressure on us to do well. With football it doesn?t take much to lose or win a game. Of course I?d like to win the comp but my priority is the development of players at this stage, giving local players a chance, and hopefully take the club further into State League.?
But the question on everyone?s lips is who did Camacho back when the Socceroos met Uruguay in that famous 2006 World Cup playoff? ?Definitely Australia,? he said laughing. ?But because I have such strong roots in South America I feel I can barrack for both sides, so it just depends on who is winning at the time? and Uruguay are doing very well again lately [top four World Cup, London Olympics qualification]. But I consider myself an Australian who loves going back to Uruguay.? And who wouldn?t?
NORTHBRIDGE FC
It?s not hard to read into the agenda of new division two side Northbridge FC. Having appointed a coach who learnt the ropes at Manchester City Football Club Academy and Manchester United Soccer School before joining Football Federation Australia to help out with its skills test and national participation manager programs, it?s easy to see Northbridge have set their sights on higher goals.
In fact, a club source told this Football NSW scribe that Northbridge had ambitions to become the biggest club in NSW and one of the main reasons they applied to join State League was that they were ?tired of other areas pilfering Northern Districts talent?. And with 2000 registered players at their disposal there?s no denying there?s plenty of playing stock to pull from in their own backyard.
The job of molding the club?s junior prodigies into senior stars has been given to Joe Haywood, who?s been a professional coach since the age of 18. He?s only been in Australia for three years, following the stints mentioned above in his hometown of Manchester, England, and it was during a training course with Northbridge youngsters that club officials approached him with their plans.
?I came out here [to Australia] to try something different? and while I was coaching Northbridge youth in the junior development pathway program they asked me to come and get involved in the club [at a senior level],? Haywood said. ?I saw it as a good opportunity for myself and part of the reason was to get involved in something and leave a legacy.?
?There are some great people involved at Northbridge and a great community spirit. They had a good team last year but have been able to attract players [including three who have played in Germany and two from England] because of the fantastic facilities here. The hardest thing will be to get them to gel, but they have all played at a high standard before.?
?The club has a lot of pathways for the younger players and we now have to channel that in the one direction, to the top from the bottom,? he said. ?I definitely like to run an attacking style of play, moving the ball quickly from the back to the forwards using good systems and good patterns of play.?
Like the other newcomers, Haywood couldn?t give much of a tip for this year?s title favourite. ?I?m not too sure but from what we?ve heard there will be 4-5 teams who are highly competitive and the rest will be in the middle or thereabouts, so I think the competition will split into two groups,? he said. ?l can only concentrate on what we can do as a side.?
PROSPECT UNITED
It?s a popular destination for players looking for a stable club that has a strong emphasis on community but Prospect United will show off plenty of new faces come the season start. And the man with the responsibility of bringing a new-look side together, coach Tony Caruso was adamant Prospect would be a force to be reckoned with in 2011.
?It?s virtually a brand new team,? he said. ?We had a few retirees from last year and had to recruit people in to cover those positions, and so far it?s not looking too bad at all. But we still have a lot of work to do. I?m sure we can be competitive? anything can happen, really.?
Caruso underlined what it meant to be at United when he said ?the club environment has always been great. We have tried to develop a learning environment and hopefully this will show on the park with some good results. I think every club wants to play finals football, let?s just say that hopefully all our hard work will come to fruition in round 26. Structure is a big thing in football. Long gone are the days where all you do is lots of running at training. Now it?s more about working with the ball.?
Caruso believed this year?s competition would be just as close as last year, although he hinted at a few teams that would be hard to beat. ?The General always has a good squad, so Minotaurs will be up there,? he said. ?Roosters and Luddenham will both be competitive, and I think Hakoah will be a very strong squad this year. But if injuries and suspension stay away from any team, that team will find themselves near finals football.?
ROOSTERS FC
At 26 he may be the youngest team leader in division two but Roosters coach Musti Akca comes with plenty of playing experience. The former Premier League midfielder (with Bonnyrigg White Eagles) is no stranger to the coaching reins either, a direction he is purposely steering himself toward, and his relaxed attitude could be just the calming influence Roosters need to surge back into a premiership winning position.
?I?ve been taking it easy as a player these last few years and have been at the Roosters for a while,? he said. ?I started coaching at a junior level a few years ago and was assistant coach [to Juan Ortiz] last year. Now it?s my turn in charge. At 26-years-old it?s going to be a big learning curve for me as I will be up against a mass of experience [in the other coaches], but I?m sure that the level I?ve played at previously [premier league in the summer and then lower state leagues during winter] will help.?
Understandably, Akca is just as excited as his players about the upcoming season start but acknowledged that the long year ahead was going to be a huge challenge for everyone. ?The boys are going pretty good in the fitness and we will start our trial matches soon. Losing [star player Ercan] Topal will be a big loss but the club has had a few other players come back, so I think we should be able to close that gap or at least be more attack-oriented with the players we have coming into the side.?
?[After several late injuries in 2010] This year our main priority is to stay consistent and have all the positions filled. I?m confident of doing well,? he said. ?The majority of players have been here [at the club] for a few years and we?ve had several players come up from the reserves who are maturing into good first grade players. This year they will be even better.? And playing out of the superb facilities at Hills Sports High School (on a tiger turf field) will also help lift the Roosters appeal in the area.
Akca waved off suggestions that being a young coach could hinder his ability to get players to follow his instructions. ?Every player has their ups and downs with coaches and now they have someone who is one of them,? he said. ?Having played alongside each other we understand each other a lot more, and I?m hoping that will add to the bond in the team.?
Akca?s top-three danger teams in division two came easily to him. ?No doubt Luddenham will have a good team and I would never wipe out Hurstville either, and not to forget the Wanderers? it?s going to be a very close competition.?
SPRINGWOOD UNITED
For a club that faces many challenges in keeping players in its senior sides there?s an undeniable spirit centred on player development and enjoyment at Springwood United, and it?s a positive focus embraced by a thriving Mountains community and coach Errol Warwick-Day.
?I?m big on players having good time off, particularly over Christmas and the new year, so it was a bit of an extended off-season,? he said. ?We?ve been training since January but are only just preparing for the season now; but it?s going to be a long year, with the inclusion of McDonald?s Cup games, it could be a 30-game season, so burn-out could play an important factor in any team?s chances.?
Warwick-Day said that while first grade hadn?t changed much from the side who went within a whisker of making the 2010 playoffs (finishing sixth, one point behind Roosters), the club has restructured its reserve grade side to have just a couple of older players nurturing mostly under-20 talent.
?Being in the Mountains it?s hard to entice players to the club as it is quite isolated from the rest of Sydney,? he said. ?We encourage our youth to stay on and our first grade players have been at the club for a long, long time. We do expect a lot of discipline at the club, which can also turn off a few of the younger players, but it?s a good professional environment for them to be in.?
?We know winning is not beyond us [Springwood were division two champions in 2005] and it was disappointing not to make semi-finals last year. We are doing a lot of work on our goalscoring opportunities, something that held us back a little last year [third lowest goal yield]. We?re not changing the squad much and that means the backline is still in tact. Hopefully the players we?ve added or the 20?s we?ve promoted will find the back of the net more often this year.?
Warwick-Day hoped 2011 would be as open as last year?s exciting competition that saw 10 teams in the finals race inside the closing month of games. ?That?s a hard question [picking a winner],? he said. ?The new teams are always an unknown? I?m just hoping the competition will be like last year, nice and tight, where any team can do it… that will give every side a chance to make it into the finals at the end of the year.?
2011 SEASON STARTS
Round one of the 2011 NSW Division Two season kicks off on Saturday, March 12, when Prospect United welcome Hakoah to William Lawson Reserve (5pm kick-off) and Hurstville City play Hawkesbury City under lights at Seymour Shaw Park (7pm start).
On Sunday, March 13, Chopin Park Rams tackle Springwood United at Chopin Park, Gazy Lansvale meet Nepean at Cherrybrook Park, Roosters face Belmore Hercules at Hills Sports High, Fairfield Wanderers clash with Bathurst ?75 at Knight Park, while Luddenham United take on Northbridge at Luddenham Oval (all first grade games beginning at 3pm).
Championship winning coach of Fairfield Bulls, Michael Mamoo probably summed up best what it is to be in division two when he acknowledged his counterparts following last year?s grand final victory: ?Some people say division two is nothing, that this is a nothing competition? but this is still State League,? he said. ?These are clubs that represent different areas and everyone has aspirations to go onto a higher level; and there are players in every team that could play at a Premier League level and, who knows, maybe even higher one day.?
Well said and good luck to all teams in 2011? now, let the games begin.

Round 1 Fixtures

Saturday, 12 March
Prospect United v Hakoah – William Lawson Reserve ? 5pm
Hurstville City Minotaurs v Hawkesbury City SC – Seymour Shaw ? 7pm
Sunday, 13 March 2011
Chopin Park Rams FC v Springwood – Chopin Park ? 3pm
Gazy Lansvale v Nepean FC – Cherrybrook Park ? 3pm
Roosters FC v Belmore Hercules – Hills Sport High ? 3pm
Fairfield Wanderers FC v Bathurst 75 – Knight Park No.4 ? 3pm
Luddenham United v Northbridge FC – Luddenham Oval ? 3pm
-By Daniel de Nardi