Club Focus: Greenacre Eagles ready for FFA Cup

With the third round of the Westfield FFA Cup just a few days away, the excitement levels are building for the local grassroots teams across the state.

For the Bankstown District Amateur Football Association based Greenacre Eagles, the Cup represents a chance for the players to instill some pride back into the Greenacre name and revitalise the beautiful game in the community.

John Tzovaras, coach of the Greenacre Eagles All-Age side, is quietly confident of his team’s chances against Central Coast Association’s Berkeley Vale this Saturday.

As a former junior player for the Greenacre Eagles, John has a strong passion for the club.

He only rejoined the Eagles last year at 37, after he and friend Nicholas Philippou decided to email the Greenacre club to convince them to enter a team back into the Bankstown District Amateur Football Association (BDAFA). 

“They were a pretty big club for quite a few years and they hadn’t had a premier league side for about 10 years,” says John. 

“So we thought why don’t we just email them and see what happens. One thing led to another and we became their [BDAFA] Premier League team.”

The team consists of a close-knit group of locals from the Greenacre area, with many of them meeting through the club as juniors.

“We started playing last year for Greenacre, but we’ve known each other for about 10 years through the soccer scene. We’ve played against each other and we’re local to each other so we’d always bump into one another.

“Then we just decided to get a bunch of blokes who had actually played for Greenacre when they were 16, 17… up until 20.  

“In the off-season we decided straight away to enter the Westfield FFA Cup to compare ourselves and compare what our league has to offer against external leagues.”

The Eagles will be no easy-beats, with a strong contingent of players in the team who have had State League experience. These include the likes of Paul Paras, Mariano Gallo and captain Nicholas Phillippou. Greenacre also boast some international flavour, with former Cypriot Division 2 League player Giannous Theophanous in the squad.

John believes this experienced playing roster has had a massive impact on the playing group.

“When it comes to local clubs and having the experienced players in your side who are coming to the end of a really strong playing career… you can see it on the field. For the other guys… it’s just follow the leader.

“The experienced guys present themselves professionally before the game, during the game and you can see it starts having an effect on the whole team.”

The Greenacre players aren’t short on confidence or self-belief, and John says this just feeds the passion the team has for the community.

“We know that if we do progress from this first game that we’ll be playing another grassroots team so the guys are all really keen and looking forward to the Westfield FFA Cup.

“When you go to training, they’re like kids when you mention the word ‘Westfield FFA Cup’. They’re mid-20 to 30 years old and they just get excited.

“They tell me ‘Don’t worry coach, we can do this,’ which is massive, the commitment factor is amazing. You look at the Westfield FFA Cup and a league game for example but to them the FFA Cup means more to them at the moment then the league competition. It’s a challenge that they want, to see where they stand and to show people that Greenacre is competitive and is playing to go as far as we can.”

The rest of the Greenacre Eagles club has thrown its support behind the team for the Westfield FFA Cup, a competition that is inspiring the juniors of the area.

“Within the club, I’ve been telling parents, coaches and kids as well,” says John. “The younger guys ask “The Westfield FFA Cup, what’s that?” and you explain what it is and their eyes just light up when they realise you play other clubs form different areas for prizes and exposure. It’s amazing,”

John is predicting a big turn out for the game on Saturday, which will be played at Greenacre’s spiritual home ground, Allum Park, a ground that hasn’t seen a game like this for quite a few years.

“The backing from the community has been massive. We’re going to possibly get a couple of hundred spectators from within our club, the parents and kids, coming along to support us on Saturday. Any other club within the Bankstown area that’s not playing they’re going to come and have a look at what’s on offer as well.”

While his players are full of confidence, John knows that it will be a tough task against a strong Berkeley Vale outfit that will take no prisoners. He says his side will have the added motivation of playing in front of the Greenacre community.

“Realistically when you look at it, there’s a bit of pressure on our team to perform and to show that even if we do lose, that we have a go… because that’s what it’s about, putting Greenacre and the Bankstown area on the map.”

“It’s a big showpiece and a boost to the local community, who may watch football but don’t understand what it’s about. It’s increasing the profile of the game and the club.”

Although he doesn’t want to give too many secrets away, John says there a few factors that he believes will carry his team to victory on Saturday.

“It’s enthusiasm, the commitment to training, the level-headedness because they’re not really getting ahead of themselves. And we’ve got a point to prove after obviously Greenacre not being in the Bankstown Premier League for 10 years, it time to show people that it’s just like the old Greenacre. We’ve got that multi-cultural side in us that cover a lot of backgrounds and we want to showcase to the local community that they should support the Westfield FFA Cup, support the team that’s representing them.”

SQUAD: Nicholas Philippou, Paris Hadji, Jonn Mavridis, Necta Philippou, Paul Paras, Simon Bailey, Peter Manetas, Paul Constantinou, Aiman Akkari, Mark Collard, Omar Elmustapha, Yiannos Theofanoys, Mariano Gallo, Andrew Christie, Adam Borg

-By Harry Easton