Social Club Artefact Wednesdays - Soccer Australia flag

This was going to be the first 'object of interest', before I reneged and went instead for the 1966 West Adelaide pennant. This flag, with the classic Soccer Australia logo, was possibly flown over the grandstand or on one of the flagpoles at the lake end of Bob Jane Stadium during NSL matches, or perhaps during the few representative matches Australian sides played at Lakeside.

True story. I once saw an old lurid green Soccer Australia tracksuit jacket at Laverton Market. I did not buy it. I regret that decision every time I think about this flag. Same deal with a black Melbourne Zebras t-shirt which I could have had for $2. What was I thinking?

On a side note, dear Hestia, goddess of the 'hearth, architecture, and the right ordering of domesticity', when we do build our new social club, please make it the first order of business that we get some better carpet.

Those wacky campers

Found while doing inventory a few months ago.

Three Years Tops!

As per usual, as the anniversary of the blog's foundation comes along, I would like to thank certain people and organisations for several things that happened over the past year - if I've missed you and you think you should be in, the fault is all mine.

I'd like to start off by thanking The Kiss of Death for its weekly articles - apart from taking my least favourite task of match previews away from me, your writing and style improved markedly as the season went on - and it was hilarious when people thought I was responsible for those entries. Blogger for finally improving the heck out of their blogging platform - it's made everything much prettier and easier to handle. Everyone who commented on a page who wasn't a spammer. People who linked articles on here to other places. GoalWeekly for publishing my match report and my book reviews. Half Time Heroes for also publishing my book reviews. Thanks to the people behind the Bolasepako and Jakarta Casual blogs, of course - thanks to the Singapore Cup, we had the opportunity to discuss issues of common ground.

I would also like to extend my thanks to Paul Conroy - I only saw him once this year, but the reassurance that he provided about a certain controversial article was very much appreciated. Gains and Johnny Diegan for helping me write a match report. Those two again with Steve from Broady, great public and private transport traveling companions to seemingly every stupid corner of this city. Nick (Go Pies!), Cuddles and Tony, as per usual. Ian Syson for some reason.

And lastly thanks to everyone who continues to read this guff and visit this site. I'd still write it if you didn't come by, but the fact that people do, and the positive feedback I get makes it far more worthwhile.

Relatively succint notes from the 2010 AGM

Where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom!

Last year's AGM was a riotous affair, and suitably so. The club's existence was on the line. This year's threatened to be riotous for other reasons with a threatened rival ticket and anger over the consequences of the pitch invasion against Heidelberg. Neither happened. In fact, this was the AGM I'd been waiting for. Robust questioning from a reasonable variety of people - though there's always room for improvement - without it becoming an out an out shouting match. Since it is an AGM, with the expectation that the broader public should not have access to the in depth details, I'll be brief.

The club almost made a profit - the forecast is for one to occur soon. The ground is scheduled to be finished by August 2011. The social club renovations will hopefully begin by December 2011. The club will play all its home games out of Northcote next year. The re-unification with the junior set up has gone smoothly - talks with the women's wing are continuing. the VPL clubs have seemingly made important steps to banding together for their own good. The FFA's review of all state competitions has not yet released its terms of reference. Confirmed blue and white running track. IAAF standard scoreboard which we will have access to.

There were two overall pleasing things about today (apart from the improved financial situation). One was the fact, whether it was because of me asking so many questions in the last three or so years or others doing so, board members presentations have improved out of sight, and I believe them when they say that they want people to ask questions (it was also good to see the front rows rather than only the back tables being taken up - me, a trendsetter!). The other thing being that the club, from its position just two or three years ago, where there was no hope, no vision and no ability to plan for the future outside of just surviving, could actually present a short term schedule and vision of what's going to happen in several areas. It was part revelation, part collective sigh of relief.

That's what I want to see more of.

AGM on this week or something

You know, I had this massive post in the pipeline about this, my most favourite South related event of the year. And then, just like that, another anti climax. For you see, this year is an election year. Last time elections were due, a month or two before this blog was born, there were rumours of a rival ticket being formed. They were allegedly seeking to take the club back to its Greek roots, which they had claimed had been tossed aside.

Concerned supporters met up in a semi-clandestine fashion to prepare themselves for this challenge. But no rival ticket emerged. A couple of people joined the board, and that was it. The fretting was not for nothing, as there were other pursuits this half-arsed supporter group managed to, er, pursue before internal divisions and apathy took their toll, but the immediate threat from one of the many reactionary contingents at South failed to even materialise.

Three years down the track, the rumours started again, this time from the people allegedly seeking to run for office. The threats and the clash of ideas, while they lasted, were more obvious. Not only had the club thrown away its Hellenic soul, it had been run by incompetent fools who thought they owned the club. The time was ripe for people who actually cared about the club to take over, or rather take back the reins.

But who were these people exactly? Seemingly none other than people who had been involved during the NSL years, such as Manny Anezakis and George Vasilopooulos. For many fans these names, while associated with the club's glory years, are also inevitably linked - and not without justification - to where the club found itself in the post-NSL era.

While ready to listen to the arguments put forward by representatives or supporters of such a faction as to how they could run this club better than the current mob, the personal attacks made by them don't make me think highly of such candidates. As much as I have and do disagree with many of the actions and positions held by members of the current board, the reality is I don't think I could honestly say that anyone of them considers the club their personal fiefdom.

And as to the argument that they are incompetent, the obvious riposte is if they are incompetent - and if this is true it has surely been so for a long time - why have no others in the many years following our exile to the VPL taken up the cause for the club and against the incumbents? The timing of the redevelopment deal money coming in makes such moves seem suspicious. For all their faults, this board has been the only one that has been prepared to do something to keep the club afloat.



Extended tenure is not a good enough reason to vote for or against something. It is the the vision and the arguments that count. But does that even matter, when it actuality, no rival tickets have put their names forward? It doesn't preclude from a surprise on Sunday - this is South after all - but it does seem to mean that perhaps this year's AGM will follow a slightly more predictable course - the pitch invasion; the court case; the sacking of Vaughan Coveny; the hiring of Eddie Krnecevic; looking for a general manager; fixturing; and hopefully all sorts of interesting discussions.

Lastly, it appears that apart from the current members of the board who are seeking re-election, only one person outside of that group has put their name forward for nomination - one George Kouroumalis, who has been involved with the club for several years principally with the club's multimedia and marketing wing. If that's true, there are few people I would like to see on the board more than George, as his dedication to the club has been prominent for several years at a volunteer level - and it shows also that there is a place for those volunteers to make the step up.

It won't require a popular vote, as South's unwieldy constitution - which still doesn't exist in a computer friendly format - allows for a ridiculous amount of members on its board. Though to place a caveat on that claim, as the former Morwell Falcons president Don Di Fabrizio once explained to me, it doesn't matter how large your board is, as long as everyone is actually doing something then it's not an issue.

The merits of this board's tenure are up to each South member to judge for themselves - for what it's worth, I think they could have done better. But they could have also done worse. Finding themselves in the most difficult position the club has ever found itself in, they've managed to keep the club together long enough, through the disappearance of our sporting, social and media profile, perhaps even our relevance, to the point where there is a light at the end of the tunnel - a possible future prosperity from which who knows what possibilities are available.

Singapore Cup quarter final videos

There's a lot of footage to take in - 45 minutes in all, over 3 parts - so rather than embed the videos or spread them out over several days, I'm going to just post the links to the youtube locations. Part 1 takes in the arrival, preparation and first leg highlights. Even though we got comprehensively beaten, our goal after a long period of maintaining possession was a positive sigh of what this team can produce - though the factors of a flat playing surface and an opposition playing style which eschews a hard press over collecting stray passes must also be considered.

Part 2 contains the end of the first leg, the post-match press conferences, discussions with the players about the game, and the first beginning of the highlights set from the second leg. Part 3 contains the remainder of the second leg, post-match press conference, and more player talk. I must say, the production values are excellent, and all credit must go to the volunteers who headed over there, but most importantly who've honed their skills over an extended period of time to get to this standard of work.

Lakeside redevelopment, October 1st 2010, photo by Nearmap

Took a while to be uploaded by the folks at Nearmap, and its not quite a substitute for photos from within the construction site, but what the hell.

It's not cajun, it's burnt

OK, so I ripped that line straight from Hangin' With Mr. Cooper, but it doesn't lessen the impact of that pearl of wisdom - that there is a difference between a smoky charcoal flavour and carbon. Otherwise the food at last night's gala ball was good, helped by the fact that I am now becoming accustomed to the smaller portions dished out at these events.

Anyway, enough about the food. Board member and Jimmy Armstrong endorsed 2004 saviour of the club George Koukoulas decided that there was no better opportunity to rip out some killer dance moves, and good luck to him for doing so. Sure, there's the quote by Cicero that 'sane men do not dance', but Cicero was apparently also a terribly inconsistent and malleable piece of work; whose rhetoric and reputation was tarnished even in contemporary times for being prone to constantly changing his opinions to suit the prevailing political winds. Am I headed that way too? Perhaps.

Crown Casino, in its quest to have everyone become lost in its labyrinthine mess - and preferably in the gaming room part - doesn't seem to provide floor maps of its extensive facilities. I was able to find out that Studio 3 was where the old Heat nightclub used to be, but of course that means nothing to me. Whatever, I managed to find the place easily enough. Just another razzle dazzle function room with staff who struggle to hold their drinks even before patrons get to the trollied stage. As a person who generally abstains from drinking, it's no skin off my back. I'm more concerned about the staff member who took away a friend's main course from right under his nose, without asking him if he was finished, and even as said friend was still had a mouthful of food. Is this what we paid so much for?

Anyway, there the usual retrospectives of the season, Jimmy Armstrong talked about the club's London trip to receive our Oceania Club of the Century award, and there was also a recap of the Singapore adventure. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of two Sam Papasavas Awards, for outstanding service to the club, to Michael Dimoudis and George Kouroumalis. Both have worked tirelessly especially in the fields of media and promotions. The tv show, the youtube stuff, enhanced marketing, website renewal, radio, membership, databasing and so much more, all of these things would either not have happened or would have been in a far more parlous state had these two not given their extended time and efforts in these areas.

Should one be listening to Tasmanian black metal this early on a Sunday morning? Could be worse I guess - I could still be back in Studio 3, or at any of the after parties, listening to Apollo knows what kind of hellish music, unsuitable for moderately pretentious indie ears. Anyways, a good time was had, and congratulations to Michael and George on their achievements.

Gala ball is on Saturday night

A little pricey, but should be an interesting night, once again at Crown, but this time at Studio 3 rather than the Palladium.

Second leg, South Melbourne 3 Bangkok Glass 3 - Aggregate score 4-6

Faced with a two goal deficit from the first leg, South went out with an unchanged starting lineup, and began the game brightly, gaining the upper hand in the territorial battle at least and winning free kicks in dangerous areas and the occasional corner. It seemed that rather than Bangkok Glass sitting back it was Hellas that was on top in general play.

De Nittis had a great chance on 19 minutes, but failed to hit the target from the penalty spot. A penalty shout was turned down on 24 minutes after a tense moment for the Thai defense. On 26 minutes, poor communication between Stefaan Sardelic and his defense saw the Glass Rabbits open the scoring against the run of play, leaving South a mountain to climb.

Gianni De Nittis made up for his earlier miss by finishing some good lead up work by Daniel Vasilevski on 30 minutes to level the match at 1-1, and reduce the aggregate margin once more to two goals. It was a match marred by several poor tackles from the Thai side, which mostly went unpunished. De Nittis was fouled in the box on 36 minutes and Fernando De Moraes stepped up and slotted home the penalty to give South the lead, and reduce the margin to one goal on aggregate.

Bangkok Glass stepped up after that setback however, and leveled the match on 40 minutes after taking advantage of slack defending. A late corner for South saw Recchia clatter into the opposition keeper and receive a yellow card, and the two sides head into half time locked at 2-2 for the game and the Glass Rabbits 5-3 up on aggregate.

De Nittis couldn't make the most of a difficult chance early in the second half, and Bangkok Glass sought to hit back with chances of their own. Fifteen minutes into the second half, the Glass Rabbits failed to capitalise on a good move which saw them get numbers into the box. De Nittis, played through by Jesse Krncevic, hit the ball to the keeper on 64 minutes.

After several minutes of mostly subdued play, De Nittis gave South another glimmer of hope with 16 minutes to go by heading in a goal over the keeper, setting the scene for a tense finish. Soon after the latest go ahead goal, Krncevic failed to get a shot on goal after the pass from Rhodri Payne came a little behind the returning striker. Rhodri Payne made an incredible run forward but the ball was cleared off the line from De Nittis shot. The need to send players forward eventually cost South however, with Bangkok leveling the game again, and putting the game out of reach with their superior finishing - though their third goal did come off a deflection. The game then petered out towards its close, with only the antics of the Bankgok players giving the game any sort of genuine interest, though for the wrong reasons.

It was a sterling effort by South over the two legs despite the result, as the team sought to attack their more credentialed opponents, though the Blues had every right to sit back and attempt to play a cautious counter attacking style. The superior conditioning of the Thai side was telling in the first leg, as was their goalscoring, demonstrating the difference in class between the two sides - one wonders what could have been had Joe Keenan been available, he being the best finisher in the side. The gamesmanship of the Thais was brought into question into several times by the commentary crew, particularly the feigning of injuries - something frowned upon in Australia, where physicality in football is celebrated (for better and worse). One could spin it positively though, by interpreting it as a measure of the credit that our boys had earned from their opponents, that they resorted to those tactics.

Looking to next year, there are a number of questions that have been thrown up, such as why do we still persist with short corners? The question of whether Sardelic has done enough to cement himself in the number one keeper spot is up in the air - after so many years of struggling to find a reasonable first choice keeper, and believing we'd found that player in Peter Zois, his defection to Oakleigh leaves us with a tough choice to make. Do we go with the youngster, very much still untested and inexperienced, but who has certainly paid his dues in the reserves for several years? Or do we go for the safer option of forking out big money to someone with a more established reputation?

Krncevic seems to have already slotted in nicely, while Gianni De Nittis seemed to find a bit of form - but how many times have we said that about him in the past few years? Though he did seems to be working well with Krncevic. The midfield created enough chances and more than held their own over stretches of the two matches, but defensively we still seem susceptible, especially conceding goals despite the opposition having few chances. The fight for defensive spots will be hot next year, with the arrival of Lukmon Anifaloyin meaning that someone is going to miss out.

As to whether the club seeks to participate again next season, my guess would be that it's pretty doubtful - the ability to not only get a capable group of players on the plane away from their work commitments on more than one occasion during the year, but also to deal with the fact that the latter stages, should we make them fall into the VPL off-season, means that preparation is never ideal. Logistically, for a volunteer run organisation, it's also a massive task, though they seemed to handle it rather well for the most part.

A massive thank you to the team providing the radio stream, commentator John Kyrou, special comments man George Kouroumalis, and tech guy Michael Dimoudis. The first leg presentation was good; the second leg presentation was great. Thanks also to Paul Zarogiannis for the camerawork, whose efforts will be seen hopefully in the coming week. Great job boys, we'll see you back in Melbourne soon.

Match report via S-League's official site

RHB Singapore Cup: South Melbourne skinned in second half

Bhaskaran Kunju
info@sleague.com

South Melbourne’s bid to progress further in the Singapore Cup faced a setback as they crashed 1-3 to Thai outfit Bangkok Glass in the first leg of their quarterfinal tie at Jalan Besar Stadium.

The Australian part-timers took the lead first through Daniel Vasilevski after just 20 minutes in a keenly-contested tie, but a second half fight back by the Glass Rabbits, spearheaded by Gbenga Samuel Ajayi, floored the Victorian Premier League side.

While South Melbourne had fatigue as well as a short preparation time working against them, it was the introduction of Ajayi just over 10 minutes after the restart that completely changed the course of the game.

Two assists and one goal from the super-sub turned the tie on its head and broke Hellas hearts, though the slim scoreline also leaves the prospect of a close second leg and much to take from an otherwise tight affair.

Eddie Krncevic, the South Melbourne coach, was unperturbed by the result, readily accepting the inherent gulf between the two teams.

“There’s a big difference between a professional team and a part-time team, you can see it,” said the former Australia international.

“I thought we did quite well considering that we have only been training for three and a half weeks. The first goal we scored for me was world class but we tired, you can see it.

“Once again, complete difference between professionalism and part-timers, we can see all our boys cramping up towards the end. But its a good experience.”

Krncevic however conceded that his team’s preparations for the game had not been ideal, though he refused to press on the disadvantages as excuses.

“We spent 16 hours (in flight and transit), not that it’s an excuse but it didn’t help. However it was a big difference, like I said, between being a professional outfit and part-timers,” added the former Belgian First Division top scorer.

“The conditions weren’t agreeable. Melbourne’s been cold for the last couple of months, obviously Bangkok is in similar conditions (to here) so it suits them,” he claimed.

“And obviously Bangkok were here at the tail end of their season, so they had more rhythm. They came with 26 players, we came with 15. To me I saw some positives and we’re going to prepare for 2011.

“When we were fresh we played okay, an example is the goal that we scored. There were some nice touches and a beautiful finish.

“And we tired 15 minutes before the end of the first half. Up until then we had the legs. It was very hot for us, we’re not used to the climate it’s obviously and advantage for Bangkok Glass. But I’m not taking anything away from Bangkok Glass.

“I thought the No.9 when he came on, he really changed the game for Bangkok Glass. No doubt.”

The No.9, Ajayi, was revealed by his coach, Carlos Roberto de Carvalho, to have been below a hundred percent fit prior to the game, which explained his exclusion from the starting lineup.

Apart from him, former S.League regular Sutee Suksomkit was also left on the bench, making only a five-minute cameo towards the end of the game.

Carvalho revealed that the Thailand international had been in treatment for the past three months for a knee injury, and was making his first return to action against South Melbourne.

The absence of the key players from the Bangkok starting eleven was evident in the stuttering start the team made, as nobody was able to establish control of the game until Vasilevski’s opener.

The midfielder, who also netted in the previous round against Gombak United, calmly finished off a neat one-two just inside the penalty box with a powerful left-footed shot that left Klisana Klunklin no chance at all.

The Thais’ only response was a series of long-range efforts, with Sarun Promkeaw coming the closest as his shot from outside the penalty area ten minutes from the break was acrobatically tipped over at full stretch by the young Stefaan Sardelic.

But Sarun would eventually open the scoring for Bangkok Glass right on the hour mark, and it was the lively Ajayi who was the architect.

The forward cleverly worked his way down the left flank and to the byline, before pulling back to the unmarked Sarun, who had to apply the simplest of finishes from just outside the six-yard box and with a clear view on goal.

The introduction of Ajayi, as well as the concession of the equaliser, clearly weighed heavily on the part-timers’ capabilities, as they were fully stretched in all departments.

Just ten minutes after the equaliser, Ajayi put his team in front himself after latching on to a through ball from Kunihiko Takizawa. His effort, though weak and aimed low at the near post, managed to deceive the inexperienced Sardelic.

But Sardelic could not be blamed for the third goal eight minutes from time, as this time Chatree Chimtale bravely dove on to the ball inches from the open goalmouth after Ajayi had powered his way past three defenders to chip into empty space inside the six-yard box.

Carvalho was a calm presence after his team’s shaky win, but accepted it was always going to be a difficult tie.

“It wasn’t going to be easy because both teams were a little bit tired,” said the former Brazil international.

“We had a team that knew how to win. But football is football, inside the field it’s not easy.

“I’m not surprised (with how South Melbourne started). Our team started well, but after that we lost concentration, that’s why they scored.

“After that we controlled the game, we got more possession of the ball and we had some chances. But we didn’t play so well in the first half, second half was okay, much better.”

The former Thailand national coach also let in on his team’s preparations for the second leg, as well as their expectations.

“Today we enjoy this win. Tomorrow we start to do (training). Tomorrow we have one friendly for players who did not play today or didn’t have enough time to play,” he said.

“We must respect the other team. Football is football inside the field. Today’s game is history. The second game will be another history.”

With the tie balanced at just a two-goal margin, Krncevic was also aware that the possibility of salvaging an aggregate win was a possibility.

“How we recover is very important now (for the next game),” said the 50-year-old.

“We’ll get the boys back into ice baths and hot spas. And hopefully feel a little better come Friday.

“So we’re not going to give up. We’re not saying we’re giving up. We’ll try to go out and win the game on Friday.”

South on verge of exiting Singapore Cup

An early goal by Daniel Vasilevski has been overshadowed by a second half defensive collapse, seeing us go down 3-1 to Bangkok Glass in the first leg. A possible sending off that wasn't for the Glass Rabbits in the first half might have swung the game a different way, but you've got to deal with the hand you're dealt. Away goals don't count for double, but it's hard to see us coming back in the second leg - the professionalism and class of the Thai side, as well as the difference in playing depth and adjustment to the conditions, will likely to be too much of a hurdle in attempting to overcome a two goal deficit. And in truth, it probably should have been more. Still, one can hope that the side can adjust its tactics and turn this tie around - but it's long odds from here.

Singapore Cup tie to be streamed over radio

After being required to follow the opening round on gambling sites and Facebook, it'll be good this time to have something more substantial provided by the club itself. Apparently the second leg is being broadcast by one of the television networks over there, but the rights are far too expensive for the club to buy. I can understand that. If people manage to find online streams, good luck to them - if not, the radio broadcast should be good enough. Both matches start at 10:30pm Australian Eastern Daylight Savings Time.

Squad for Singapore Cup tie against Bangkok Glass annnounced

You can check out the full article here. In short, some new faces that apparently Eddie Krncevic wants to use next year; in goals, relying on Stefaan Sardelic and under 21s keeper George Malliaras - I suppose the one upshot of Peter Zois cutting and running is that some of our younger boys get a go, including some other players from this year's championship winning under 21 squad - even if they don't play, I'm sure they'll find it a worthwhile experience. No Keenan, who is on duty at Adelaide United. And Joseph Youssef has quit the club due to 'work and personal commitments'. It's good to have Fernando in the squad this time.

Zois signs with the Cannons - Out of Singapore Cup squad

All the way back in December 2009, when I posted this clip of South's new recruits introducing or re-introducing themselves to the South family, I told you it was not for the squeamish. I readily admit that I was holding back somewhat - I could have easily said not for the diabetic, the credulous, the incredulous and people who are quick to joy and then anger caused by their own relentless and relentlessly undermined optimism. And so Peter Zois has packed his bags, the latest in a long line of exits down the freeway to the railway track and industrial estate of Jack Edwards Reserve: Ricky Diaco, Robbie Wynne, Trent Waterson, Yusuf Yusuf, Scot MacNicol. I suppose the one sobering thing that we as South fans can take from this is that none of those players went on to bigger and better things - indeed many of them went backwards.

The ancient Cynics might have had a chuckle at the foolhardy exclamations made by Zois and the fans over the course of 2010, mostly to do with loyalty and the South cause. The manner of the exit leaves something to be desired, mind you - so close to the deadline for finalising details for the Singapore Cup quarter finals, and as a traitor in any sense of the word, he deserves to cop hell - hey, it's an emotional game. But I'm reminded also of this rambling post I made in October 2008, about what factors other than money might and can have an influence. And part of the reason I wrote that is because money is seldom the reason that clubs and players will openly say is 90% of a decision depends on. Last December, in reply to the question, why did you sign with South Melbourne, Zois answered 'great history, great culture, biggest club outside the A-League', and continued with 'buzz, club moving forward, out of the box thinking'. When asked who he was looking forward to playing with the most, he said 'everyone'.

So all of a sudden, the buzz is gone, the forward movement has hit reverse and all our thinking is now firmly back inside boxes sealed with that crappy brown tape that's always manages to twist itself into stupid knots. And not only that - our history, our culture and our status as biggest club outside the A-League - all gone - and 'everyone' is no fun to play with anymore. I don't know whether or not any of these things have really changed that much in the ten months that Pete has spent at Lakeside. It'd be a pity if it they had, but somehow I doubt it.

Kiss of Death Awards 2010

I know that we here at South of the Border farewelled our Kiss of Death correspondent earlier this month, as it decided to seek newer, more expansive and as yet not fully elaborated pastures - but we've managed to eek out one more entry, a bit of an awards special, as the Kiss of Death had seen and spoken on a fair few matches and personalities this year. The usual South of the Border awards will be dished out after we exit (or hell, even win, lol) from the Singapore Cup.



2010 KOD Player of the year: Fernando Jorge Lima de Moraes, better known as Nando. Nando this season performed at his best. Even in the games where he was injured, he did his best from the sidelines. Nando lived up to his cult hero status down at South Melbourne and always delivered when required. A statue will be erected in his honour down at the new Lakeside Stadium.

2010 Most overrated team: Bentleigh Greens. What a flop they were. Started off well by winning the Hellenic Cup, but that was about it. The KOD called this very very early on during the Hellenic Cup. A number of arguments ensued with a certain someone who persisted that they would win the championship because they had money and plenty of it. How wrong they were, and how right I was.

2010 Most overrated player: Osagie Ederaro. The pastry chef apprentice failed to deliver and be a real menace this season. Other than his impersonations of Eddie the Eel, he didn’t shine as expected.

2010 Overachievers: Northcote City Hercules. What a season. I wrote them off during the Hellenic Cup as a team who would be lucky to win five games all season. I have eaten humble pie many times over this. Great work by Peter Tsolakis and all the players down at Darebin. Well Done.

2010 Underachievers: South Melbourne Hellas. Well, where do I start. Possibly the best squad ever assembled in the history of Victorian premier league football. Failed to deliver when it was needed, and was persistent with drawing winnable games.

2010 Worst Off Field Professor: Lucky Chrisomalidis. To come out and say that Bentleigh Greens would win the Premier League based on the players/coach and a never ending money stream was just ridiculous.

2010 Best Off Field Professor: Myself. Tipping countless results including correct scores, and making people millions.

2010 Starting 11 of the year:
GK: Peter Zois (South Melbourne Hellas)
DEF: Dean Fak (Green Gully Cavaliers)
DEF: Steven O’Dor (South Melbourne Hellas)
DEF: Antun Kovacic (Richmond Eagles)
MID: Fernando Jorge Lima De Moraes (South Melbourne Hellas)
MID: Dejan Radojicic (Altona Magic)
MID: Joseph Keenan (South Melbourne Hellas)
MID: James Kalifatidis (Northcote City Hercules)
MID: Jean Dubois  (Melbourne Croatia)
FOR: Trent Rixon (Northcote City Hercules)
FOR: Richard Cardozo (Hume City)

Subs:
GK: Nikola Roganovic (Green Gully Cavaliers)
DEF: Rama Tavsancioglu (South Melbourne Hellas)
DEF: Con Anthopoulos (Bentleigh Greens)
MID: Craig Elvin (Heidelberg United Alexander)
MID: Scott Bulloch (Dandenong Thunder)
FOR: Osagie Ederaro (Heidelberg United Alexander)
FOR: Joshua Groenewald (Green Gully Cavaliers)

Fernando De Moraes 2010 video compilation

Notes from the 2010 VPL grand final

In all honesty, I was most looking forward to attending this game because of the opportunity to see what all the fuss was about regarding the new Bubbledome Stadium. And unless I have a sudden change of heart regarding attendance of the A-League, this was set to be a very opportunity indeed.

Outside the ground, memories come flooding back, with one in particular standing out - it hasn't gotten any easier to find parking on that side of the precinct, with my crew ending up on the other side of the MCG. Walking past the food stalls around that ground, we were a little perplexed by one of the stalls selling something called Albanian marinated chicken rolls. We didn't bother sampling, with my reasoning being, if it's not cooked in a garage kitchen, it's not authentic Albanian food.

Anyway, outside the ground, it seemed like everyone that has ever been associated with Green Gully was bussed in, which meant mostly lots of juniors and their parents attending perhaps their first ever Gully game - there may have been a couple left over from their 2005 championship win, but I doubt it too much. I like the gimmick, and hopefully we can make it there next year so we can do the same, but the resulting atmosphere was dead for the entire match except for the goals.  I doubt whether 90% of the Gully fans knew who any of the players were.

Speaking of random fan appearances, the Heyington Bridge Crew, or at least people resembling it, turned up to their first game in... I don't know how to count that far. Our once upon a time sorta kinda colleague and/or collaborator Neil Zimmerman was there, had a very brief chat with him. Seems in good health. Overall, seemingly very poor turnout by the Richmond faithful. Obviously they couldn't or didn't think to pull of the Green Gully juniors bus in stunt, and I know they have low numbers and there wasn't much to get excited about last night, but still a very low presence.

The game itself was pretty poor. Gully are a grinding team. Always have been when I've watched them. Yesterday they actually tried playing football, and it was somehow even more tedious to watch than their drudgery. Still, it was better than Richmond's virtual non-appearance at the game for about 70 of the alloted 93 minutes. There was no energy, no creativity, no nothing. The second goal they conceded was especially poor, with Graham Hockless dribbling a a terrible shot in from about the penalty spot - with our crew behind the goals thinking surely Richmond goalkeeper Stephen Gal (who had a terrible game in general) will at least dive to stop it going in, hell, even just walk across and pick it up, the ball rolled slowly past him after which he dived like he was going lie down on a couch.

Richmond were resorting to long balls, looked slow and uncoordinated, but the managed to pick themselves up a bit in the second half, to no avail. It seemed to me that they should have received some clear penalties, but the referees last night were clearly on Gully's side, especially the linesman on the crowd side, who kept giving thrown ins to Gully even when it seemed utterly clear they should have gone the other way. Eventually Gully got a terrible penalty awarded to them, and that was finally that. Richmond finally came up against a team that didn't waste chance after chance and didn't stick Kyle Joryeff on the right wing when what was needed was Sebastian Petrovic to shut down the game when you're 2-0 up. Ahem.

If I was to have a guess, and it would only be a guess, I reckon the crowd would have been around the 2000 mark. The figure wasn't announced unlike previous VPL grand finals that I've been to. The venue itself is fantastic, viewing quality is amazing pretty much wherever you sit, though I think elevating the stands a little more above the level of the playing field would have improved the viewing quality even further - the rows immediately behind the goals seem to suffer the most. It felt odd after so many years of traipsing around local grounds to be at a soccer match with a video scoreboard, this feeling coming despite watching Socceroos matches at Docklands and the MCG. Is this something we can look forward to at South at the new improved Lakeside? I sure hope so.

Security and amenities seemed quite all over the place though. The usual bag checks took place, but there were no cavity searches for flares. I suppose they deemed it unnecessary what with the two clubs that had reach the grand final having no hardcore ultras kulcha. There was, surprisingly, a little bit of argle bargle involving a Green Gully fan. Green Gully, the club that tells us they aren't really Maltese (or are they) had one bloke decked out in a full on Malta jacket. I'm not saying that's nor right, you can make of that what you will though. The choice of food was of course, poor. It's the VPL, but with no chevaps or souvs. I hope this isn't the future the FFV has planned for everyone, and yes I know they don't control the food outlets, but it's a pretty distressing picture of Australia's and soccer's multiculturalism when the most appealing and diverse food seems to be the usual cow(?) guts and hooves stuck in a roll or flaky pastry. The match program consisted of a single A4 sheet of paper with squad lists, and they couldn't even get that right, screwing up the number order of Green Gully's team. I'd put up a sample, but I threw mine away in disgust.

From a South watch point of view, apparently Rhodri Payne was there, but I don't remember seeing him. Fernando was there. Eddie Krncevic was there, obviously with his son playing it would be remiss of him not to attend. Jesse Krncevic did little to endear me to the possibility of taking him back to cure our striking problems. After the game and the presentations we tried getting into the MCG to watch the last quarter of the Bulldogs/Swans game, but apparently the free entry after three quarter time caper no longer exists. A pity, that. What we were left with on the night, was a lot of what could have been and what might possibly bes, and a stupid joke involving Heidelberg, Green Gully merchandise and FK Pelister. If that makes any sense whatsoever.

Kiss of Death, Grand Final Edition 2010

I’m only doing this edition due to the amount of fan mail I have been getting the last week, begging for a Grand Final preview. The VPL died for me at the end of the home and away season. I will not be attending the Grand Final, and I certainly don’t give a dead dingo's donger who wins it. But suffice, I will preview it to appease my 72,000+ fans who have absolutely buried me in snail mail and emails.

Here it goes… (thinks of something stupid to open the preview with) Ah ha! Got it. AAMI Park this Saturday evening hosts the VPL Grand Final of season 2010 at 7pm. Conveniently parking will be easy to find with the Western Bulldogs taking on the Sydney Swans at the MCG at 7.20pm. Seriously what are the head honchos thinking? Scheduling a VPL final across the road from an AFL Semi Final which will most likely attract a crowd of 50,000+ fans. Do you think the AFL fans are worrying about parking? Do you think that the pittance of Green Gully and Richmond fans will be there early enough (around 4.30pm) to secure their spots somewhere around AAMI Park? Me thinks not. Anyone with a smidgen of a brain would’ve scheduled the VPL Grand Final at a venue appropriate to the average VPL crowd of 1,200. Let me remind you of some suitable venues. Knights Stadium, Epping Stadium, Olympic Village, hell even Paisley Park or Kingston Heath could’ve handled the masses on Saturday. But no. You people think you know something, but let me tell you, you know fuck all.

Richmond have been a top two side basically all season. Playing eh, not bad football at times, yet getting the results. A tip for all you prospective or current coaches who read this piece. In Australia, fancy football doesn’t win you shit. At the end of the day you need to win games, and frankly who cares how you do it. This is what Chatz has put into the minds of his players and the results are pretty much speaking for themselves.

Green Gully is giving away free tickets for this match. So if you want to save some hard earned coin, go to their website and read up on what you need to do. I haven’t seen it but people reckon it’s true. Gully has played well and has had a few problemos this year, but then again who hasn’t? They stabilised the ship on their run into the finals and have delivered a Grand Final appearance. I’d like to be a fly on the wall when security tries to confiscate the tea/coffee and bikkies from the Gully fans.

They will tell you that the attendance was 5,000+ people, but the real figure will be under 600. Note to the head honchos. Before you fudge the attendance figures, think of one very, very important thing. The Melbourne Heart also play from that venue and last week a measly 4,100 turned up. People will remember this when you publish 5,000 attended the VPL final and have a laughing fit.

I predict the game will end in a 2-2 draw and go to penalties with Gully winning 5-4.

Now a little rant which I have been keeping bottled up for a while. What a shit season. Not due to the teams who were in it, but due to outside powers who are hell bent on not allowing the result to be decided on the pitch. You know, it is frustrating when teams are handed fines and point deductions bigger than the competitions around the rest of the world. It’s as if they think that the clubs in this league are fully professional and bathe themselves in money. A lot of volunteers keep these clubs afloat by putting many, many hard, long, unpaid hours and money into them. They don’t get paid executive wages and are there for the love of the club and sport. I think it would be really cool if the head honchos start getting more actively involved in the clubs around the state and not only showing up to finals matches and keeping an eye on the till, and making out that they give a toss about the sport. Frankly, you people are the cause of people leaving the sport in droves. Why do you think the attendances are so low? Why do you think that no one gives a shit about you? It’s because when they see that teams are deducted 3 championship pts for not showing up to the Gold Medal night, or the tribunal hearings are so inconsistent it’s no longer funny or you’re so in love with the A-League you forget why you’re really there.

The Kiss of Death is in the process of undergoing a facelift and will become more active in bitching about Victorian Football. The Kiss of Death will name and shame and has found a new home. The Kiss of Death would like to thank the owner of this blog for providing me with a platform, for never asking me who I was, and to all my loyal readers, I bid you farewell. I leave you with one of my favourite quotes:

'I was surprised, but I always say nothing surprises me in football.'
- Les Ferdinand

De Moraes, Zois pick up awards at Gold Medal night

Congratulations to Peter Zois and Fernando De Moraes for picking up the goalkeeper of the year and the player of the year awards respectivly last night. Peter Zois got better and and better as the season went on, and Fernando clearly had his best season since 2006, a remarkable return to both form and consistency. The last South player to win the goalkeeper of the year award at this level was of course Dean Anastasiadis, who back to back awards in 2005 and 2006. Fernando is perhaps suprisingly the first South player to win the Gold Medal since its inception in 1971 - Jimmy Armstrong and Jim Pyrgolios had both won the Bill Fleming Medal in the 1970s for the media's player of the year, but not the Gold Medal. It takes a little of the edge off the season that's gone past.