For the Greek Australian followers of the Victorian Premier League, round seven will bring old rivals together.
This Sunday, all eyes will be on the South Melbourne hosting long time foes Oakleigh Cannons at its Lakeside Stadium.
After having a great start to 2013 VPL season, South Melbourne recently dropped to third on the ladder, after going two goals down in two weeks. Last weekend’s lost to Hume City (2-3) has Peter Tsolakis’ squad expected to become more defensive in order to walk away with more points from this match.
Oakleigh Cannons however have been a talking point of VPL last two weeks, after parting ways with head coach Bill Theodoropoulos. On Monday evening, the former Gold Coast and Queensland Roar manager Miron Bleiberg was appointed as Cannons’ permanent head coach until the end of the 2013 season.
“Every game is a tough game when you are at the bottom of the ladder. In theory, everyone else is supposed to be as good as you are, if not better. The match with South Melbourne is a derby; I know it’s a very important game for people that are employing me and also important to the other side, so derby can get any direction,” Bleiberg told Neos Kosmos.
Even though his inaugural match last weekend against Dandenong Thunder was narrowly lost, the signs of improvement in the team’s confidence were visible, with many chances for the Oakleigh boys to equalise.
For a new coach, the situation is not easy, as Cannons are close to the bottom of the ladder, with only one win in this season.
“The club’s position on the ladder speaks for itself. There is no accident in soccer; you are where you deserve to be. At the moment the team is not that good, but hopefully, we can improve it. That’s why I’m here,” Bleiberg said.
Being in round seven of the competition, with a short turnover and matches being played sometimes in four days of each other, the improvement won’t come easy.
“On one side, you want to teach new things and you expect the players to learn those things. But in between that, every week you have cutthroat games. You have to combine the two. It is an issue, but you can work your way out. If I didn’t think it can be done, I wouldn’t take it on myself. Another thing is the fitness side. You can’t do too much at this time of the year. If you work the boys too hard, they will be tired for the weekend.”
“That’s why we have to do everything in moderation, and that takes more time. From one side you want to get instant success and results, from the other you have to make decisions – load or unload the work, work on more or less intensity. So there are many things that stand against you, but Oakleigh is a good club, run by very good people. The players are very receptive and happy to cooperate; I had a great welcome. So that’s what has convinced me to stay,” Bleiberg revealed to Neos Kosmos.
“I’m here not only to bring the result. I believe that for whatever period I stay here, I might hope that I can take the standard of work and the level lifted as closer to the A-league as possible. I told the players on the day one that I’m not going to lower myself to their level, they have to lift up to my level. Even after I leave, whether I leave any legacy or not, at least the club will hopefully benefit from my services,” he said.
It seems that the Oakleigh team has made a strong decision to change their performance shown at the beginning of 2013 VPL season, as along with a new coach, this Sunday the Cannons will be stronger for a new striker.
After officially signing for the club early this week, former Gold Coast United and Wellington Phoenix striker, Smith will be reuniting with Miron Bleiberg at Oakleigh Cannons. The striker, 27, is not a stranger to Cannons’ new coach, as they linked up at Gold Cost United. Smith had been approached about signing for Cannons before Miron Bleiberg joined the club as head coach.
With an A-league player joining the squad, Bleiberg is optimistic he can bring his A-league experience to the team.
“He was in A-league for a reason. He is definitely a good player, but again, he didn’t play for a while. There is no magic in this case – he is probably now on 50% of his abilities; and 50 % of his abilities is good enough for Oakleigh I hope.”
Tonight, Bentleigh Greens take on Melbourne Knights in what is a top four match and a tough one to pick a winner. In the round six last weekend, Bentleigh Greens struggled to overplay the newly promoted Pascoe Vale, finishing the “toughest game of the season”, according to head coach John Anastasiadis, with a narrow 1-0 victory.
Two Victorian football giants being Port Melbourne and Green Gully, will finally face each other Saturday at the Green Gully Reserve, for the first time after ten years. Port Melbourne has been in great form in its return to top tier football, while the Cavaliers will enter the match as tenth on the ladder and without Dean Hennessey as their head coach. Hennessey has resigned earlier this week, becoming the third VPL coach to part ways with their clubs in the first six rounds of 2013 season. In round six, Vassiliadis’ men from Port Melbourne secured their third in a season victory against last on the ladder Richmond (2-1).
After continuing its loosing run to the Sharks, Richmond has a hard task to host Hume City tonight, a team fresh from a thrilling win against South Melbourne (3-2).
This round will see the winless Southern Stars be the latest team to attempt to stop the untouchable Northcote City tomorrow.
Goran Lozanovski’s men continued their undefeated start to the season when picking up their sixth win from six games on Sunday, with a 2-0 win over tenth-placed Green Gully.
In the first ever Victorian Premier League meeting, Dandenong Thunder will host Pascoe Vale today, in a match that will mark the final home lockout game for reigning champion that is coming back to form after four wins.
