For the Greek Australian community, having three Greek sponsored teams make it to the top 16 of the FFA Cup is proof that football is still king in the community.
NSL veterans Sydney Olympic and Queensland’s Olympic FC managed to join Aris and take home wins to secure their place in the inaugural FFA Cup.
Both Sydney Olympic and Olympic FC matched their scores, both outrunning and outscoring their opponents Manly United and Melbourne Knights 3-1 respectively.
Sydney Olympic had a phenomenal comeback after a 1-1 draw just after the break.
Brothers Harry and Mike Gaitatszis made the difference, scoring all three goals to take Sydney Olympic into the next stage.
Olympic FC led early with two goals in the first half against former NSL giants Melbourne Knights. The Knights fought back after the break, getting a goal through, but another goal thanks to Musti Jafari saw the club progress.
Now all that remains in the Greek teams is Bentleigh Greens. The team hasn’t had as much consistency as it’s needed to give it great odds. Failing to make it to the final of the state Dockerty Cup, finding it hard sometimes to get a clear winning streak in the NPL, and losing to Melbourne Victory last week has the Greens a little worried.
Its opponent, Blacktown City, is one of the NSW NPL’s best teams, and with what Greens coach John Anastasiades has heard from his Sydney spies, the team is the closest thing you get to an A-League club.
The club has actually signed a few A-League players and they sit second on the NPL ladder, on equal points with the league leaders Blacktown Spartans.
Travelling up to Sydney for the match, Bentleigh Greens will be without their faithful fans, but might sway some Greek Australian Sydneysiders to switch allegiance.
Blacktown City vs Bentleigh Greens
Tuesday 12 August
Kick-off: 7.30 pm
Lily Homes Stadium, 160 Prospect Highway, Seven Hills