90 Minutes: Adelaide Comets coach explains resignation; Western United tracks SA talent; Polonia Reserve’s holy history
The first coaching casualty of the SA season has revealed the reasons for his resignation, while the A-League’s newest club is tracking more SA talent and a local ground’s holy past is uncovered, all in our 90 Minutes soccer column.
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The first coaching casualty of the National Premier Leagues SA season says the increased time demands and expectations of the role will soon lead to clubs making it a full-time job.
Theo Tsiounis resigned as Adelaide Comets boss on Saturday night following his side’s 4-1 loss to MetroStars.
The mentor had overseen the most successful period in the Mile End club’s history, leading it to the finals in each of the past three seasons and winning its first trophy last year.
But he said the pressure of juggling the position with his new role as assistant principal at Roma Mitchell Secondary College had become unbearable.
“As an NPL coach, you don’t switch off,” Tsiounis, 36, said.
“You’re looking at opposition teams, you’re talking to a player, you’re talking to team managers or physiotherapists or a coach setting up an activity for the following session.
“You can’t really put a time on it, because it’s ongoing and it’s 24 hours.
“I was literally at the club every day of the week until 11pm, then coming home and trying to do emails and everything else.
“I burnt the candle at both ends and I just couldn’t cope.
“Previously I had a bit more time to manage everything, whereas now with my new position at school it literally became impossible.
“I think the NPL (SA) is at a stage now where it’s soon going to start following what’s happening in other states where clubs are employing full-time staff.”
Tsiounis became the youngest coach in the SA top flight when took over as Comets caretaker from Jim Karatzas in mid-2015.
His stint culminated in claiming the FFA Cup SA last season, before leading the club to the last 16 of the national knockout competition.
The former Western Strikers, Adelaide Cobras, White City and Comets midfielder said back-to-back defeats were not behind his decision to step down just four rounds into the campaign.
“I made the decision,” said Tsiounis, who would continue coaching his son, Kosta, in Comets’ under-6 team.
“I’ve been through a lot worse than a couple of losses in-a-row and it’s something I’ve been talking to the club about over the last three months.
“I could continue and do a half-hearted job, but it’s not in my nature because I care about the club and the people.
“My aim was to create a professional environment and make sure Adelaide Comets become a club that’s always challenging for trophies.
“I think we’ve definitely done that.
“We’ve got an amazing group of people at the club and for me, I genuinely think it’s the best club in the state.”
Tsiounis supported Comets’ search for a high-profile replacement, including the likes of former Adelaide City coach Damian Mori, who had been heavily linked with the job.
Western United chases SA talent
Another South Australian, Valentino Yuel, is on the new A-League club’s wish list.
Yuel could join Adelaide United’s Apostolos Stamatelopoulos who has reportedly signed for the club.
Other South Australian’s Ryan McGowan (Dundee on loan from Bradford City) and Bradden Inman (Rochdale City) have been also targeted for a spot in the newest franchise.
The former South Sudanese refugee was born in Kakuma, Kenya the same place where his good mate, Socceroo and ex Adelaide United star winger Awer Mabil grew up before making the move to SA.
Yuel, 24, has already impressed Western United’s assistant coach.
He also happens to be his current NPL boss — John Anastasiadis — at Victoria’s Bentleigh Greens.
Yuel said he moved to Melbourne at the end of a successful season long stint with Adelaide City last year.
“I want to play in the A-League and Damian Mori recommended me to move to Melbourne,’’ Yuel said.
“My good friend is also Elvis Kamsoba and he told me it would be good for me and now he signed for Melbourne Victory.”
Kamsoba was also based in SA before snaring an NPL contract in Victoria with Melbourne Knights and later Avondale FC.
Yuel landed in Adelaide in 2005 and was first based at St Marys before moving to Magill.
His first club in SA was the Plympton Bulldogs before joining Comets.
He made his senior debut at Cumberland United aged 18 under former boss Michael Brooks before joining coach Joe Mullen at Campbelltown City in 2016.
“I then went to Turkey to visit my uncle and played games for amateur teams over there,’’ Yuel said.
“I rejoined Comets in 2017 before Damian gave me a call and I had a very good season with Adelaide City.”
Working as a barman at Frankston’s The Deck Yuel has already scored four goals for Bentleigh.
The club is currently sitting in second spot after Yuel played another incredible match in a 2-0 win over Hume City over the weekend.
Is Kings’ ground sacred?
The details are sketchy, but Polonia Reserve at Croydon Park is Holy Ground.
A visit from Pope John Paul II when he was a Cardinal in 1973 on the eve of this year’s pending Croydon Kings shift due to the South Road roadworks is destined to set off a long standing debate as to whether the move would wipe out 69 years of history.
Pope Francis declared Pope John Paul II a saint in 2014.
Polonia Adelaide was founded by Polish immigrants in 1950 hence the connection to Pope John Paul II, Polish-born Karol Józef Wojtyła.
Beverley Kosmina, wife of the late Polish migrant Alex Kosmina (Polonia player, coach, manager and administrator) recalls the visit from the then Archbishop of Krakow, Karol Józef Wojtyła who later became Pope John Paul II.
Beverly is the mother of Socceroos legend John and sons Peter and Mark who also played for Polonia which was renamed Croydon Kings when the defunct SASF ordered the removal of ethnic names in 1993.
Some folk have said the former Archbishop of Krakow paid Polonia Reserve a visit during his time here.
He returned to SA in 1986 as Pope John Paul II where the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 to 2005 packed out Victoria Park on a searing hot day where 180,000 turned up.
“My memory says Alex met the Cardinal as he was then at Copernicus House, Rosewater,’’ Beverly said.
“I’m pretty sure they met there but I’m very upset they want to shift from Polonia Reserve.
“John wanted Alex’s ashes scattered at Polonia Reserve and I said “no he’s not, he’s going out to fish.”
“But I would be absolutely horrified if they build a road on the club, it’s heartbreaking all the volunteers that have worked so hard for so many years it is a good club.
“I was in tears reading about the move.
“I live in hope that something will turn up to save it (Polonia Reserve).
“I got involved in the club in 1955 and there has been some heartbreaks and we lived there (practically).
“My first memory was Polonia playing at Weigall Oval and our first changeroom at Polonia (Croydon Park) was a curtain which divided the rooms before the clubrooms were built.
“It was good fun club and we loved it.
“It’s my beloved Polonia and always will be.”
SA Matilda part of world record
Alex Chidiac could have been wondering how far she had come when her club Atletico Madrid set a world club attendance record on Monday.
After representing Adelaide United’s W-League side where crowds would rarely push the 1000 fans mark, the Atletico and Barcelona clash attracted 60,739 supporters at Madrid's Wanda Metropolitano stadium.
Chidiac left Adelaide at the end of the 2017/18 W-League season.
Barcelona won 2-0 and Chidiac was an unused substitute after she was also part of a previous attendance club record for a women's game in Spain.
Athletic Bilbao's clash with Atletico Madrid in the Copa de la Reina on January 30 saw 48,000 fans jam into the San Mames stadium in Bilbao.
The former world record attendance for a women's club soccer match was between Mexican sides Monterrey and Tigres in 2018 in front of 51,000 fans.
This year will mark 20 years since a world record attendance for a women’s soccer match was smashed.
In 1999 the FIFA women’s World Cup final between the US and China drew 90,000 fans into the Rose Bowl Stadium in Los Angeles.
Young guns earn call-up
A pair of SA youngsters have been rewarded for their impressive form on the local and national stages with call-ups to a Young Matildas training camp.
Emily Hodsgon and Evelyn Goldsmith last week travelled to Sydney to link up with the national under-20 squad as it prepared for next month’s Asian championships qualifiers.
Defender Hodgson enjoyed a breakout summer, playing 11 matches for Adelaide United in the W-League, ahead of rejoining Women’s National Premier Leagues SA side West Adelaide.
Goldsmith was last year named WNPL SA goalkeeper of the year and had started the new campaign strongly for Adelaide University.
Football Federation SA women’s competitions co-ordinator Firas Shahin said the selections highlighted the quality of the local competition.
“It is fantastic to see that national coaches are keeping a close eye on the talent we have in the WNPL SA,” Shahin said.
“It is really great to see Emily recalled to the Young Matildas and exciting to hear the news that Evelyn has been selected for the camp for the first time in her young career.”
A-LEAGUE GOLDEN BOOTS
Adelaide United 0 Perth Glory 2 (OG 35m, Andy Keogh 70m) at Coopers Stadium — Crowd: 7853
Votes
Val Migliaccio 3. Mirko Boland, 2. Craig Goodwin, 1. Scott Galloway
Rob Greenwood 3. Mirko Boland, 2. Scott Galloway, 1. Ryan Strain
Amelia Mulchay 3. Mirko Boland, 2. Scott Galloway, 1. Ryan Strain
Leaders
72. Isaias
66. Craig Goodwin
52. Ben Halloran
34. Mirko Boland
26. Scott Galloway
21. Vince Lia
18. Paul Izzo
18. Michael Jakobsen
19. Ryan Strain
13. Michael Marrone
12. George Blackwood
10. Nikola Mileusnic
8. Taylor Regan
6. Ryan Kitto
5. Ken Ilso
4. Apostolos Stamatelopoulos
Goals
Craig Goodwin 9
Nikola Mileusnic 4
Ken Ilso 3
Ben Halloran 2
Isaias 2
George Blackwood 2
Vince Lia 1
Scott Galloway 1
Apostolos Stamatelopoulos 1
Ryan Kitto 1
OG 1
SA players abroad
Brandon Borrello — Freiburg (Bundesliga): Suspended after he was sent off in the 93rd minute for Freiburg II for a second bookable offence in a 1-0 loss to Balingen away a week earlier
Alex Chidiac — Atletico Madrid (women’s Spanish Primera Division): Unused substitute in a 2-0 loss to Barcelona at home
Ben Garuccio — Hearts (Scottish Premier League): Played 90 minutes in a 1-0 loss away to Hamilton Academical
Meni Haralampopoulos — Acharnaikos (Greek Gamma Ethniki): Played 90 minutes in a 0-0 draw with Ialysos Rhodes
Bradden Inman — Rochdale AFC (English League One): Played 89 minutes in a 0-0 draw with Oxford United at home
Awer Mabil — Midtylland (Danish Super League): Played 76 minutes in an away 2-0 cup win over Kolding.
Osama Malik — Al-Batin (Saudi Arabia League): Unused substitute in a 1-0 loss to Al Raed away
Andrew Marveggio — Macva Sabac (Serbian Superliga): Not in the match day squad in a 2-1 home win over Proleter
Ryan McGowan — Dundee (Scottish Premier League): Unused substitute in a 1-0 home loss to Celtic
Dylan McGowan — Vendsyssel FF (Danish Superliga): Not in the match day squad in a 1-0 home loss to Nordsjælland
Raiders embrace ‘underdog’ tag, new recruit scores winner
An NPL side enjoying its second season in the top flight is making a strike for the top of the table, while another club coach says his side is playing a brand that’s ‘nice, it’s good, it’s sharp’. Check out The Messenger’s reports from the weekend’s action.
Top women’s soccer coach quits, cites ‘difference of opinion’
A top flight women’s soccer coach has quit mid season because “differing opinions” despite leading the side to first spot on the table with just one loss after six rounds.