Coach: Slobode (Bob) Stojcevski
Pre-season: DW (Hume City 1-1, Melbourne Knights 1-0)
2014 finish: 10th With a recent history including the 2010 and 2011 VPL titles and 2013 Dockerty Cup triumph, in contrast 2014 was a difficult season for the proud club. A tough initiation in the inaugural NPL campaign saw Gully finish 10th amid a mid-season change of leadership.
After three wins and the most goals conceded in the competition by May, manager/coach Jeff Fleming stepped down in a coaching capacity to be replaced by long time club servant and under-20’s coach Bob Stojcevski, who managed to somewhat steady the ship, though results were still mixed and the club finished 10th. An inconsistent season was summed up by a topsy-turvy loss to Melbourne Knights late in the campaign – after going down 4-0 at half time, Gully rallied in the second half but pulled up just short to lose 4-3, highlighting both the worst and best of the Cavaliers in one game.
READ MORE > We need to become consistent
New signings: Gully have undertaken a strong recruitment drive in hope of a better 2015, signing no less than eight new faces, including four from Bendigo City.
Aaron Cohen, Vitaka Rodriguez and Alon Blumgart join from Bendigo, with the latter already scoring a top long-range strike in a pre-season friendly against Hume. Rinor Muriqi is another player to make the jump from NPL 1, starring at Box Hill as they narrowly missed promotion to NPL.
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Goalkeeper Rani Dowisha also joins after making headlines for his efforts between the sticks during South Springvale’s fairytale FFA Cup run. Tom Murphy, 21, last played at Far North Queensland Heat, where he was named the 2013 Young Player of the Year and Coaches’ Player of the Year. Nikola Markovski is a Macedonian international who has also played and won honors in lower division Greece.
From a backroom perspective, former Melbourne Victory and Heart youth Seb Mattei joins from Bendigo City as goalkeeper coach to work with Kieran Gonzalez and Dowisha, while highly regarded Victory W-League assistant Kat Smith joins as Technical Director.
Players to watch: Of the existing squad members, Osagie Ederaro was the team’s player of the season in 2014 and will again look to make an impact. Loyal club servant Matthew Sanders will look to improve on his 2014 goal tally, while it will be interesting to see how 36-year-old veteran Roddy Vargas holds up.
Muriqi had a huge impact at Box Hill and expect him to continue his progress at Gully. Most intrigue surrounds the Visa imports, with Markovski already scoring a winner against the Knights in a pre-season friendly, while Rodriguez also brings with him experience from Spain, France and Greece, and can play anywhere along the front third.
What to expect in 2015: Gully have made a splash in the transfer market. The puzzle pieces are there. Now it’s about putting it all together. Interestingly, no players have been signed from rival NPL clubs. Challenges therefore include getting former NPL 1 players to transition to a higher division and players from other leagues to settle in Victoria. Existing players and new signings will have to work hard to gel, combine, and function as a unit – especially following the departures of experienced heads Andy Vargas and Jeff Fleming. Expect Smith to make a big impact behind the scenes.
Stojcevski told the club: “What we’re trying to focus on is just getting a whole team that works well together. Pressing from the front, chasing back, covering each other, and the forwards are leading by example in that respect and that’s creating harmony in the team. The guys do push each other when mistakes get made, and with the positive they request, even demand, performance off each other.”
The pressure will be on Gully to do just that and improve on a disappointing 2014. Expect nothing less than a top half finish, including a push for finals contention.