Image: Mark Witte
The Oakleigh Cannons have secured the services of 19-year-old Melbourne City Youth team pair Giuseppe Marafioti and Mehdi Sarwari (pictured).
The two youngsters move to Jack Edwards Reserve having spent one and two years under Joe Palatsides at Bundoora respectively, and become the Cannons’ third and fourth arrivals of the summer.
A fast forward, Marafioti moved to the youth ranks of the A-League outfit, having spent 2015 with the South Melbourne 20s under coach Sasa Kolman.
He made a blistering start to life at City by scoring in his first few league games for the club, and in total netted five goals in 15 appearances as his side finished the year third in the final NPL2 West standings.
Marafioti has impressed so far this pre-season and last night netted another goal as the Cannons cruised to a 6-0 home friendly win over the Springvale White Eagles.
Fellow new boy Sarwari is an attacking midfielder who is also capable of playing out wide as well as in the centre of the park.
The teenager made his senior debut aged just 15 when he came on as an 88th minute sub for Liam McCormick in the Southern Stars’ 3-3 draw against Moreland Zebras in the 2012 VPL campaign.
From there onwards he featured at Dandenong Thunder before joining City in late 2014, with Sarwari scoring six goals in 27 league games at the club before his departure two months ago.
The duo join Iqi Jawadi and Nate Foster as fresh faces inside the Oakleigh dressing rooms, which has been deprived of midfielder Ioannis Georgopoulos, who has elected to make the move interstate.
The Cannons kick off their 2017 season with a season-opening clash on Thursday February 9 with a home tie against newly promoted local rivals Kingston City.