Image: Graeme Furlong
Coach: Anthony Barbieri
2016 finish: 8th in NPL, FFA Cup Round 6 (defeated by Bulleen)
Summary: Last season was a tale of two halves for Avondale, with the first hampered by injury and struggles in obtaining results, with goals seemingly hard to come by. Ex-Aleague recruits also came and went (Spase Dilevski, Francesco Stella, James Brown). However, a mid-season revival saw the club seemingly play with less pressure and, led by Jonatan Germano’s rich vein of form, came roaring back to finish in a respectable mid-table position, which the club would be looking to build on in 2017.
Ins: Chris Oldfield (Hume City), Ramazan Tavsancioglu (Hume City), Petar Franjic (Hume City), Evan Christodoulou (Green Gully), Craig Carley (Hume City), Kamal Ibrahim (Bentleigh Greens), James Riccobene (Port Melbourne Sharks), Kaine Sheppard (Heidelberg United)
Outs: Abraham Yango, Omar Ammache (Sporting Gijon B), Baki Efe (Richmond SC), Francesco Stella (Port Melbourne), Chris May (St Albans Saints), Michelle Crazia (returns to Italy), Matthew Sanders (released), Luke Colaianni (released), Adam Hodor (released), Oleksiy Khrapko (Port Melbourne Sharks)
Re-signed: Phil Riccobene, Jeffrey Fleming, Jonatan Germano, Massimo Murdocca, Nick Symeoy, Anthony Strano, Jamie Cumming, Jem Berkant, Yitay Towns
Player Q&A: Nick Symeoy
How’s pre-season going? Where have you been with the team?
Pre-season has gone well, we haven’t had as many injuries as last year and been playing really good football, we went to Sydney in our pre-season trip and played APIA and Sydney United.
What have the club’s pre-season results been?
Heidelberg United 2-1 loss, Port Melbourne 1-1 draw, Sydney United 1-0 win, Apia 0-1 loss, Altona Magic 3-1 win, Sunshine Georgies 2-0 win.
Our results have been mixed but we have been trying new things with new players, so it’s a learning curve before the season gets underway.
How are the new signings settling in?
The new singing are fitting in really well, we all have this special bond with one another from the first day they came, at Avondale we welcome everyone and create a family environment which everyone enjoys.
Who are the Avondale players to watch in 2017 (new or existing) and why?
Jonatan Germano – coming off a fantastic season with 15 goals in 18 matches.
Massimo Murdocca – almost winning NPL player of the year.
Kaine Sheppard – fantastic goalscoring machine who was brought to the club on deadline day.
Chris Oldfield – being NPL goalkeeper of the year last year and having safe hands in the last line of defence
Who are the some of the bigger characters off the pitch and why?
Jeff Fleming – his experience in this league is wonderful to have around young boys who want to learn and strive for success, which Jeff has had plenty of.
Evan Christdoulou – brings to the Avondale group of boys, great banter which every team needs throughout the year.
How’s Anthony Barbieri been preparing the squad?
Barbs has prepared the squad well bringing in players in areas we needed them. He prepared good teams to play during preseason and has worked tirelessly to get us ready for round 1, which everyone is thankfully for at avondale.
Which team/player are you most looking forward to facing this year?
I think every teams have good players in this league, I just can’t wait for the season to start next week, that’s all I’m looking forward to – round 1 and then week by week.
Which opposition club(s) have impressed you most in pre-season?
We haven’t really played NPL Victoria teams in pre-season but I think the big ones you have to say would be South and Bentleigh.
What are the expectations/objectives in 2017?
We take each game week by week, striving for a finals berth this year
What’s one headline we may see about Avondale this season?
Surely it would be ‘Germano does it again’