With the Saturday evening NPL2 clash between Bendigo City and Eastern Lions scoreless mid-way through the second half, a moment of magic from the right boot of David Younan lights up proceedings. The attacker receives a pass before setting himself up for a shot, unleashing from 20 metres from goal with his stinging shot dipping past Lions custodian Robert Havercroft.
City hold firm and hang on to their 1-0 lead, in the process recording their first victory of the season, prompting wild celebrations from players and coaching staff alike. The result comes somewhat as a surprise considering the regional outfit had lost their previous four league fixtures – conceding 16 goals in the process and failing to find the net – in addition to a 5-2 defeat in the FFA Cup at the hands of newly promoted State League 1 outfit Mooroolbark.
The results paint a dim picture for the NPL2 outfit, but considering the youthfulness and lack of experience in the Bendigo dressing room, one should not be too surprised that a newly assembled squad has found results hard to come by in the early stages of the season.
Based on that, the game against Eastern Lions was expected to be no different, with the Burwood-based visitors firm favourites to take home all three points.
However, 19-year-old Younan hadn’t read such a script, and his 70th minute strike not only handed City their first points of the season, but suggests there is life to Bendigo’s campaign after a turbulent start that saw new coach Esteban Quintas resign after the club’s opening round 4-0 defeat to Melbourne City.
“It feels good to finally get the first win of the season,” Younan says.
“It has been a difficult start but I feel like the team are finally starting to gel.
We have had a few setbacks with injuries and our coach. But I feel like as a young team we are improving and we still have a lot to offer.”
The teenager is embarking on his first season of senior football after previously featuring in the 20s of Moreland Zebras and Hume City, which included captaining the latter in 2014.
Despite making five senior appearances so far, Younan has been able to notice the seismic differences in play compared to the 20s equivalent and is so far relishing the experience.
“To be playing senior football in the NPL is always a good opportunity for any young player,” he says.
“I feel like I am improving every week and am enjoying myself especially with the great people at Bendigo.
“In terms of observations I feel like everything is a lot quicker, obviously playing at this level is more challenging but I enjoy it because it is helping me improve as a player and is aiding in my career progression.”
Younan’s first taste of the game came in 2008 when he began his junior career with Moreland United, before moving to Melbourne Phoenix, AS Roma’s Melbourne academy side, and it is here where he began to take his football more seriously with an overseas experience sandwiched in between.
“That is where I started to see major improvements to my football and that’s when my hunger for the game took on a new level as a junior,” he says.
“I then went onto train in Argentina for a full time academy and was to go on to trial in Spain.”
However, lady luck was not on the teenager’s side as he suffered an injury which kept him out of action for 12 months, curtailing his development.
“I was unlucky in that I received a growth plate fracture that saw me out for 12 months,” Younan says.
“After a hard road of recovery my first time back was playing for North-West Wanderers in the Victorian Champions League (VCL).
“I then went on to join Moreland Zebras under 20s. I was 16 at the time and I saw major improvements whilst under the guidance of Alex Cobo, who was a big influence in my junior career.
“I then went on to join Hume City and it was new experience as captain. I enjoyed the challenge and being a leader was something that also helped me improve both on and off the pitch.”
All seemed set for Younan to break into the Hume City first team, before injury also cut short his spell at ABD Stadium, with another lengthy period on the sidelines halting his progress once more.
“I was then unlucky enough to receive another setback in having osteitis pubis. It was another hard road of recovery, as this injury is known to be very stubborn,” he says.
However, the then 18-year-old was determined not to let the injury prevent him from following his dream of becoming a professional footballer, and he worked hard to ensure a full recovery.
“Thankfully I fully recovered, and the setbacks have made me hungrier to achieve more and further understand my body’s strengths and weaknesses, and this has helped me avoid any further setbacks and help me grow as a player,” Younan says.
Fully fit and recovered, Younan hopped on a plane to Europe, setting out on the adventure which injury halted only a few years ago.
“Towards the end of 2015 after recovering from osteitis pubis I headed overseas to a training camp in Italy. The camp consisted of two daily training sessions for a period of 3 months,” he says.
“This was another big step in my career as it helped me improve immensely as a footballer. I was then offered a trial in Spain with CD Leganes, who play in the Segunda Division.
“Unfortunately, it did not work out the way I wanted it to, but I kept positive and took it as a learning experience, it has also helped motivate me moving forward and to keep improving.”
With injuries and overseas adventures behind him, the attacking midfielder is determined to learn off past experiences to guide him throughout his first season in senior footballer.
While Bendigo’s squad consists largely of unproven youngsters making their first foray into the senior-set up, the enthusiasm and exuberance they have may have push them over the line in many fixtures like they did on Saturday night.
If that is the case, expect Younan to be in the thick of the action providing plenty of attacking spark for Bendigo’s youngsters.
Posted by David Younan on Sunday, 27 March 2016
Image: Mark Avellino