National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s side Sydney Olympic have appointed its Technical Director Ante Juric as the head coach of the senior side after the club were unable to reach a mutual agreement around a revised contract with Terry Palapanis of his role for the varied competition commencing in August.

Palapanis commenced in the role of Men’s 1st Grade Coach and Senior Technical Director for the 2020 season which was suspended by Football NSW due to COVID – 19 after Round 3 of the regular season. Terry will continue in the role of Senior Technical Director to support the preparation of the Senior program and will continue to report to the CEO and Club Board.

The decision has meant that Club Technical Director and former Sydney Olympic player Ante Juric will assume the coaching role for the 1st grade team for the 11-round competition.

”While disappointed we were unable to reach an agreement with Terry, for this revised competition around the 1st Grade Coaching component of his role, we are lucky to have a coach of Ante’s experience on staff at the Club and he is able to step into the role immediately to take the squad,” said Sydney Olympic CEO John Boulos.

Players were offered a reduced salary for the 2020 season and were fully accepting of the rationale behind this revised offer to support the Club’s participation in the competition.

“We are very lucky that our players appreciate the financial impact from decreased funding and sponsorship on the Club due to COVID-19. Our playing groups, men and women have all been willing to accept revised terms in their agreements to ensure we put the Club at the forefront of all decisions and are able to participate in the proposed competition”. Boulous said.

In squad news for the revised competition, the club has lost Spaniard Raul Beneit Romero who returned back to Spain while the competition was suspended and keeper Anthony Bouzanis who decided to not continue with the Club.

Returning to the Club is former Sydney FC defender Ben Van Muers who after signing with the Club in the off-season, accepted a professional contract offer in Hong Kong.

Also returning is young attacker Alexander Lopez who left just prior to the season start for a trial opportunity in Uruguay.

One of Sydney Olympic’s favourite sons Will Angel has stayed true to the cause during the football lockdown by remaining positive but increasing his daily dosage of caffeine in keeping him sane as the world reacts to COVID-19 restrictions.

The well cultured Blues star has been hitting up one of his local cafes, ‘The Ugly Cook’ in Sylvania Waters during his time away from the game, where he has spent time catching up with his teammates; all take away and practicing social distancing of course.

“I have continued to remain positive since the pandemic hit so I wouldn’t really say I’ve been affected personally as such; it has however made me more aware of what really matters during these tough times.

“For the mental health and well being aspect its been good that there have been some outlets I have used in keeping myself sane, and yes, coffee has been one of them.

“I have driven my fiancé nuts (laughs) during this time but apart from work, I have been keeping myself active and have had the opportunity to catch up with my best mate Josh Gersbach for a takeaway coffee nearly every morning at my local, ‘The Ugly Cook’ as well as seeing ex-teammate David Dascal.

“Even Olympic great Paul Henderson pokes his head out as he lives in the area and we catch up.

“It’s funny, ten years ago, we were having these coffee sessions talking about a night out at Hugo’s Lounge and these days without sport, its conversing about property and the stock exchange.”

Both Angel and Gersbach also run a popular Instagram page, ‘The Life of A’, focusing on the fashion trends set out by famous sports stars around the globe with football taking a starring role.

Not many Australian NPL players can boast that the likes of stars such as Conor McGregor, Usain Bolt, Javier Hernández, Hector Bellerin, Bacary Sanga, Gregory van der Wiel, Kevin-Prince Boateng, Layvin Kurzawa, Panagiotis Kone, Nick Kyrigios, Todd Carney, Patty Mills, Quade Cooper and the list goes on of people that have liked their respective Instagram posts and page, ‘The Life Of A’ did just that building up 30,000 followers but suddenly lost their page having to recommence it recently.

“Josh and I were always wanting to create some sort of Blog which was inspired by Athlete Fashion and Lifestyle.

“After coming back from a holiday in Los Angeles, we knew we wanted to pursue this.

“Athlete fashion and lifestyles that inspired us during that trip were the likes of Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Russel Westbrook, Lewis Hamilton, David Beckham, Odell Beckham and many more.

“We built a strong following of 30,000 followers across Instagram, Facebook and Twitter which included followers like Kevin Prince Boateng, Nuri Sahin, Yohan Cabaye, Tom Cairney and a few other footballers playing in the La Liga and Bundesliga

“We suddenly lost our page and were unable to retrieve it which was tough to take.

“From then on it’s been hard to grow organic followers again and today sit on 6k.

“We have new ideas for the future of the page and look forward to exploring these avenues.”

Do yourself a favour and give it a follow today by clicking here. 

Having clocked up well over 200 plus games for the Blues, Angel has cemented himself as one of the longest serving club stalwarts at Belmore Sports Ground – making him a fan favourite amongst the passionate Olympic fans.

“I do miss putting on a show for our loyal Sydney Olympic fans who devote a lot of time in supporting us week in week out.

“They always give us that extra lift we need to keep going and its moments like hearing that chant

O-LYM-PIC that you do miss during these interesting times.

“Obviously I miss my teammates, and everyone associated at the club but I know if we want to go back to doing what we love, we need to ride this wave together and obey the regulations set out by the Government so that we can enjoy these moments once again.”

Work-wise, Angel has been burning the candle at both ends stating to Football NSW that it’s been ‘flat stick’ in his respective field.

“To say I have been ‘flat stick’ is an understatement.

“I look after a portfolio of about 350 mortgage brokers across NSW/ACT for Advantedge Financial Services (owned by NAB) and when this pandemic broke out, let’s just say I couldn’t wait to have a beer when 5pm hit on a Friday.

“A lot of customers have been impacted and it was pretty overwhelming during the first few weeks so I have been very fortunate that its been business as usual work wise.”

Not known for being a slacker in keeping himself fit and healthy, the 31-year-old has managed to schedule time in maintaining his high levels of sharpness he showcases on the pitch.

“Everyday I try to get outdoors for at least an hour to go for a run and complete a small workout.

“I live next to an athletic track so it’s very convenient for me and it also gives me no excuses not to be able to keep fit during this period.”

Check out some of Will’s daily self-isolation session below

Gordon Ramsay eat your heart out; Sydney Olympic star Jason Madonis is out to get you minus the swearing of course. 

Its no secret that many of our footballers have engaged in various activities as they eagerly await for football to get back on the road once more – Madonis in particular, has been busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen.

“I’ve been getting in touch with my inner Gordon Ramsey that’s for sure.

“The kitchens been getting a good workout I must say.

“If you’re ever in the area swing past, I’ll make you some Italian meatballs in marinara sauce from scratch, you’ll rate it.”

So when he’s not giving out his heart and soul for his beloved Olympic where he’s spent eleven solid seasons at, Madonis is busy creating dishes in the kitchen, but he’s also caught up with various other activities keeping him busy.

“I’ve been spending time with family and my dog Romeo, I don’t get to relax with them much when life is normal with work and football as everything is always at 100 miles an hour so its been great to enjoy this down time until we get back to normality.”

The 24-year-old has considered himself as one of the lucky ones who have not been personally affected by COVID-19.

“It’s no secret COVID-19 has affected most people’s daily routine and the way they would normally live, myself included.

“However, in the grand scheme of things, the small luxuries and privileges I’ve had to live without recently is nothing compared to the major problems some people are facing.

“I consider myself to be quite lucky as none of my friends or family have contracted the virus.

“I understand there are people around the world who have lost loved ones during this pandemic and my thoughts and prayers are with them.”

Work wise, its been an interesting time for the ambitious midfielder who had only just completed a two-year period working for the NSW Government with the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.

“Work has been a little tricky.

“Right before the Pandemic began, I had just finished working for the NSW Government with the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.

“I had two great years there but I decided to step away from the corporate world and focus on my playing and coaching career.

“Obviously with football being temporarily postponed it threw a spanner in the works, but I’m grateful that I’ve been able to continue 1 on 1 private coaching.

“I run sessions three days a week in the Sutherland Shire and two days a week in San Souci, so it’s definitely kept me busy.”

Training has not been a problem during this self-isolation period for Madonis who has been fortunate enough to have the Cronulla Esplanade as a perfect running backdrop alongside fellow Olympic teammate Anthony Bouzanis.

“Training has been pretty consistent to be fair!

“I’ve cleared out my upstairs balcony and turned it into a home workout space – doing core and strength workouts twice a week.

“There’s a football pitch round the corner from my house so getting my conditioning runs in a few times a week and adding in a run along Cronulla Esplanade whenever I’ve got some free time.

“I live quite close to Bouza (Anthony Bouzanis) so we’ve been training together and keeping each other honest.”

Commencing his football career at the proud Olympic club as a 13-year-old, playing for the Under 14s, Madonis misses the feeling of walking out on the howled turf that is Belmore Sports Ground during this time of football separation.

“I honestly cannot go past missing that feeling of stepping out onto our amazing home ground, namely Belmore Sports Ground.

“After eleven years at the club, I still get Goosebumps every time I walk onto the pitch.”

Wanting to get that feeling back again with the hope of playing his beloved sport once more this season, Madonis is hoping that the football family are following rules and regulations given out by the Governments in order of getting back to the life we once knew.

“We’re all missing football and want to be back sooner rather than later.

“Let’s do our part by practicing social distancing and adhering to Government restrictions and guidelines.

“We will overcome this Pandemic together and be back playing the game we love in no time.”

You may see a new match up arise in the Masterchef ranks as Madonis takes on Ramsay!

One of Sydney Olympic’s prized new recruits for the 2020 National Premier Leagues NSW Men’s season Adam Parkhouse has described this current COVID-19 situation as a “nightmare” but has vowed to keep ticking over in these hard times.

“To be honest I still feel like it’s not really happening.

“I feel as though it’s a dream (nightmare) that I’m waiting to wake up from.

“Personally, not too much has changed for me apart from football being suspended so just a bit of extra free time each week which is making me a little stir crazy.”

The former Wellington Phoenix high-flyer is known by all of his peers as looking after his body and fitness and this has risen ten-fold since the lockout of the competition.

He has also had a little help from girlfriend and budding footballer Tia Gavin who has assisted in Parkhouse’s training routines.

“Well to begin with I took a little rest for a few days to let my body recover as preseason was fairly tough and pretty full on with games and I feel like I needed a bit of a refresh.

“Pretty much now I have been keeping fit and also spending time with my parents as they got back from holiday just before the COVID-19 issue began.

“Since football was suspended, I have been heading to the gym a lot to work on my strength but now with the gym closures, I’ve had to set up a little home gym to keep myself ticking over.

“Also my girlfriend is really into her fitness too, so doing some training together with her is fun and can give me some much needed company.”

Football has been Parkhouse’s main source of income ever since the start of the 2020 year, so this period has hurt the Olympic star without any matches being played thus far.

“Fortunately, I stopped working at Plus Fitness at the start of the year due to the gym being sold to a new owner and since then I have mainly been focused on football.

“Which means now I have a lot of time on my hands which can be good and bad I guess.”

The introduction of Terry Palapanis as new Olympic coach for the 2020 season brought with it a number of new faces at the club including Parkhouse.

Even though the league has only been three matches in, the winger stated that the team ‘banter’ was what he had missed most since going into self-isolation.

“Mainly being with the squad and the banter around the changing room is what I have missed.

“Also missing game days as they are what I look forward to most each week and an after match pizza which is a tradition I have is being sorely missed.”

Like everyone in the football family, ensuring everyone’s safety and health is on top of the priority list and something the Olympic star has pushed in his message to the NPL NSW fraternity.

“I think everyone just needs to stick together through this tough period.

“We are all in in the same position and no one knows what is going to happen.

“Just staying positive and helping out each other where we can, we can all beat this together.”

Parkhouse keeping himself sane by training on his own during the self-isolation period