The Suns are delighted to announce they have signed Pece Cvetanovski, Daniel Mitwali, Nathan Jagelman, Hussein Jasli and Daniel Slaveski.
Pece Cvetanovski is a former AIS graduate and Australian youth representative who was with Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach in 2008-2010 before returning home late in 2010 when he played a handful of matches with the Suns before taking a break from the game in 2011, still only 22 years old he will be one to watch.
Daniel Mitwali is a young 20 year old hardworking midfielder who returns to Australia after playing overseas for the last two years in Indonesia with Periswa Wamena and more recently in Jordan with Kfarsoum FC. In addition he has represented the Syrian u/23?s national team and like Pece has already attracted interest from the A-league.
Nathan Jagelman and Hussein Jasli come to the Suns from Marconi and Sutherland respectively with Nathan also spending the last couple of seasons with the Central Coast Mariners youth league team. Both players will add a considerable amount of speed to the Suns front line.
Daniel Slaveski as all followers of the NSWPL would know was with Bankstown City Lions last year and is a left sided midfielder who was one of Bankstown?s best players in 2011 and expected to continue his impressive performances in 2012.
The Suns have also promoted former Joeys and Sydney FC youth goalkeeper Aaron Liddell from last year?s 20?s squad who at only 18 years of age would have to be the youngest goalkeeper in the league along with the last year?s under 20?s captain the versatile Sean Thomas.
Finally, 17 year old Alec Urosevski the leading goal scorer in the recent Maso Cup has also been called up to the first grade team in recent trial games only after a few appearances in the 20?s and looks set to make his first grade debut in the 2012 season despite his very young age.
-Rockdale City Suns FC Press Release
Rockdale City Suns sign Kohler and Murayama
Paul Kohler brings to the club a wealth of experience having played over 45 matches in the A-League for the Newcastle Jets between 2005 and 2008 and over 20 matches for the North Queensland Fury in 2009 and 2010.
A championship winner in the NSL in 2001 and an integral part of the championship winning Newcastle Jets team in the 2007/2008 A- League season, Paul will be a great asset to the club.
Takuya Murayama better known as ?Taku? is a specialist right winger who was with Bonnyrigg White Eagles in the 2011 season having previously applied his trade in Japan.
Taku was a standout player in 2011 and is being closely monitored by Hyundai A-League scouts due to his impressive performances in the 2011 NSWPL season, he will fill the void left in the roster by the retirement of club stalwart Paul Dee.
The Club would like to welcome both players on board and wish them the very best for the upcoming NSW Premier League season.
The Club?s recruitment drive for the 2012 season is in full swing and further exciting new signings will be announced shortly.
-Rockdale City Suns Press Release
Mark Rudan appointed Rockdale City Suns Technical Director for 2012
Mark joins the Suns following an illustrious playing career that commenced domestically with former NSL heavyweights Sydney United and Northern Spirit.
Mark went on to enjoy a successful playing career overseas that included stints in Germany with Alemannia Aachen, in Japan with Avispa Fukuoka, and with Swiss Super League outfit FC Vaduz.
Mark was an inaugural squad member of Sydney FC where he enjoyed three successful seasons. His leadership qualities were evidenced by the fact that he was also a club captain with the sky blues.
On the international side, Mark was a member of the Young Socceroos for a South American tour in 1993, including a youth tournament mostly including club sides. He was made vice-captain to Mark Viduka in Australia’s undefeated Youth World Cup qualifying campaign and scored the only goal of the Oceania final against New Zealand. He was a part of the squad for the 1995 World Youth Cup, played three of Australia’s four matches including their second round exit in extra time at the hands of Portugal. He progressed his way into the national under-23 team and played most qualifying matches for the Olympics in Atlanta.
Since hanging up the boots, Mark has continued his involvement in the game and is most recognisable nowadays as a commentator on Fox Sports.
The appointment of Mark further exemplifies the emphasis being placed at the Club on development of players across all grades.
Mark will be an invaluable asset to the Club.
-Rockdale City Suns Press Release
Rockdale earn scrappy win over Parramatta
In a scrappy affair, former Newcastle Jets striker Jason Naidovski scored the only goal of the match in the 8? minute to seal the three points for his side.
The match started with both sides testing each other in the middle of the park, eager to get the upper hand early.
Rockdale were the first to create a clear chance on goal in the 6? minute when a Pece Apolevski cross picked out a free James Monie. The tall striker though could only divert his header over the crossbar, much to the disappointment of the visiting fans.
It wouldn?t be too long before the fans were cheering the Suns as they took the lead via Jason Naidovski in the 8? minute. A poor back pass by Parramatta FC saw Naidovski pounce with an easy finish.
The goal lifted the visitors who continued to maintain pressure on the Eagles who were forced to camp out in their own half.
Parramatta finally had their first sight on goal in the 17? minute as Ben Jurman forced Dion Shaw into a save with a driving shot from the left of the 18-yard box.
The home side?s scrappy defence continued in the 25? minute but Costa was well out of his goals this time parrying a Naidovski shot out for a corner.
A minute later Costa was called again as Marino Musumeci floated a long cross into the box with the keeper just getting a touch with Monie lurking in behind him.
Parramatta were not going to give up and in the 28? minute Peter Crevani took the ball up the left hand touchline before cutting it back to Luke Grima. The youngster lobbed the ball over the defence for Crevani whose first time volley hit the side netting.
Shay Spitz started troubling the Eagles defence and in the 35? minute Monie fed his winger a sublime through ball. In a 3-on-2 situation Spitz could not find a teammate as his low cross was missed and cleared for a corner.
From the ensuing corner Parramatta could not clear the ball with Sash Tirovski, Sash Trajcevski and Naidovski all having their shots blocked.
With the game heading into the break both sides concentration levels dropped significantly as they each made simple mistakes losing possession on several occasions.
Rockdale came out of the sheds all guns blazing as they pushed hard to extend their lead.
Parramatta captain Tom Wilson had his side?s first chance on goal of the half in the 51? minute but his shot went straight to the waiting Shaw.
Manny Spanoudakis made his intentions clear bringing on Daniel Fogarty out wide to try and get back into the game in the 55? minute.
The plan almost worked in the 60? minute with Kutaiba Elrich sending a long ball to the free Fogarty who headed the ball to the oncoming Luke Grima. Grima?s chip was touched by Shaw before he sprinted back to claim the ball keeping his team in the lead.
5? minutes later, Elrich followed a through ball over the top of the defence before heading it over the oncoming Shaw. Defender Josh Lawson got back to clear the ball and thwart the Eagles chance.
Parramatta kept the pressure on and in the 75? minute finally hit the back of the net. Unfortunately for the Eagles faithful, referee James Blackwood called that Grima handled the ball keeping Rockdale in the lead.
In the 82? minute Dion Shaw again saved the day for Rockdale after Jurman?s great cross was poorly met by his teammates.
Rockdale parked themselves in their own half with 5? minutes remaining in the match making it very difficult for the Eagles to crack their defence ending the game 1-0.
Following the match, Rockdale City Suns coach Wally Savor said he was happy his side could keep a clean sheet to win the game:
?It was a very scrappy game and Parramatta have some fit boys who kept going all the way to till the end,?? he said.
?Maybe they deserved a bit more towards the end but I?m pretty happy the way the boys dug deep and rounded out the win.??
In the home dressing room a dejected Manny Spanoudakis admitted it wasn?t his team?s best performance:
?We?re creating chances it was just that one lapse in concentration which cost us dearly,?? he said.
?The boys are trying their best with what resources we have. It was a disruptive week with players with the flu and others injured but we tried our best and unfortunately it didn?t come off.??
In the Grade-20 fixture, a ten-man Rockdale City Suns outfit defeated Parramatta FC 2-1.
Match Stats
Parramatta FC 0
Rockdale City Suns 1 (Jason Naidovski 8?)
Sunday August 28th, 2011
Melita Stadium, South Granville
Referee: Jason Blackwood
Parramatta FC: 21.Anthony Costa; 2.Nick McInerney, 33.Luke Grima, 5.George Strogylos, 6.Tom Wilson (C), 8.Bryan Soane (4.Daniel Fogarty 55?), 11.Peter Crevani, 16.Jonathan Castano-Acero, 18.Almir Dizdaric (9.Kutaiba Elrich 46?), 20.Evangelos Petratos, 28.Ben Jurman,
Substitutions Not Used: 15.Ben Delicata, 12.Mark O?Donell, 1.Lachlan Tibbles
Yellow Cards: Jurman 59?, Elrich 71?
Red Cards: Nil
Rockdale City Suns: 22.Dion Shaw; 2.Paul Dee, 3.Shay Spitz, 7.Pece Apolevski (C), 9.Jason Naidovski (16.Anthony Perri 85?), 10.Sash Trajcevski (11.Adem Kir, 70?), 17.Sash Tirovski, 18.James Monie (5.Jeff Issa 66?), 19.Marino Musumeci, 20.Josh Lawson, 21.Mirko Jurijl
Substitutions Not Used: 1.Ben McNamara, 15.Adrian Karakolevski
Yellow Cards: Trajcevski 50?
Red Cards: Nil
-By Chris Georges
Rockdale City Suns hold League leaders to draw
The Suns opened the scoring in the 26? minute via Shay Spitz before Phil Makrys saw his free-kick sail into the net to make it 1-1.
After last weekend?s humiliating loss to Marconi Stallions, Sydney Olympic made their intentions clear from the opening whistle with a flurry of attacks unsettling the Rockdale defence.
Jerry Kalouris played a lovely through ball to Will Angel in the 3? minute for the latter to cross into the box, only for the Rockdale defence to clear.
2? minutes later Sydney Olympic had their first sight on goal as Brett Studman?s header from a corner was cleared off the line, keeping the scores level.
Rockdale slowly got back into the game and in the 8? minute a lovely cross by Pece Apolevski found a free Jason Naidovski who could not control the ball with only the goalkeeper to beat.
The Suns almost took the lead in the 14? minute when Apolevski latched onto a corner only to see his half-volley hit the crossbar.
The visitors kept the pressure on 3? minutes later as a long throw saw James Monie head the ball goal bound only to be expertly tapped out for a corner by Olympic goalkeeper Paul Henderson.
Rockdale took a deserved lead in the 26? minute when Apolevski played a square ball to Sash Trajcevski for the midfielder to chip over the Olympic defence with Shay Spitz creeping in behind to slam home.
The League leaders tried to get back into the game as moments later Robbie Mileski took on the Rockdale defence though his impending shot went wide of the mark.
Despite being outplayed for the majority of the half it would be Sydney Olympic who would next find the back of the net. Phil Makrys?s free-kick sailed over the head of Dion Shaw and into the back of the net to make the score 1-1.
Rockdale were unlucky not to re-take the lead on the stroke of half-time as James Monie was played a lovely through ball only to strike his shot wide of the mark.
Sydney Olympic came out of the break with all guns blazing as Emmanuel Giannaros? shot from the corner of the 18-yard box floated just over the left hand corner of the goal.
Rockdale?s fans were again left frustrated in the 52? minute as former A-League striker Jason Naidovski beat the offside trap and got the ball past the oncoming Henderson, only to hit the post.
The chances kept coming for the visitors as Shay Spitz?s cross was met by the head of Monie ? the striker?s header though finished over the crossbar.
Sydney Olympic slowly regained the majority of possession but could not break the stringent Suns defence.
In the 71? minute Olympic?s fans were on their feet as Gullo was sent goal bound with only the goalkeeper to beat. Unfortunately for the youngster, Gullo succumbed to cramp, as the chance went begging.
2? minutes later the Blues had another chance on goal as Phil Makrys found Chris Triantis in space on the right. Triantis? shot though went directly into the hands of the awaiting Dion Shaw.
Tod Bamber had a great chance to help his team take the lead 1? minute after coming onto the pitch but saw his half-volley go well over the bar and out for a goal kick.
In the 83? minute Triantis took on the Suns defence, making his way into the box from the left before cutting the ball towards Zac Elrich whose impending shot was saved and quickly headed out for a corner.
Triantis had another chance 2? minutes later but his curling effort went straight to the chest of Shaw.
Bamber had the best chance to win the game for his team in the dying moments. Triantis played a lovely through ball to the striker only to see his one-on-one opportunity well saved by Shaw.
The home side fought hard in the final 5? minutes with a handful of opportunities gone missing ending the game at 1-1.
Following the match Rockdale City Suns coach Wally Savor said he was happy with the result despite his side needing a win:
?It was a game we needed points from to stay alive and I know Olympic needed the points too,?? he said.
?I think we played really well and in patches we kept the ball well.
?First-half was maybe ours and the second probably theirs. So I was happy with our start and even into the second-half.
?But in respect to them they threw some numbers forward and they have some fast players so we?re not complaining as we have gotten a point. I think a draw is a fair result.??
In the home dressing room Peter Tsekenis said:
?We did come out a bit shaky and Rockdale came here with no real pressure on them and it showed,?? he said.
?We weathered a big storm as they did come at us and credit to the boys we stuck in there and got an equaliser.
?I thought in the second-half we picked it up and as the game went on we got stronger.
?We had a couple good chances in the end and you would probably wonder how they could miss them.??
In the Grade-20 fixture Rockdale City Suns ran away with a 4-1 victory over Sydney Olympic.
Match Stats
Sydney Olympic 1 (Makrys 40?)
Rockdale City Suns 1 (Spitz 26?)
Sunday 21st August, 2011
Belmore Sports Ground
Referee: Khodr Yaghi
Assistant Referees: Craig Fisher and Thomas Lee
Fourth Official: Janne Sjogren
Sydney Olympic: 1.Paul Henderson; 18.Jerry Kalouris, 3.Brett Studman, 8.Chris Triantis, 4.Ibrahim Haydar, 2.Emmanuel Giannaros, 14.Will Angel (17.Mitchell Stamatelis 62?), 7.Phil Makrys (C), 11.Robbie Mileski, 9.Husky Akil (22.Zac Elrich 67?), 19.David Gullo (15.Tod Bamber 79?)
Substitutes Not Used: 12.Bill Tsanidis, 21.Sam Emmanouil
Yellow Cards: Studman 66?
Red Cards: Nil
Rockdale City Suns: 22.Dion Shaw; 21.Mirko Jurijl, 6.Josh Lawson, 2.Paul Dee, 7.Pece Apolevski (C), 3.Shay Spitz, 10.Sash Trajcevski, 17.Sasho Tirovski (19.Marino Musumeci 46?), 23.Ashkin Oygur, 18.James Monie (11.Adem Kir 91?), 9.Jason Naidovski (5.Jeffrey Issa 80?)
Substitutes Not Used: 16.Anthony Perri, 1.Ben McNamara
Yellow Cards: Oygur 70?
Red Cards: Nil
-By Chris Georges