 |
Ned Jukic was coach from 1989 - 1992. During this period Gwelup hit the bottom of the league doldrums. Ned was not to blame for the clubs lack of results as recruiting good players was very difficult. The Soccer Federation of W.A and the Professional Soccer League parted company and two professional leagues were running in Perth simultaneously. Thus any young talent was being snapped up by those leagues. North Perth Croatia, the professional flagship of Croatian soccer in Western Australia was also flourishing and many youngsters were in their ranks trying to break into league soccer. North Perth Croatia also had their own amateur team , though it started out life as COM-POL i.e Commonwealth Police Soccer Team and boasted some great names such as Vladimir Knezovic, Tom Simich, Steve Simich, Laurie Ukalovic, Tom Ukalovic, Michael Simich. This team was held together by one of the real gentlemen of the game, Mr Terry O'Neil and they went on to win numerous league titles and Cups and even represented Western Australia at the 1990 Australian - Croatian Soccer Championships in St Albans Victoria, playing against such teams as Sydney United.
Ned Jukic faced many problems as the coach, the team was made up of players who were coming to the end of their playing careers and youngsters who were just starting out, and consistency was the key element that they could not seem to find. In the 1988 season they lost the first six games and then went on to win the next 9 pulling themselves up the ladder into second place and then letting it slide away in the last 6 games. But the best result of these years were the emergence of some of the youngsters as pivotal players of the future. Players like Ante Kapuralic, Miro Bicanic, David Chokolich, Ivan Kapuralic
.Above is the 1993 from left to right Steve Cickak, Eddy Bulich David Lukavecki, Ned Jukic, Vicko Dragicevich, David Chokoloich, Miro Bicanic,Sergio Belardo, Carlo Borrello Mike Jurleka, Robert Malekin, Mike Ristovsky, Ante Kapuralic, Goran Tomic, Antony Kalebich
Eddy Bulich took over as Coach in 1993. Eddy came to Gwelup in 1992 from North Perth Croatia Amateurs playing in the side that won the 1991 Provisional 1 League and represented W.A. in the Croatian Soccer Tournament in Victoria. Eddy previously played with the State league Club Osborne Park Galeb. Steve Cicak was the secretary of Gwelup and grand plans were hatched by Eddy and Steve to have two teams competing in the league. A new influx of players came to th club, including the Club captain Antony Kalebich who also played at Osborne Park Galeb, Michael Jurleka another ex - Galeb player, Sergio Belardo from Morley Windmills, Carlo Borello, Goran Tomich, Ilija Markovic, Vicko Dragicevich, Andrija Balic, Alan Kukuruzovic, Ivan Pavlovic as well existing players from the previous year.
The 1993 season looked as though it could have been a very successful year. In the first five games we managed 2 wins 1 draw and two losses. Training was stepped up from one night a week to two and the club seemed to have found a little of its lost enthusiasm. We were getting respectable crowds coming down to watch our games and expectations were high. But the problem that plagued the team in previous years came back to haunt us, a lack of consistency. We would one week beat the top team at their home ground only to be beaten the next week by the bottom team at our home ground. But on the positive side we were playing some of the best soccer we had ever played. We finished the season in sixth spot.
In 1994 the North Perth Croatia moved from their old Ground Perry
Lakes Stadium to our ground Wishart Street . In order to get
the playing surface up to Professional League Standards, North
Perth asked if we would move to another ground for the season.
We felt a little upset at the idea, especially after our players
and supporters had just finished building a new change-room and
Kiosk facility but we agreed, and instead of moving we would
disband for the year, so our 1994 season ended without us even
kicking a ball.
The 1995 season
came quicker than expected, the call was put out and many of
the 1993 squad were ready to dust off their boots and start a
new season. There were some substantial losses, Sergio Belardo,
Carlo Borrello, David Chokolich, Miroslav Bicanic, Michael Jurleka,
Ilija Markovic and Ante Kapuralic who went to Croatia on holidays
but spent most of his time in a hospital in Split recovering
from head injuries sustained in a horrendous car accident. These
players were all key position players and were very difficult
to replace. But as one door closes another opens, and new signing's
for the year were Jurica Denona, Marko Markovic, Dave Knezevic
and Zdenko Matic.
The season became long and drawn and results were hard to come
by, our final result was 9th from a league of twelve, but two
new stars shone brightly. Marko Markovic and Jurica Denona were
quickly establishing themselves as accomplished players.
The 1996 season
saw the introduction of new players like Mario Misic, Daniel
Dragicevich, Nikola Kezich, Ivica Pejic, Marco Vinciullo, Michele
Martini and David Bosnjak and our only losses were Dave Knezevic
and Zdenko Matic. Mario Misic, Ivica Pejic and Michele Martini
were all players that had played in higher leagues. Mario came
from the U/17 North Perth Croatia Super League Team, Ivica Pejic
was a Croatian Refugee from Bosnia who had played in their professional
league and Michele Martini came back to the game after an absence
from the former State League Team Osborne Park Galeb.
The team started to show signs of where they left of in 1993
but injuries to key players and work commitments meant that we
could never field a full strength team for the league fixtures.
Though our league results were fair we started to show some form
in the Association Cup, we won our first round game quite convincingly,
then the second round , through to the quarter finals only to
be knocked out in the semi-finals 2-0 by the eventual winners
Olympic Kingsway. Who then went on to meet Fremantle Croatia
in the Grand Final.
The 1997 started full of promise, new signing's included Steven Kovacevich who came from the North Perth Croatia league team, Paul Serdar from the 2nd division in the Northern Territory and Sergio Belardo an old favourite returned to the club after a couple of seasons with Rochester United. The coaching was shared between Andy Oreb and Eddy Bulich and we were all hoping for a successful year. The league competition started but our early form was quite poor, though we were not playing bad soccer or conceding many goals we were not scoring and this was costing us dearly on the league ladder. Injuries to players was a growing concern, we lost a number of players to long term injuries such as ankles and knees and this only lowered the moral of the players. The only shining light was the Association Cup, like the 1996 season we made it through the first round, second round, quarter finals and again to the semi-finals at Hamer Parade in Inglewood to meet Bassendean Caledonians. We lost 3-1 but we put on a spirited display. We started with only eleven men, lost one to a hamstring injury and our goalkeeper played on with two broken fingers . Bassendean eventually went on to win the Cup.
Above the 1998 Team from Left to right Marcus Strohmeier, Joe Markovic,Frank Knezovic,Andy Oreb,John Podrug, David Chokolich, Alen Zelich, Antony Kalebich, Alan Kukuruzovic, Ante Kapuralic, Eddy Bulich Daniel Dragicevich, Mike Ristovsky, Michele Martini, Andrija Balic, Paul Kukuruzovic, Ivan Kapuralic, Jurica Denona, Marko Markovic
The 1998 season
saw many changes on the pitch. Ivan Pavlovich, Sergio Belardo,
Paul Serdar, and Steven Kovacevich moved to other clubs and Ned
Jukic retired from the team. However new players were signed,
including Vicko Dragicevich, who re-signed after a one year break,
John Podrug, Anthony Pobrica, Marcus Strohmeier, Alen Zelich
and Frank Knezovic. The season started well but injuries quickly
took their tole, and many games that we lost would have been
won if the whole team was open for selection. Alen Zelich tore
a thigh muscle very early on in the season and missed much of
the action. Michele Martini also suffered an injured ankle from
a very crude tackle in a match against Naval Base Wescoa . Therefore
almost every week we had to patch the team and change everyone's
position on the field just so that we could fill the eleven positions
required..
Again the light in the end of our tunnel was the Association
Cup. We made it through the preliminary rounds, then faced Queens
Park Athletic in the quarter-finals. Queens Park led 1-0 at half
time but at the end of the match the score was Queens Park 1
- Gwelup Croatia 2. So we waited anxiously for the semi-final
draw, and to our horror the team that we did not want to meet
was the team that we were drawn - Old Bailey Taverners. This
team was made up of ex-State league players, David Roxby was
their goalkeeper and a keeper with our Professional league team
North Perth Croatia for many years; Eric Williams also played
and coached North Perth Croatia for a number of years. Old Bailey
Taverners were probably the most successful team in the social
competition and were the current Cup holders and they had not
lost a game nor dropped a point for eighteen months. The semi
final was scheduled for a 6.30pm kick-off at Ashfield Reserve.
By 6.15pm we only had eleven men exactly show up, and the boys
were all very nervous about the ensuing match. We had met Old
Bailey in the second round of the season and lost 5-1. But determination
was on our side. Alen Zelich had come back from injury, Frank
Knezovic was starting to find form but a big problem was the
loss of Daniel Dragicevich our right back who received severe
ligament damage to his left ankle in the league fixture the previous
Sunday. Michele Martini, our midfield engine, was also late due
to work commitmets and traffic, and to cap it off our captain
Antony Kalebich was suffering with groin strain. The starting
line-up consisted of David Chokolich in goal, Alan Kukuruzovic
as right back, Ivan Kapuralic as left-back, Antony Kalebich as
sweeper, Marky Markovic as centre back, Jurica Denona , John
Matic, Andrija Balic, Paul Kukuruzovic in midfield, and Frank
Knezovic and Alen Zelich as the forwards.
The boys came out firing and took the game right to Old Bailey's.
Playing some of the best soccer I have ever seen Gwelup Croatia
play we took the lead with a beautifully placed free kick from
Jurica Denona just outside the eighteen yard box. The second
goal was the result of some excellent defending, after thwarting
an advance the defence played the ball to Alen Zelich who dropped
into a more midfield type role to cover for the absence of Mick
Martini. Alen saw that the Old Bailey players were slow in retreating
after their failed attack and passed a superb through ball to
Frank Knezovic who chipped the advancing Old Bailey's goalkeeper
to make the score 2-0. The third goal was from a cross on the
left wing which Old Baileys failed to clear properly and Paul
Kukuruzovic kept his composure and slotted the ball into the
back of the net for our third goal.
The second half was a torrid affair, Old Baileys came out with
everthing they had. Michele Martini had arrived at the ground
mid way through the first half and his inclusion helped to settle
our team. Our tackling and commitment on the ball was exceptional,
it was a fight for each ball and we gave as good as we got.We
had a few further chances to score to we could not capitalise
on our efforts. Instead Old Baileys pegged a goal back with about
twenty minutes left to play, but by that time our place in the
Grand-Final looked certain. The scores finished 3-1, and we had
some serious celebrating to do in the change room. The boys were
ecstatic and the atmosphere in the changeroom was phenomenal,
the chanting and singing and especially the smiles on the faces
of the players is something that I will always remember. It was
still only the semi-finals but it felt like we had just won the
World Cup.
The Grand final was played on Sunday the 27th of September at Dorrien Gardens in front of a crowded stadium. The boys were again nervous, but perhaps a little too overconfident. The opposition were Lynwood Colts, a very good team but because they were from one division below us in the league I feel the boys were under-estimating the opppositions ability. Both teams took quite a while to settle, but they were equally matched . Lynwood scored first through an unchallenged header in the box. Allan Kukuruzovic had a magnificent solo run from right back to ten metres into Lynwoods defending half and then let fly with a thunderous drive that hit the cross-bar. It hit the cross-bar with such force that the ball rebounded almost to the half way line. The game was a fast paced encounter and the skill levels suffered. Gwelup were drawn into Lynwoods playing style of long probing balls into the forward line. Gwelups break thruogh came when Alen Zelich made a probing run only to be bought down inside the penalty box. It was a tense moment but Alen slotted the goal away nice and calmly and the scores were level. Lynwood then scored again around the 35 minute mark, through some sloppy Gwelup defending, the Lynwood forward received and nice through ball and was not marked close enough and drilled the ball past David Chokolich. Frank Knezovic pegged a goal back with a shot that sliced through the Lynwood defence and much to our relief past the keeper and into the net. Again the scores were level and half time was upon us. The atmosphere in the change room at half time was remarkably calm . Even though we had let our concentration slip in the first half and conceded two goals we had the spirit and the fight to comeback and level the scores. If we could stick to our game-plan of pushing each player behind the ball when we were defending and playing off the break we were optomistic that we would win the game.
The second half started the way we had expected, Lynwood threw evetything into attack and they pressured our defence. Clear cut chances were few and far between for both teams, though Lynwood pressured, our defense held firm. The game turned into a slogging match Lynwood would pressure our goal and our defense would repell the attack. With our midfielders playing a more defensive role their service to the forward line was greatly reduced but we did still get the ball into Lynwoods 18 yard box and cause them a few headaches. By this stage players on both teams were feeling the affects of fatigue. The game was played at a fast pace and regular time was almost up so the result looked as though it would go the way of the fitter team, as the dreaded sudden death extra time was drawing closer. When the referee blew the whistle for full-time there was of feeling of relief that we hadn't lost the game but would we cope with another 30 minutes of playing at such a pace.
With the first half of extra time the game carried on from where it left off in the last half. Lynwood attacking and Gwelup desperately defending. The keeper David Chokolich made some fine saves to keep us in the game and luck also played its part. Lynwood peppered our goal and the ball went everywhere except into the back of the net. Lynwood hit the crossbar twice as well as an upright and during a Lynwood corner a Lynwood player flicked a glancing header which beat the keeper and somehow ran across the goal line hitting an upright pole and the finally cleared away by a Gwelup defender.
Gwelup seemed to find some of its lost composure in the second half of extra time . Fatigue was now playing a more telling role with the players, passing became more inaccurate and marking became alot looser. But again there was not much between the two teams in this half. Gwelup had the chance to steal the game with about five minutes to go when a Lynwood attack was turned over by the Gwelup defense and a lovely through ball was knocked to Jure Denona on the left side of midfield. The Lynwood defense were drawn too deep forward in their attacking move and Jure Denona side stepped their defence and took off towards goal with only the goalkeeper to beat. But fatigue reared its ugly head and Jure hit the ball but sliced it to the left of goal. The dreaded penalty shoot out would now decide the game.
The tension level in the grandstand was extremely high, but not as high as on the Gwelup bench. The players were gathered into the centre circle to arrange who would take which penalty. Lynwood shot first and scored , Antony Kalebich shot with a well struck shot and scored. Lynwood 1:Gwelup 1. Michele Martini next scored from the spot . Jure Denona scored next . Frank Knezovic scored the fourth, Alen Zelich scored the fifth. The first five penalties were taken and scores were level at 5:5. Now it was sudden death the first to miss would lose. Andrija Balic took the sixth penalty and scored, . Joe Markovic lined up for the seventh penalty and scored. The eighth penalty taker for Lynwood was a forward that had caused us a number of anxious moments in the game. He took his penalty and aimed it at chest height to the right hand side of the keeper. To our Keepers credit he read the path of the ball and got his fingers to it and deflected it around the post. The score was 7:7 and Gwelup had a shot in hand. The anticipation on the faces of the supporters in the stand was remarkable, could it be that in 1998 on the 10 year anniversary of the formation of the club a major trophy was in our grasp. Marko Markovic then walked up to the spot, lined himself up and took his shot. There was cheering and hollering as the ball made the back of the net ripple. Many of the supporters ran onto the pitch to congratulate the players - the 1998 OLA Social Cup Champions.
|
|
|
|
|
After the win in the 1998 Grand Final we started the 1999 season with high expectations. The players finally had self-belief in their abilities. We actually had players call us from other clubs seeking to join us for the new season. We gained six new players , Peter Simunovich from Fremantle Croatia and previously with the State League side Western Knights; Daniel Miles a hard working midfielder from Dacia Perth; Michael Tomazin, Ivica Pecek amd Marjan Kukin. But losses were substantial, Michele Martini took the year of to rest the injury to his ankle and John Podrug moved to Cockburn City. In essence we had the same team but we lost most of our driving force in midfield. The season started well with a 5:1 win over Willetton but we lost the next game to the League Premiers Moon & Sixpence 4:0. We were playing some good soccer and scoring plenty of goals. We hammered Kingsway Olympic 14:0 and we beat most of the teams below us but we still had a torrid time with teams that had a fast and physical midfield. Michael Tomazin turned in some very good performances in the middle of the ground as did Jure Denona but we were still exposed in the middle of the ground.One highlight was the performance of Frank Knezovic who was in blistering form scoring 1.52 goals per game. He scored a total of 32 goals in 21 league games and took out the Top goal scorer Award in the league.We finished the season in fifth position which did not really reflect our performances, but once again a lack of consistency robbed us of a higher place on the table.
As the 1998 OLA Social Cup holders we were going to defend our title with all of our ability. It was a strange transformation in the change rooms before the start of a cup match, there was almost an air of nervousness amongst the players that was not present during normal league matches. Pehaps the players felt the expectations of the supporters and especially the coach that since we were the current cup holders we were expected to defend our titile. Our campaign to defend our title started well with a 4:1 home win against ECU Estudientes. The second round Gwelup Croatia whitewashed Subiaco 6:1 and confidence in our title hopes was growing. The third round was Fremantle United away, again the players showed their character and self-belief with a 4:1 win. It was down to the Quarter finals and we would meet Secret Harbour from the fourth division. Secret Harbour were a young team that was quite pacey but Gwelup prevailed with a 2:0 victory to book a place in the Semi-finals. In one of the other quarter final games Moon & Sixpence who were leading our league table met Perth Saints from the second division. Perth Saints were headed by former Australian international Robbie Dunn, who along with Steve Huxtable also played for our Super League Club, North Perth Croatia. Perth Saints were doing extremely well in their league and were leading the table in the Second division, they had scored almost 100 goals to date and conceded less than 30. To the surprise of everyone, Perth Saints toppled Moon & Sixpence 3:1. It was now an anxious wait to see who we would be drawn against. The three other remaining teams were Perth Saints, Lynwood Colts and Dianella Serbia. The draw for the semi-finals was held during a delegates meeting at the Ingelwood Kiev Soccer Club and all I remeber was that my heart was racing as the draw proceeded. Perth Saints were drawn first and I held my breath as the next slip of paper was drawn from the bag, Gwelup Croatia said the delegate. A terrible feeling came over me, it was the same feeling I had the same time the previous year when we were drawn against Moon & Sixpence (Old Bailey Taverners - they changed their name at the start of the new season). But then I thought to myself, hell we beat Moon & Sixpence last year and nobody expected us to do that, so anything is possible. The first training session afer the meeting I told all of the players who we had drawn in the semi-final. The reaction was mixed but I could see the underlying confidence that was instilled in the players. At this moment I felt a great deal of pride and admiration for each and every player in the team. This was the team that I started coaching six years ago, who would go out onto the park on Sunday and expect to get belted, now facing quality opposition they were the ones expecting to do the belting. Training was stepped up in preparation and we even went to spy on Perth Saints and video taped a league game of theirs so we could familiarise ourselves with their style of play.
The semi-final was played mid-week at what was becoming a good hunting ground for Gwelup Croatia, Ashfield Reserve. The kick-off was again at 6.30pm and this time all the players were there on time. The atmosphere in the change-room was apprehensive but still you could feel the confidence of the players. Playing conditions were not ideal, the temperature was around four degrees celsius, and it was raining itermittently. Below is how the WAASSA correspondent described the night.
1998 Social Cup holders, Gwelup
Croatia (Prem. Social) outplayed Saints (Div 2)
in very heavy wet conditions at Ashfield Reserve on Wednesday
evening (Aug 11th)
to win the right to defend their title.
Perth Saints supported by a very
boisterous loud crowd of spectators looked very
sharp with some smart touch football but could not overcome their
physically larger
opponents and as the rain continued to fall so did their skill
level.
Gwelup Croatia are a fast physical team who keep coming at their
opponents and will
ensure a tough final.
The game seemed to follow the same script as the previous semi-final against Old Bailey Taverners. Jure Denona started of the scoring with a beautifully placed strike from 25 metres out that left the Saints keeper with no chance of saving it. Frank Knezovic broke through the Saints defence
