Altona East Phoenix
Encyclopedia
Altona East Phoenix Soccer Club is an Australian association football (soccer) club based in the western suburbs of Melbourne
, Victoria
, Australia
, currently in the Victorian State League Division 2 N/W. They play at the Paisley Park Soccer Complex in Altona North
.
s under the name East Altona PAOK Soccer Club, taking their nickname and black and white stripes from the famous Greek Macedonian club of the same name. The PAOK
name was changed to Altona East Phoenix Soccer Club in the 1990s in accordance with Australian soccer authorities attempts at mainstreaming soccer in Australia
.
They spent most of their history up until 1992 in the amateur and provisional leagues, before steadily progressing up the league system and forming a close tight-knit squad that provided the results to eventually reach the Victorian Premier League
in 1999. After a hard fought first inaugural season Altona East stayed up, which were followed by fantastic seasons in 2000 (3rd), 2001 (Semi-Finals) and 2002 (Elimination Finals). The club's reign as a title contender would end in 2003 as the club saw three different coaches unsuccessfully pull Phoenix out of relegation.
Following the club's first ever relegation, Altona East maintained a solid mid-table finish in the 2004 State League 1 Division. The 2005 season saw a hard-fought campaign to push back into the VPL
, finishing third, just outside a promotion place. 2006 saw another woeful season and Phoenix were unfortunately relegated back into Division 2.
The 2007 season saw a new batch of youngsters as well as some key experienced players, guided under new coach and ex-VPL referee Dominic Barba, as Altona East attempted to begin a new and improved squad. After an opening day 4-0 victory, PAOK saw itself with one victory in its first 9 games. However, the team recruited well mid-season and finished the season off positively, smashing rivals Altona City and Williamstown 6-1 and 7-1 respectively along the way.
The 2008 season saw the club with the determination of promotion back to State League 1, containing a large and very strong squad. Being in the top two positions for most of the season, the Phoenix dropped crucial points and their fate was ultimately realised with a 2-1 away loss to eventual premiers Pascoe Vale, with the club finishing in 4th. However tragedy struck Paisley Park a day after the team's 2-1 home win against Cairnlea, with the news that then-current striker Nazir Ismail had passed away due to a car accident in the night . Nazir also scored in the match the day before, having a tally of 4 goals in his 7-game stint with the club.
Altona East began the 2009 season with less stronger list than the previous year, but started brightly winning 5 games out of their first 6. However, after a run of mixed results, coach Dominic Barba was dismissed and within the week the experienced Zoran Trajcevski was appointed to salvage the season. The team continued its mixed results, finishing 4th for the second year in succession, despite beating champions North Geelong on the last match day.
Altona East Phoenix was a very unknown team in the junior category, and in 2009, two junior teams, the U15 and U16 teams were competing in the highest junior division, with the U15 team champions of Superleague.
, Altona City SC
, Yarraville Glory
, Williamstown and Preston Lions.
Head-to-Head: Altona Magic
Head-to-Head: Preston Lions
Head-to-Head: Altona City
Head-to-Head: Yarraville Glory
Head-to-Head: Williamstown SC
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, currently in the Victorian State League Division 2 N/W. They play at the Paisley Park Soccer Complex in Altona North
Altona North, Victoria
Altona North is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Hobsons Bay...
.
History
They were founded in 1979 by local Greek AustralianGreek Australian
Greeks are the seventh-largest ethnic group in Australia, after those declaring their ancestry simply as "Australian". In the 2006 census, 365,147 persons declared having Greek ancestry, either alone or in conjunction with another ethnicity....
s under the name East Altona PAOK Soccer Club, taking their nickname and black and white stripes from the famous Greek Macedonian club of the same name. The PAOK
PAOK
The Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans , abbreviated P.A.O.K. , is a Macedonian sports club in Thessaloniki, Greece. The club is home to several teams, including football, basketball, volleyball, handball, water polo, swimming, wrestling, hockey and weightlifting. P.A.O.K. was...
name was changed to Altona East Phoenix Soccer Club in the 1990s in accordance with Australian soccer authorities attempts at mainstreaming soccer in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
They spent most of their history up until 1992 in the amateur and provisional leagues, before steadily progressing up the league system and forming a close tight-knit squad that provided the results to eventually reach the Victorian Premier League
Victorian Premier League
The Victorian Premier League is the highest State level association football competition in Victoria, Australia, and second highest nationally after the A-League...
in 1999. After a hard fought first inaugural season Altona East stayed up, which were followed by fantastic seasons in 2000 (3rd), 2001 (Semi-Finals) and 2002 (Elimination Finals). The club's reign as a title contender would end in 2003 as the club saw three different coaches unsuccessfully pull Phoenix out of relegation.
Following the club's first ever relegation, Altona East maintained a solid mid-table finish in the 2004 State League 1 Division. The 2005 season saw a hard-fought campaign to push back into the VPL
Victorian Premier League
The Victorian Premier League is the highest State level association football competition in Victoria, Australia, and second highest nationally after the A-League...
, finishing third, just outside a promotion place. 2006 saw another woeful season and Phoenix were unfortunately relegated back into Division 2.
The 2007 season saw a new batch of youngsters as well as some key experienced players, guided under new coach and ex-VPL referee Dominic Barba, as Altona East attempted to begin a new and improved squad. After an opening day 4-0 victory, PAOK saw itself with one victory in its first 9 games. However, the team recruited well mid-season and finished the season off positively, smashing rivals Altona City and Williamstown 6-1 and 7-1 respectively along the way.
The 2008 season saw the club with the determination of promotion back to State League 1, containing a large and very strong squad. Being in the top two positions for most of the season, the Phoenix dropped crucial points and their fate was ultimately realised with a 2-1 away loss to eventual premiers Pascoe Vale, with the club finishing in 4th. However tragedy struck Paisley Park a day after the team's 2-1 home win against Cairnlea, with the news that then-current striker Nazir Ismail had passed away due to a car accident in the night . Nazir also scored in the match the day before, having a tally of 4 goals in his 7-game stint with the club.
Altona East began the 2009 season with less stronger list than the previous year, but started brightly winning 5 games out of their first 6. However, after a run of mixed results, coach Dominic Barba was dismissed and within the week the experienced Zoran Trajcevski was appointed to salvage the season. The team continued its mixed results, finishing 4th for the second year in succession, despite beating champions North Geelong on the last match day.
Altona East Phoenix was a very unknown team in the junior category, and in 2009, two junior teams, the U15 and U16 teams were competing in the highest junior division, with the U15 team champions of Superleague.
Honours
- Victorian Premier League Finalists 2001, 2002
- Victorian State League Division 1 Champions 1998
- Victorian State League Division 2 Champions 1997
- Victorian State League Division 3 Champions 1994
- Victorian State League Division 4 Champions 1993, Reserve Champions 1993
- Victorian Provisional League Division 1 Champions 1992
- Victorian Provisional League Division 2 Champions 1989
- Hellenic CupHellenic CupThe Hellenic Cup is an Australian football tournament contested by Greek Australian clubs, mostly from Melbourne, Victoria . Starting in 1983, it was an attempt to formalise the previously scattered approach to holding such tournaments in the 1960s and 1970s.The Hellenic Cup Tournament trophy is...
Champions 1992, 2004
Records
- Best Result at Home: 14-0 vs Melton Reds at Paisley Park Soccer ComplexPaisley Park Soccer ComplexPaisley Park Soccer Complex was established in 1975 by the local City of Hobsons Bay council.Today it provides the facilities for giant local soccer club Altona Magic who play in Victorian Premier League and are supported by the Macedonian Australian community. The stadium has a capacity of 5,000...
10/09/1998 - Best Result Away: 11-0 vs Doveton at Warratah Reserve 16/04/1994
- Worst Result at Home: 0-4 vs Lalor SC on 30/05/1992, 0-4 vs Fawkner BluesFawkner BluesFawkner Blues is an Australian association football club from Fawkner, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria. The club was formed in 1965 by local Italian Australians...
on 30/04/2000 and 1-5 vs Williamstown SC on 27/8/2011 at Paisley Park Soccer ComplexPaisley Park Soccer ComplexPaisley Park Soccer Complex was established in 1975 by the local City of Hobsons Bay council.Today it provides the facilities for giant local soccer club Altona Magic who play in Victorian Premier League and are supported by the Macedonian Australian community. The stadium has a capacity of 5,000... - Worst Result Away: 0-7 vs Westvale at McKechnie Reserve 15/06/1996
- Longest Winning Streak: 7 games - 18/07/1992 - 12/09/1992
- Longest Losing Streak: 5 games - 05/04/2003 - 18/05/2003
- Longest Unbeaten Streak: 23 games - 02/04/1994 - 17/09/1994
Top Club Goal Scorers
- 2011 - Bozidar Lojanica 12
- 2010 - Bozidar Lojanica and Benjamin Stafrace 6
- 2009 - Steven IosifidisSteven IosifidisSteve Iosifidis is a Greek-Australian Football player.Steve began his career at local club Altona East Phoenix. He made his way to Heidelberg United in the National Soccer League in 1994-95 season. Heidelberg were relegated to the Victorian Premier League that year where they finished 2nd to...
6 - 2008 - Bozidar Lojanica 13
- 2007 - Marco Tolli 11
- 2006 - Taxiarhis Apostolikas 5
- 2005 - Taxiarhis Apostolikas 13
- 2004 - Danny GnjidićDanny GnjidićDamir "Danny" Gnjidić , is an Australian former footballer and now a football coach.-References:...
13 - 2003 - Nikolaos PapadopoulosNick PapadopoulosNick Papadopoulos is a former Greek-Australian Football player. He should not be confused with his namesake Nicos Papadopoulos who was manager of Skoda Xanthi and now with Olympiakos Nicosia who was a former defender spending most of his career in Ofi Crete. - References :...
and Steve Bartol 4 - 2002 - Daniel Genovesi 7
- 2001 - Nick Papadopoulos 7
- 2000 - Daniel Genovesi 8
- 1999 - George Angelos 11
- 1998 - Peter KakosPeter KakosPeter Kakos was a Melbourne-born Greek-Australian football player whose career was primarily centred around the Victorian Premier League as well as the National Soccer League with Gippsland Falcons during the 1999/2000 season.24 hours after Oakleigh Cannons defeated Whittlesea Zebras on 14 May...
26 - 1997 - George Angelos 14
- 1996 - Arthur Davis 12
- 1995 - Harry Timotheou 12
- 1994 - George Angelos 19
- 1993 - Nick TsaltasNick TsaltasNick Tsaltas is a retires Greek-Australian Football player.-References:...
24
Current squad
First team squad, as of 19 June 2009Notable former players
- Nick TsaltasNick TsaltasNick Tsaltas is a retires Greek-Australian Football player.-References:...
(1993–94, 2006) - Michael Michalakopoulos (1998)
- Terry Antoniadis (1999–03, 2010-11)
- Ross Antoniadis (1999–03)
- Steve PantelidisSteve PantelidisSteven Pantelidis is an Australian football player of Greek descent, who currently plays as a central midfielder for Perth Glory in the Australian A-League.- Club career :...
(2001–02) - Danny GnjidićDanny GnjidićDamir "Danny" Gnjidić , is an Australian former footballer and now a football coach.-References:...
(2004–05) - Steven IosifidisSteven IosifidisSteve Iosifidis is a Greek-Australian Football player.Steve began his career at local club Altona East Phoenix. He made his way to Heidelberg United in the National Soccer League in 1994-95 season. Heidelberg were relegated to the Victorian Premier League that year where they finished 2nd to...
(1993, 2004, 2009-10) - Nick KalmarNick KalmarNick Kalmar is an Australian Football player who currently plays for Melbourne Heart.-Club career:After his departure from Sunshine George Cross in 2007 he had a stint in Croatia before returning to Australia...
(2004–2005) - Jurica SiljanoskiJurica SiljanoskiJurica 'Juri' Siljanoski is an ethnic Macedonian professional footballer. He is a striker who currently plays in Australia for Altona East Phoenix...
(2007) - Vladimir ZoricVladimir ZoricVladimir Zorić is an Australian association footballer of Serbian descent who played for Marconi Fairield in the National Soccer League.-Club career:...
(2007–09) - Kamal IbrahimKamal IbrahimKamal Said Ibrahim is an Ethiopian Australian football player who currently plays for A-League team...
(2006) Youth
Former coaches
- 1997-1998: Takis Svigos
- 1999-2000: Peter OllertonPeter OllertonPeter Ollerton is a former Australian football forward who represented Australia 55 times between 1974 and 1977 scoring 20 goals. He was a member of the Australian 1974 World Cup squad in West Germany and also represented Victoria.He was recently named as Head Coach of Victorian Premier League...
- 2001-2003: Chris Taylor
- 2003 (Rnd 9): Peter OllertonPeter OllertonPeter Ollerton is a former Australian football forward who represented Australia 55 times between 1974 and 1977 scoring 20 goals. He was a member of the Australian 1974 World Cup squad in West Germany and also represented Victoria.He was recently named as Head Coach of Victorian Premier League...
- 2003 (Rnd 18): Giovanni De Amicis
- 2004: Charlie EganCharlie EganCharles Egan is a former Australian international football player of Scottish heritage.He played in Scotland early in his career but moved to Australia to play for Frankston Pines in the Victorian State League. He transferred to South Melbourne Hellas three years later where he made a household...
- 2005-2006: Takis Svigos
- 2006 (Rnd 10): Giovanni De Amicis
- 2007-2009: Dominic Barba
- 2009 (Rnd 15)-2010: Zoran TrajcevskiZoran TrajcevskiZoran Trajcevski is a former footballer and now coach who is currently coaching Altona East Phoenix.-References:...
- 2010 (Rnd 15)-Current: Paul Donnelly
Rivalries
Altona East's rivals Altona MagicAltona Magic
Altona Magic Soccer Club is a football team based in Altona North, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. They currently play in the Victorian State League Division 1.-History:...
, Altona City SC
Altona City SC
Altona City are an Australian association football club from Altona, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria. The club was formed in 1965 as a predominantly Scottish club. The club played in the Victorian State League from 1977–1981 but the club has not yet return to its glory days. Altona City...
, Yarraville Glory
Yarraville Glory
Yarraville Glory is an Australian association football club from Spotswood, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The club consists of Juniors which range from under 8's to under 16's. Then the Senior/Reserve teams which are in State League 3 N/W...
, Williamstown and Preston Lions.
Head-to-Head: Altona Magic
- Games: 10
- Phoenix wins: 5
- Magic wins: 4
- Draws: 1
- Phoenix goals: 11
- Magic goals: 8
Head-to-Head: Preston Lions
- Games: 11
- Phoenix wins: 4
- Preston wins: 7
- Draws: 0
- Phoenix goals: 12
- Preston goals: 16
Head-to-Head: Altona City
- Games: 15
- Phoenix wins: 11
- City wins: 3
- Draws: 1
- Phoenix goals: 35
- City goals: 15
Head-to-Head: Yarraville Glory
- Games: 6
- Phoenix wins: 3
- Glory wins: 2
- Draws: 1
- Phoenix goals: 5
- Glory goals: 3
Head-to-Head: Williamstown SC
- Games: 16
- Phoenix wins: 8
- Willi wins: 4
- Draws: 4
- Phoenix goals: 29
- Willi goals: 17