Tom Pondeljak
Encyclopedia
Tomislav Pondeljak (born January 8, 1976 in Melbourne
, Victoria, Australia) is an Australia
n football (soccer)
player, who is currently playing for A-league
club Melbourne Victory.
(VIS) before playing for St. Albans making 62 appearances in his 2½ year spell at the lower league Victorian club. He was then brought into the National Soccer League
(NSL) by the Melbourne Knights
and helping them to victory during the 1995-96 NSL season. After playing another 3½ years and a total of 97 appearances for the Melbourne
club he moved to Sydney United
.
Not much success was had in his two years at the club, and Pondeljak eventually moved to cross town rivals Sydney Olympic. There he won his second NSL title. He then moved onto Perth Glory
where he won his third NSL title. Following the collapse of the NSL at the end of the 2003/04 season to went to Malaysia and played for Johor FC
.
When the A-League was formed, Pondeljak was being chased by a number of teams including Sydney FC
, Perth Glory, Newcastle Jets and his hometown team Melbourne Victory but it was the Central Coast Mariners
who made the best offer and he accepted that offer becoming one of the marquee signings for the Mariners.
The 2005/06 season was not the best for Pondeljak as he was injured for about two months with a fractured and dislocated wrist
. He did however produce one of the goals of the season against Sydney FC
. He ran into the penalty area, turned three Sydney FC players and slotted the ball past the outstreched arm of Goalkeeper Clint Bolton
. He scored the only goal of the Preliminary Final against Adelaide United to send the Central Coast Mariners into the Grand Final.
On 27 February 2008 Pondeljak signed a two year contract with Melbourne Victory.
Pondeljak was promoted to Victory’s starting 11 following his debut against South Korea’s Chunnam Dragons
and proved his worth on four minutes with a cracking shot from outside the penalty area that gave the visitors a perfect start.
On the 28 January 2009, Pondeljak started for Australia in their Asian Cup qualifying match against Indonesia. This was Pondeljak's first international appearance in seven years, and added to the 4 caps he had earned back in 2002.
A month later, on 28 February 2009, Pondeljak scored what proved to be the winning goal in Melbourne Victory's 1-0 triumph over arch-rivals Adelaide United in the A-League Grand Final. He was later substituted for teammate Grant Brebner
and was awarded the Joe Marston Medal
for man of the match.
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: A-League Championship: 2008-2009
A-League Premiership: 2008-2009
With Central Coast Mariners: A-League Premiership: 2007-2008
With Perth Glory
: NSL Championship: 2003-2004
With Sydney Olympic: NSL Championship: 2001-2002
With Melbourne Knights
: NSL Championship: 1995-1996
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, Australia) is an 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...
n football (soccer)
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player, who is currently playing for A-league
A-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...
club Melbourne Victory.
Club career
Pondeljak started his career in the Victorian Institute of SportVictorian Institute of Sport
The Victorian Institute of Sport is the government-funded sporting institute of the Australian state of Victoria. It runs a number of programs for sports training. The headquarters are located in Melbourne. The inaugural executive director of the institute was Frank Pyke....
(VIS) before playing for St. Albans making 62 appearances in his 2½ year spell at the lower league Victorian club. He was then brought into the National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
(NSL) by the Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights Football Club is a football club representing Melbourne, Australia in the Victorian Premier League . The club is one of the most successful football clubs in Australia, being a two-time championship and four-time premiership winner in the now defunct National Soccer League...
and helping them to victory during the 1995-96 NSL season. After playing another 3½ years and a total of 97 appearances for the Melbourne
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...
club he moved to Sydney United
Sydney United
Sydney United Football Club are an Australian football club from Sydney, Australia, established in 1957 by Croatian Australians in the area...
.
Not much success was had in his two years at the club, and Pondeljak eventually moved to cross town rivals Sydney Olympic. There he won his second NSL title. He then moved onto Perth Glory
Perth Glory FC
Perth Glory Football Club is a professional football club in Perth, Western Australia, Australia, competing in Australia's top football competition the A-League. Perth Glory is one of only three clubs to survive from the now defunct National Soccer League...
where he won his third NSL title. Following the collapse of the NSL at the end of the 2003/04 season to went to Malaysia and played for Johor FC
Johor FC
Johor Football Club is a Malaysian football club based in Pasir Gudang, Johor. They play in the top division in Malaysian football, the Malaysian Super League...
.
When the A-League was formed, Pondeljak was being chased by a number of teams including Sydney FC
Sydney FC
Sydney FC is a professional football club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and competes in the country's premier football competition, the A-League...
, Perth Glory, Newcastle Jets and his hometown team Melbourne Victory but it was the Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners FC
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is a professional football club based on the Central Coast of New South Wales, Australia. They participate in the A-League and are one of three teams from the state of New South Wales playing in the competition...
who made the best offer and he accepted that offer becoming one of the marquee signings for the Mariners.
The 2005/06 season was not the best for Pondeljak as he was injured for about two months with a fractured and dislocated wrist
Wrist
In human anatomy, the wrist is variously defined as 1) the carpus or carpal bones, the complex of eight bones forming the proximal skeletal segment of the hand;...
. He did however produce one of the goals of the season against Sydney FC
Sydney FC
Sydney FC is a professional football club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and competes in the country's premier football competition, the A-League...
. He ran into the penalty area, turned three Sydney FC players and slotted the ball past the outstreched arm of Goalkeeper Clint Bolton
Clint Bolton
Clint Brian Bolton is an Australian football player who plays as a goalkeeper for Melbourne Heart in the Australian A-League. He was one of the most experienced goalkeepers in the history of the National Soccer League, which preceded the A-League...
. He scored the only goal of the Preliminary Final against Adelaide United to send the Central Coast Mariners into the Grand Final.
On 27 February 2008 Pondeljak signed a two year contract with Melbourne Victory.
Pondeljak was promoted to Victory’s starting 11 following his debut against South Korea’s Chunnam Dragons
Chunnam Dragons
Chunnam Dragons is a football club founded in 1995 in the Korean city of Gwangyang, which joined the K-League for the 1995 season at the same time as Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, their Jeolla province rivals.-History:...
and proved his worth on four minutes with a cracking shot from outside the penalty area that gave the visitors a perfect start.
On the 28 January 2009, Pondeljak started for Australia in their Asian Cup qualifying match against Indonesia. This was Pondeljak's first international appearance in seven years, and added to the 4 caps he had earned back in 2002.
A month later, on 28 February 2009, Pondeljak scored what proved to be the winning goal in Melbourne Victory's 1-0 triumph over arch-rivals Adelaide United in the A-League Grand Final. He was later substituted for teammate Grant Brebner
Grant Brebner
Grant Ian Brebner is a Scottish association football player, who currently plays for Australian A-League side Melbourne Victory. Born in Edinburgh, Brebner joined Manchester United as a 16-year-old in 1994, and although he was a member of the club's successful youth side, he failed to break into...
and was awarded the Joe Marston Medal
Joe Marston Medal
The Joe Marston Medal is an A-League award given to the player of the match in the A-League Grand Final each year. Introduced in 1990, previously the award was also given to the best player in the National Soccer League grand final. The medal is named after Joe Marston, who played for Australia...
for man of the match.
A-League career statistics
(Correct as of 5 February 2010)| Club | Season | League | Finals | Asia | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | Apps | Goals | Assists | ||
| Central Coast Mariners | 2005–06 A-League 2005-06 The 2005-06 season was the first season of the A-League, a domestic club competition for football in Australia. After over 12 months without a national professional club competition, the first match in the A-League was played on 26 August 2005... |
15 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| 18 | 2 | 6 | |||||||||||
| 2006–07 A-League 2006-07 The 2006–07 A-League season was the second season of the Australian football competition, the A-League. Football Federation Australia hoped to build on the success of the first season and on the interest generated by the Socceroos competing in the 2006 FIFA World Cup... |
16 | 3 | 0 | ||||||||||
| 16 | 3 | 0 | |||||||||||
| 2007–08 A-League 2007-08 The A-League 2007-08 season was the third season of the Australian A-League football competition, won by the Newcastle Jets. Football Federation Australia hoped to build on the success of the previous two seasons and on the interest generated by and playing in the 2007 AFC Champions League, and... |
17 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | |||||||
| 21 | 2 | 5 | |||||||||||
| Melbourne Victory Melbourne Victory Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, that plays in the A-League.... |
2008–09 A-League 2008-09 The 2008–09 A-League season was the fourth season of the Australasian A-League association football competition. Two new clubs, North Queensland Thunder and Gold Coast Galaxy had received tentative licences from the FFA but these were revoked for the 2008–09 season on 12 March 2008. Expansion... |
19 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 4 | 3 |
| 2009–10 | 20 | 2 | 2 | 20 | 2 | 2 | |||||||
| Total | 99 | 13 | 16 | ||||||||||
National team statistics
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Honours
With Melbourne VictoryMelbourne Victory
Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, that plays in the A-League....
: A-League Championship: 2008-2009
A-League 2008-09
The 2008–09 A-League season was the fourth season of the Australasian A-League association football competition. Two new clubs, North Queensland Thunder and Gold Coast Galaxy had received tentative licences from the FFA but these were revoked for the 2008–09 season on 12 March 2008. Expansion...
A-League Premiership: 2008-2009
A-League 2008-09
The 2008–09 A-League season was the fourth season of the Australasian A-League association football competition. Two new clubs, North Queensland Thunder and Gold Coast Galaxy had received tentative licences from the FFA but these were revoked for the 2008–09 season on 12 March 2008. Expansion...
With Central Coast Mariners: A-League Premiership: 2007-2008
A-League 2007-08
The A-League 2007-08 season was the third season of the Australian A-League football competition, won by the Newcastle Jets. Football Federation Australia hoped to build on the success of the previous two seasons and on the interest generated by and playing in the 2007 AFC Champions League, and...
With Perth Glory
Perth Glory FC
Perth Glory Football Club is a professional football club in Perth, Western Australia, Australia, competing in Australia's top football competition the A-League. Perth Glory is one of only three clubs to survive from the now defunct National Soccer League...
: NSL Championship: 2003-2004
With Sydney Olympic: NSL Championship: 2001-2002
With Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights
Melbourne Knights Football Club is a football club representing Melbourne, Australia in the Victorian Premier League . The club is one of the most successful football clubs in Australia, being a two-time championship and four-time premiership winner in the now defunct National Soccer League...
: NSL Championship: 1995-1996