Author: Craig MacKenzie

SOCCER FRANKSTON Pines remain hopeful of escaping relegation from State 2 South-East despite finishing second bottom after last weekend’s final league round. Goals from Tom Hawkins and Joe O’Connor weren’t enough to overcome second-placed Brandon Park and Pines had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Freeway Reserve on Saturday. The 2023 rules of competition make grim reading for Pines but all promotion and relegation is at the discretion of Football Victoria and a number of scenarios are yet to be played out. “No-one really knows what lies ahead,” Pines head coach Kevin “Squizzy” Taylor said. Rumours abound of a…

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SOCCER SCOTT Miller won’t coach Langwarrin next season. The Lawton Park club made the announcement last week after scheduled talks between Miller, president Tanya Wallace and main sponsor Greg Kilner due to be held at the end of the season were brought forward. Miller’s last match as head coach was Saturday’s 2-1 home win over Brunswick Juventus a result that confirmed the visitors’ relegation. Goals from Brad Blumenthal and Tom Youngs sealed Juve’s fate but its cause wasn’t helped by the straight red brandished at Mathew Whatley in the opening seconds of the second half. Miller’s first match at the…

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SOCCER MENTONE has secured promotion from State 5 South after Saturday’s 1-0 home win over Mount Martha. Jason Grieve’s men have locked-in a second-placed finish with two rounds to go due to upcoming byes for Rosebud and Seaford. A bullet header from Marcus Spivey in the 7th minute clinched the win last weekend. Grieve believes that player depth was pivotal to the senior team’s success. “When we’ve had players missing we’ve been able to move players to different positions and call on players from our reserves who have more than held their own,” Grieve said. “I put that down to…

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SOCCER FRANKSTON Pines’ season goes on the line on Saturday night when it meets Berwick City at Monterey Reserve. It’s a do-or-die clash for both sides given the relegation scrap in which they find themselves. There’s just three games left with Pines precariously perched in second last place on the league ladder (at present the bottom two go down) a point behind Berwick and two points behind Skye United. Skye hosts Berwick the following week. Describing Pines’ season as topsy-turvy is an understatement. Losing last season’s strike force due to players switching clubs and work commitments posed a problem that’s…

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SOCCER LANGWARRIN will have a new president at October’s AGM after Tanya Wallace steps down. Wallace became the club’s first ever female president and the youngest in the club’s history when first elected in 2014. She served for two years before handing the reins to John Heskins in 2016 then returned to the helm at the 2018 AGM. “I’m tired and it’s time to hand over to someone with a fresh perspective to see what they can achieve,” Wallace said. “I’ve achieved most of what I wanted to achieve but I don’t know what’s next so I need to step…

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