Author: Craig MacKenzie

SOCCER FAMILY reasons have forced Stan Packer to step down as head coach of Somerville Eagles while Rosebud is expected to announce Tommy McShane as its new head coach this week. Packer will remain with the Eagles as director of coaching and will serve on the committee. The hunt is now on for his replacement. “We are interviewing for both the senior men’s and senior women’s roles and should have an announcement in coming weeks,” president Luke Mulder said. It’s believed that discussions have taken place with former coach Scott Morrison and former club leading scorer Mark Pagliarulo now with…

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SOCCER MONTEREY Reserve will be the venue for the ninth staging of the Wallace Cup on Saturday 6 February. Somerville Eagles and Mount Eliza make their tournament debuts and will be placed in two groups of five. The other contestants are Langwarrin, Mornington, Peninsula Strikers, Frankston Pines, Skye United, Baxter, Seaford United and Rosebud. The annual charity event kicks off at 12 noon with the top two teams after the round-robin stage qualifying for the semi-finals. The four semi-finalists will be drawn from a hat to determine the matches for the tournament’s penultimate stage and the kick-off for the final…

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SOCCER FIFTEEN years after his last game for Frankston Pines veteran midfielder Scott Webster has returned to Monterey Reserve. He last played in Pines’ 3-3 home draw with Fawkner-Whittlesea in the final round of the 2005 league season. Webster’s impressive CV also includes stints at Eastern Pride, Oakleigh Cannons, Dandenong Thunder, Morwell Pegasus, Casey Comets, Mornington, Doveton and Seaford United. His sole appearance for Seaford came in an FFA Cup tie against Brunswick Zebras last March which saw Seaford win 7-6 on penalties. The 38-year-old adds much needed experience to the Pines’ midfield and looks certain to sit in front…

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SOCCER MORNINGTON will celebrate the life of long-serving team manager Tony McKay on Friday when it takes on Manningham United Blues at Dallas Brooks Park. McKay was 77 when he died at the Alfred Hospital on Sunday 15 March after collapsing a week earlier prior to a practice match against Caroline Springs George Cross. Friday’s commemorative event starts at 6.30pm and the Tony McKay memorial will be unveiled at 6.45pm. The match kicks off at 7.30pm and Mornington’s facebook page last week invited the family and friends of the much-loved figure and the local football community to attend. “Tony would…

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SOCCER WHEN Jason Nowakowski isn’t enforcing public health directives he’s policing the right side of Skye United’s senior team. He’s in his 10th year with Victoria Police and 2021 will be his fifth year at Skye Recreation Reserve. Nowakowski, 32, is married with a three-year-old son and is one of the few senior players in the local area never to have played as a junior. His playing career kicked off as a 14-year-old at Hailebury College and he was 18 when he joined his first club Endeavour United in Provisional League ranks in 2006. He spent a season in the…

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