Oakleigh Cannons well-placed to build on its competitive foundations

The Oakleigh Cannons are a club who are a staple of the top tier of Victorian football.

The Cannons have competed in the Victorian National Premier League consecutively for the past 17 years, gaining promotion when they lifted the State League One Championship in 2003.

Since then, the senior men’s team have won one minor premiership in 2006, however have fallen to three grand final defeats in 2011, 2012 and 2016.

After eight games this season, the club currently sits in fifth place in NPL Victoria and are well placed to once again be up there at season’s end.

General Manager at Oakleigh, Aki Ionnas, believes the club can finally break their grand final hoodoo this year.

“I do believe that we can win it,” he told Soccerscene.

“Chris Taylor has put a very good squad together; all the boys are fantastic. We’re confident these boys can take us all the way.”

If it eventuates it will be a great reward for the club, based on the events of the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Like any other club, it was obviously hard,” Ionnas said.

“For players, kids, juniors, the committee…it was a hard season with no football.

“Kids are used to going to training and playing soccer, your supporters, your sponsors, your members are used to going down to the club, and before you know it, you’re at home in a lockdown.

“So, it was very hard mentally for a lot of people.”

The club was established in 1972 and currently plays its home games at Jack Edwards Reserve, a facility which seems like a perfect setup for a club who plays in the top level in Victoria.

The venue has a capacity of 4,000-5,000 people with upgrades over the years continuing to lift the overall standard of the facility.

“About six years ago our facilities got upgraded with a brand-new synthetic ground as well as a junior pavilion. That was done all through hard work from our chairman Kon Kavalakis, who was responsible in liaising with council and other key parties to get these facilities.

“We’ve recently had a state-of-the art scoreboard that’s gone up last year and started using it this year.

“There’s always work going into the improvement of facilities. Even though the synthetic ground was done six years, we’ve resurfaced it again only a year and a half ago to reach top FIFA standards.”

Ionnas revealed that the club was in the progress of talking to council in regards to further developing the ground, something that the AAFC partner club sees as a priority in the future.

Oakleigh’s General Manager is relatively confident that the club is ready to take the next step and enter a national second division when it eventuates.

“Look, it all depends once we see the final model that it’s financially viable,” he said.

“If it’s financially viable, then yes.

“It all depends on what the model is going to look like and what it’s going to cost. Speaking to a lot of clubs, that’s what they are all waiting for.

“We are an ambitious club, we would always like to compete at the highest level, we’ve got very good sponsors, very good backers, a very strong board who are all business minded and great infrastructure which we will eventually develop further.”

According to Ionnas, the strong affiliation the club has with the local Greek community has positively impacted the fortunes and finances of the club over their history.

“We’ve got very strong support obviously in the Greek community,” he said.

“We’ve had strong support for a long, long time. We’ve had a major supporter in Delphi Bank who has been our sponsor for 15 years I believe. It’s a massive thing for that to happen continuously.”

Ionnas hopes the club continues to be consistently competitive in the near future, across all aspects of the sport.

“Obviously, we want the club to be a strong club irrespective where it is playing, we want to be up there both on and off the park.

“Our chairman and president Stan Papayianneris have done enormous work, each in their own way, to get the club to where it is now. Oakleigh should remain a strong club because it’s got enormous support away from the field.

“We can’t thank everyone enough for supporting the club.”

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Driving Health Forward: Melbourne Victory partners with Hydrodol

Melbourne Victory has celebrated a new partnership with Australian wellness brand, Hydrodol. The deal will see both parties collaborate for the rest of the 2024/25 A-Leagues season.

Hydrodol is a significant supplements provider across Australia, New Zealand the Asia Pacific, supplying customers with cutting edge products tailored to assist with hydration and a range of other health concerns.

Together, Melbourne Victory and Hydrodol will join their philosophies of driving health and fitness forward in order to bring attention to healthy living practices among the Australian football community.

Melbourne Victory Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, expressed admiration for the partnership.

“We are delighted to welcome Hydrodol to the Melbourne Victory family,” she said in a press release.

“This partnership reflects a shared vision of supporting individuals to perform at their best whether they’re on the pitch, in the stands, or in their daily lives. Together, we aim to provide meaningful benefits to our fans, players, and the broader Victory community.”

Hydrodol Marketing Manager, Jenn Leung, echoed Carnegie’s applause.

‘Hydrodol is passionate about empowering people to feel their best, whether they’re elite athletes or everyday Australians,” she said via press release.

“Partnering with Melbourne Victory, Australia’s biggest football club allows us to connect with a vibrant community that values health, performance, and well-being.”

Melbourne Victory Director of Football, John Didulica, outlined the significance of the club’s collaboration with Hydrodol in a press release.

“To lead successful football programs, it is essential that we look to partner with companies like Hydrodol, who can help maintain and improve our players’ recovery from the demands of professional football and readiness to compete each week,” he said via press release.

For the remaining games of the 2024/25 season, fans and spectators will be able to see Hydrodol advertisement material at the Home of the Matilda’s and AAMI Park, as both Melbourne Victory and Hydrodol work to bolster the health and wellbeing of the community.

FIFA set new global benchmark for Women’s Football Development

In a landmark initiative for women’s football, FIFA has unveiled an ambitious strategy aimed at reaching 60 million female players worldwide by 2027.

The comprehensive plan, supported by 13 distinct development programmes, is available to all 211 FIFA Member Associations, marking a significant step forward in the sport’s global evolution.

FIFA also took the announcement to highlight the achievements for women’s football in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Oceanic Football Confederation (OFC).

The recently enhanced FIFA Women’s Development Programme underscores the organisation’s strengthened commitment to expanding the women’s game.

The upcoming 2025 calendar promises several groundbreaking developments for women’s football.

The Philippines will host the inaugural FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup, while Morocco makes history as the first African nation to stage the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

The latter tournament sees significant expansion, growing from 16 to 24 teams and shifting to an annual format.

International competition reaches new heights with continental championships scheduled across multiple confederations.

The pathway to the FIFA Women’s World Cup Brazil 2027 commences with African qualification matches, while major regional tournaments including the UEFA Women’s EURO and OFC Women’s Nations Cup will crown new champions.

In a significant advancement for club football, all six confederations will host their respective continental club championships for the first time.

This renewed focus comes amid unprecedented growth in participation rates, particularly evident in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup co-host nations.

New Zealand has reported a remarkable 27 per cent surge in female participation since 2022, with particularly strong growth among Māori and Pasifika communities, showing a 14 per cent increase.

A strategic partnership between New Zealand Football and Māori Football Aotearoa further strengthens grassroots development.

New Zealand Football CEO Andrew Pragnell voiced the federations successful results.

“The expansion of football and futsal in Aotearoa New Zealand has been extraordinary, with the Women’s World Cup serving as a genuine catalyst for growth,” he explained via official FIFA press release.

Across the Tasman, Football Australia’s Growing Football Fund Community Grants programme continues to foster development at the grassroots level.

The latest round of funding benefits 118 recipients, complementing the 121 projects supported in March 2024.

This initiative particularly emphasises regional development, with nearly half the grants allocated to areas outside major metropolitan centres.

The grants provide essential support for women’s football development, encompassing coach education, introductory programmes, and vital equipment procurement, further cementing the sport’s foundation at the community level.

Also within the AFC, footballing powerhouse Japan has successfully hosted the continent’s first female-exclusive Pro Licence coaching course.

A collaborative effort between FIFA, AFC, and the Japan Football Association (JFA), represents a significant milestone in professional football development.

The intensive seven-day course attracted participants from fourteen nations, featuring presents such as AFC Technical Director Andy Roxburgh and Japan men’s national team coach Hajime Moriyasu.

Participants gained valuable practical experience through observations of pre-season training sessions at both J.League and Nadeshiko League clubs.

JFA Technical Director Masanaga Kageyama emphasised the programme’s strategic importance and inclusivity.

“This course is a joint AFC/JFA initiative to increase the number of top-level, professionally licensed female coaches in Asia. It aims to provide existing talents with additional advice to help them achieve greater success in their current coaching positions and secure future success,” Kageyama explained via official FIFA press release.

This initiative aligns with JFA’s renowned long-term development philosophy and a significant advancement in creating pathways for women in professional football coaching.

This newly improved strategy at the global scale will hopefully allow for more women in both professional and amateur spaces to get the opportunities they deserve in football.

It also highlight’s that AFC & OFC nations, including Australia, will have a strong place within the growth of women’s football.

Read more on the FIFA Women’s Development Program here.

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