Tara Murray
Caroline Springs George Cross is finally back on the winners list in the Victorian Premier League 1 competition.
After so many close misses, the Georgies were able to come away with the points against Northcote City on Friday, winning 1-0.
For coach Eric Vassiliadis the biggest feeling after the win was a sense of relief. It’s the club’s first win since round one.
“It’s been about seven weeks,” he said. “I think certain things haven’t gone our way which has been frustrating.
“There was a real determination there to get the result. We deserved it on the day and we had to overcome things which we did, I’m super proud of the group.”
Vassiliadis said heading to Northcote City was one of the more daunting tasks in the competition, but the group didn’t shy away from it.
He said they were always expecting it to be a massive challenge that is in the top part of the ladder.
“In the end we dominated the first half and were unlucky not to be more than 1-0 up,” he said. “We scored one in the back half of the first half.
“We reset and thought we were doing well. The red card was unlucky for us and they continued to attack.
“It was a massive relief.”
Russell Currie was the goal scorer for the Georgies.
The win has the Georgies in 10th spot after 10 rounds with two wins, three draws and three losses.
Vassiliadis says that doesn’t reflect the season so far, their first being back at this level.
“We know that we are playing some good football,” he said. “We’ve played most of the top teams and outside of Western United, we have been in every game.
“We need a little bit of luck with injuries and suspensions and on the day.”
Vassiliadis said they were unlikely to get any players back this week, while they’d lose a couple including skipper Tyler James who is heading away.
He said they would have five youth league players in the squad which would be a good opportunity for them at this level.
The Georgies this week face Preston Lions on Friday night. The Lions are also midtable.
Vassiliadis said they were keen for the challenge ahead of another one against the Bentleigh Greens.
“We thought it was daunting heading to Northcote, it’ll be another experience against the Preston Lions,” he said. “That is a challenge.
“For many years these historic clubs have had similar journeys and been part of the National Soccer League and now we finally lock horns.
“Louie [Acevski] and I are close friends, it’ll be a cracker of a match.”
