Blog Posts - Northside Lions Superules Football Club

Ladies Day An Overwhelming Success

4/6/2015

It may have been an up and down day on-field but off-field the Ladies Day “Pull On Your Socks” McGrath Foundation fundraiser was a beauty, in fact the best ladies day yet.

With 50+ ladies in attendance they were treated to gourmet chicken and champagne luncheon, were entertained by musician Nathan Lippiat and we able to browse and participate in a number of stalls set up on the day.

It was a well organised event and great set up and Coburg FC General Manager Craig Lees echoed those remarks in an email to the club. It was also great to have the support of our VFL team who dropped down on the day after their morning recovery session.

The event raised an overwhelming $2,680. So its big thanks for everyone who sold tickets, bought tickets and donated prizes for the raffle to make it such a huge success.

We would like to say thanks to the following individuals for their contribution:

Linda Harbourd
Cherie Spencer
Georgina Hursey
Cathy Haddad
Maria Ristic
Karen McKay
Michelle Lowe
Brett Gardiner
Salina Hick
Paul Turner
Gracie O'brien
Kira Price

Also thanks to following supporters of the day and the cause who donated time and prizes:

Piranha Snackfoods
SilverHope Jewellery
Pestsnall Pest Removal
Musician Nathan Lippiat
Designer eyes
Player Corporate Wear
Mishy’s Reflexology
Cheries Perfumes
Eff Tzouroutis Presser (Candles)
Girlfriends 4 Girlfriends
And a host of other small business who participated

And of course the Event Organiser Michelle Lewis for all the hard work she put in to pull this special day together! Next time you see Michelle around the club, say “thanks”.

As a final note. It hits close to home when we hear that one of own is affected by a form of cancer. The Nephew of one of our Sponsors Electech Australia Pty Ltd has been diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer called Ewings-Sarcoma. His name is Lorenzo Santalucia and he is just 9 years old.

Michelle also organised a bucket collection on the day for the young boy who is a beloved supporter of Geelong Football Club and we also thank everyone who donated.

We will also be running further fundraising to help this little fella get the necessary treatment. Our club has already demonstrated its commitment to these causes so we will be asking you to dig deep again to help over the next few weeks.

100 Up For Theo Grimaldi

26/5/2015

Club stalwart and Over 50s co-captain Theo Grimaldi will play his 100th game for the Club against Ascot Vale on Sunday.

The prolific forward who wears the number 1 has been at our famous Club for 10 years and has become part of the furniture since joining back in 2005.

During his time at the Club he has not only contributed off the field being a regular sponsor and a member of the committee as a Player Liaison Officer but has also attained Life Membership, has won the Legend’s Goalkicking award in 2009 and 2010 and, was named in the 2002-2012 Team of the Decade as a Forward Pocket.

It would be great to see everyone down early on Sunday to support and praise the man known as “T” to join him celebrating this significant milestone.

Chris Spencer Calls Time After 23 Fabulous Years

21/5/2015

Chris Spencer, a man admired and respected by his club mates donned the Coburg jumper and put on his boots for the very last time on Sunday. And the Legends did not let him down recording a 19-point win over Carrum to send "Spence" out a winner.

Spence ran out all quarters and got to sing the theme song, shoulder to shoulder with his team mates one more time in a fitting farewell.

After 200+ games Spence will be sorely missed on the field but we will still see plenty of him off the field as he continues his long association with the club he helped build from the ground up back 1993.

Thanks for the on-field memories Chris!

Missed Opportunity For Coburg

21/5/2015

Coburg Supers missed possibly their best opportunity to take their first a big scalp of the season going down to Marcellin by 19-points.

Coburg started brilliantly with a 4-goal first quarter and then followed up with another 3-goals in the second term to open up a 32-point lead at half time against their more fancied opponents.

They were red hot, applying pressure and working harder than Marcellin but it all seemed to stop after half time and Marcellin launched a third quarter revival kickng 5 unanswered goals to lead by 1-point at the final change.

In the last the Supers had their chances but were unable to make headway and Marcellin kicked three more goals to kill off any chance of a big finish from Coburg.

The upside of this contest shows that Coburg have have the ability to match anyone in the competition and with four full quarters of effort they are very close to stringing together consecutive wins.

In the Reserves it was a disappointing result as Marcellin built their lead in the first three quarters to end up running out winners by 35-points.

Coburg added some respectably in the last quarter outscoring Marcellin 3 goals to one but the damage was already done with Coburg not prepared to be physical enough at the contest and seemingly second to the ball.

The Reserves are a much better outfit than we witnessed at this outing and they will be eager to put this disappointment behind them with an improved showing Sunday week against Ascot Vale.

More Sour Than Sweet

28/4/2015

It's ANZAC Weekend and It’s a rare occasion where the Supers and Legends teams are split up but that is the case tomorrow as the Supers and Reserves travel to Yulong Reserve take on nemesis Northern and the Legends pop down the road to Walter Street Reserve to go head to head with Ascot Vale.

The Supers are coming off a strong win in round 1 while Northern were defeated by Ascot Vale. Recent history tells us the Northern have had the edge over Coburg in the last few years with the suggestion that Northern have had the wood on the Lions since Coburg defeated them in the 2009 Grand Final.

Some good in’s for the Supers with Jason Dean (debut), Mick Noble, Mick Egan and Johnny Bibbis all included in the line-up and a real opportunity for Coburg to back up the performance from round 1 and put the recent results against Northern behind them.

The Reserves have lost a couple of soldiers in Vin Taranto and Gary Jefferys but have a couple inclusions with Carlo Federico, Justin Lewis, Aaron Lee, Cam Lovell, Matt Wiley and Wil Jesser coming into the side.

Again the historic leger is in favour of Northern however strong showing expected after a great effort in round 1.

The Legends have a solid line up despite losing Barry Saunders and Rob Kimber to injury and will be looking to make it two in a row with a victory against Ascot Vale

SUPERS V NORTHERN
Date: Sunday, 26 April
Venue: Yulong Reserve, Bundoora
Start: Supers 2.45pm, Reserves 12.45pm

LEGENDS V ASCOT VALE
Date: Sunday, 26 April
Venue: Walter Street Reserve, Ascot Vale
Start: 11.00am

Great Start To The Season

13/4/2015

What a brilliant start to the season and great day for the club with all three teams running out winners on Sponsors Day.

It began with Legends who were not really sure if they were going to have full side on the paddock to begin with but in the end they overcame Waverley by 16 points.

Coburg Legends stayed in front marginally throughout the contest and kicked two vital goals in the last quarter to seal a well-earned victory. Rod Craig (1 goal) led the way all morning and there were excellent contributions from Mark Sedgwick and Ange Chiodo. Sharpshooter Theo Grimaldi kicked three goals with Pete Soligo chiming in with a couple.

COBURG 6.12-48 def WAVERLEY 4.8-32

The Reserves got off to flyer kicking four unanswered goals in the first term to set up a 53-point win.

Despite losing Vinnie Taranto to injury midway through the second term they managed three more majors going into the wind taking a 37-point lead into half time.

It was more of the same in the third term when they piled on another four goals to stretch the lead to 56 points before injury struck with both Gary Jeffery and captain Frank Massara going down.

The Ressies toiled on manfully eventually running out winners by 53 points. Great spirit, determination and effort across the park.

Marco Rabar, on debut, kicked 4 goals, ran all day and put in a best on ground performance. Gary Jeffery was hard at it in the middle and provided 2 goals, Dave Himmelfarb (1 goal) rucked with determination all afternoon, Anthony Manovella gave plenty of run and Ronny Torcasio shored up the tight knit defence.

The forward line was very functional with majors to Taranto, Pengelly, Cummins, Cardillo, and Arnold.

COBURG 12.12-84 def MELBOURNE 4.7-31

To main game and John Haddad celebrated his 50th game with the club in true winning style when Coburg ran out winners by 36 points. In the process Coburg were able to bury the demons of a last gasp defeat at the hands of Melbourne on the corresponding fixture from last season.

Once they settled the Supers got off to a great start kicking 5-4 to 1-0 with the assistance of the wind to open up a 28-point lead.

In the second quarter and despite the effort Coburg couldn’t hit the scoreboard. But, at the same they gave Melbourne very little with defence led by Wayne Pretty in his debut game holding firm.

In the third term Coburg kicked two more majors and held Melbourne goalless, another tick in the box to the defence.

Goals to Pete Cummins and Craig McKay in the last term gave Coburg the buffer they needed and sealed the victory but, it was McKay’s tackle in the dying minutes of the game summed the performance which was full of effort and placed Melbourne under significant pressure throughout the match. The Supers victorious by 36 points.

Wayne Pretty was best on ground with a terrific game at Centre Half Back, Kane “Sugar” O’Brien carved them up early on with two goals, Mark Gillman provided the grunt and plenty of run and carry, the move of Mark Ryan (who bagged a couple of goals) to the forward line was a masterstroke with the big “General “ providing presence and a great target.

Adam Lewis chimed in with two goals and Mark “Hotty” Medley chipped also chipped in with a major.

COBURG 9.11-65 def MELBOURNE 3.11-29

Good Solid Hitout

11/4/2015

The scoreboard was irrelevant, the conditions were good, the turnout awesome and what a great hit out we had on Saturday against Northern and Plenty Valley at Anthony Beale Reserve, St Helena.For a first up effort in the pre-season the combination of players from the supers, reserves and legends was exceptional.

The were some great passages of play, signs of running and supporting play in line with game plan that Adam Bruni has been implementing from day one. Most importantly the “effort” was evident. We got better as the matches progressed which was also very encouraging.

Based on that performance Round 1 is looking very good indeed and we are set for a ripper season in 2015.

Here's what the Coaches had to say:

Adam Bruni - Really great hit out. Plenty of positive signs heading into round one. Work rate was terrific, keep building momentum for 2 weeks time.

Jamie Arnold - It was perfect weather for football as a pride of lions made their way to St Helena to compete in a triangular practice match with Plenty Valley and Northern. The day started extremely well with Coburg snaring the most favourably part of the change rooms!!!

The aim of the day was to blow out the cobwebs, give every one a good run and put some of our training into practice.

We started slowly against some stronger opposition, but the effort was always there. There were reiterations at the break about continuing the effort, hunting in numbers, running to support and providing plenty of voice.

No scores were kept, but the day worked out fairly evenly across all three teams - the highlights included goals by Carlo and a pearler from the new king of the u-turn Pete Cummins. Also, Luca's work in the ruck early was great.

There were a lot of great positives to come out of the day, but the key was the willingness by the playing group to take on the message from Adam. If we continue the improvement that we saw though the day we're in for a good year.

See all the photos here

It Pays To Belong

31/3/2015

As a financial member of our club it also entitles you to membership with Coburg Football Club, and as part of that membership there is a monthly draw. The first draw was held on Friday night and three of our Superules members were in the prizes (highlighted with the **). The prize is a gift card of your choice to the value of the amount in the draw thanks to Piranha:

1st ($500) - Chloe Kalanj (Member #541)
2nd ($300) - Ian Lehmann (Member #19)
3rd ($200) - George Gekas (Member #365)
**3rd ($200) - Theo Grimaldi (Member #595)
4th ($100) - John Wills (Member #26)
4th ($100) - Alex Sapurmas (Member #157)
5th ($50) - David Tracey (Member #500)
5th ($50) - Lidia Venditti (Member #509)
5th ($50) - John Carr (Member #37)
**5th ($50) - Rob Kimber (Member #598)
5th ($50) - Ario Sukianto (Member #209)
5th ($50) - Jackson Clarke (Member #436)
5th ($50) - Joanne Dixon (Member #160)
5th ($50) - Craig McGaw (Member #32)
5th ($50) - Kath McKenna (Member #354)
5th ($50) - Andrew Ruberto (Member #314)
5th ($50) - Ivan Jones (Member #14)
**5th ($50) - Chris Spencer (Member #611)

Congratulations to Theo, Rob and Spence! Winners will be contacted next week.

Season Launch Success

25/3/2015

On Saturday evening the Club held its first ever Season Launch a new concept to our club and an opportunity for players, members and their partners to get together socially prior to the season start and also see what the club and the coaches have a store for season 2015.

The venue might have been too big for the particular event but it was big on fun.

President Paul “Hooch” Turner invited Coburg FC President Kevin Breen up to kick off the formal part of the evening and he shared his views on the progress VFL team and the relationship with Superules emphasising how important the alignment is and the unity it creates around the entire club.

Hooch then took the audience through the vision and objectives of the club highlighting that the club wants to become the Superules “Destination” Club and the number primary objectives are to make finals in the next two years and deliver a premiership in the next five years. See the whole slide pack here.

After a short break comedian Gabrielle Rossi hit the stage to warm the crowd up for the less formal part of the evening and the Coaches Grill.

Coaches Adam Bruni, Jamie Arnold and Paul Pitman joined the stage and Scott “Wiz” Ryan took over the microphone to ask the probing questions.

There was a little bit of serious stuff with Adam and Jamie outlining their plans for season 2015 including a big focus on “effort”. Paul Pitman on the other hand had an entirely new strategy for the Legends with his game plan revolving around “pace”. He also advised us the he would a be playing coach with Gary Conway assisting him on the sidelines.

Each of the captains and vice captains were announced:

Premier Supers
Captain: Scott Ryan
Vice Captains: Mark Ryan and Kane O’Brien

Premier Reserves
Captain: Frank Massara
Vice Captains: Paul Zadolinnyj and Lex Maller

Premier Legends
Leadership Group: Theo Grimaldi, Gary Gardener and Ange Chiodo

Congratulations to all those appointed.

The door prize winner of $100 kindly donated from Designer Eyes was Michelle Lewis and the winner of the “half your membership back” was Barry Saunders.

Paul “Hooch” Turner asked Pete Cummins to close what was a really good night. Pete thanked all for attending also thanking a number people of their contribution and support including Kevin Breen (Coburg FC), Gabriel Rossi (Comedian) and most of all Michelle Lewis for all the hard work in organising the event.

Final Coaching Appointment Made

21/3/2015

It is with great pleasure we announce the appointment of club stalwart and life member to the role of Premier Legends Coach for season 2015.

After an exhaustive selection process the club is very happy to have him on board and Paul will provide excellent support for Premier Supers Coach Adam Bruni and Reserves coach Jamie Arnold.

On behalf of the club we'd like to congratulate Paul on the appointmet and we wish he him all the very best of success.

Good Solid Hitout

1/3/2015

GET AROUND HIM - Sam Di Falco

26/2/2015

Our new weekly segment called “GET AROUND HIM” starts today. It will feature and profile the new players that have arrived at our club in season 2015. It might save some of us the guess work at training.

To kick off we present Salvatore Di Falco who likes to be called “Sam”.

Sam is an Optometrist (that's a Practitoner who specialises in eye and vision care for the uneducated), and a Collingwood supporter who is married with two kids and dog named “Dexter”. More about Collingwood and Dexter later.

When asked about his reason for joining Sam informed us he wanted to 'give it a go' and that it was an opportunity to avoid his wife and kids on weekends! Fortunately Sam de-friended his wife on Facebook prior to this segment going to air.

He claims to be a right footer although he tells us that aside from a little Auskick and impromptu matches in the schoolyard Sam never played a competition football match in his life. We think though, with half marathon listed as one of his achievements, a green belt in Karate to his name and that he lists his hobby as “running”, he’ll likely acquit himself well on the field in the endurance stakes. We are reliably informed that he models himself off Peter Daicos who is his childhood football hero although he mentioned Rene Kink in there somewhere too.

Can we forgive him for being a supporter of the black and white? Maybe, because well, he appears to be a very confused Pies follower. He tells us that “he has a low tolerance for f…wits” which is what the rest of us normally associate with Collingwood supporters. It’s a bit of an oxymoron if you ask us.

Let’s wrap this up with a few home truths and secrets. As you have already read, Sam has a dog called “Dexter”. It is no word of a lie that Sam tucks Dexter into bed at night. He also revealed to us that he puts talcum powder under his armpits and despite having his backside busted from his karate Sensei he reckons he is too dumb and lazy to grade beyond green belt. I’m sure that will impress the coaching staff at Coburg Superules Sam.

Welcome abroad Sam Di Falco, GET AROUND HIM!

Get Around Her, Donate to the Leukaemia Foundation

22/2/2015

One of our trainers from last season Carissa Banks who has put her hand up to be involved again in 2015 is shaving her head for a cause.

Carissa is shaving her head in March and her Sister and Mum are joining in the fun to raise funds for the Leukaemia Foundation, They would love your support.

Get around her!!! Sponsor her!! Good on you Carissa!! Here's the link where you can donate: https://secure.leukaemiafoundation.org.au/…/mobilePersonalP…

Premier Supers Coach Appointed

22/1/2015

The Club is excited to announce that Adam Bruni has been appointed coach of the Premier Supers for 2015.

In what has been an exhaustive process the President, Paul "Hooch" Turner believes that Coburg Superules have reached the desired outcome in securing Adam who is also a great fit in terms of the club's strategy and vision.

On the back of this appointment the Club is also pleased to announce Jamie Arnold as Premier Reserves player/coach, who will ably support Adam during the season.

More details to follow soon on these coaching appointments.

Pre-Season Kicks Off

17/1/2015

A good turn-out first up and a pleasant, undemanding session for Coburg Superules pre-season training in season 2015.

Paul "Hooch" Turner led the session easing the boys through some general fitness and short ball work including a game of handball to iron out the kinks. The ball work looked exceptionally sharp for this early on and despite everyone being a little rusty. Mild temperatures ensured everyone got though the session with minimum exhaustion.

The Club’s recruiting strategy appears to be paying off with a number of new faces attending along with some of the usual suspects.

Pre-season continues next week on Thursday, 22 January at Parker Reserve. The Club is hoping to make some coaching announcements during the week in readiness for the next training session.

2015 Membership Registration Now Open

6/1/2015

The Coburg Superules 2015 Membership Registration system is now up and running.

Now is the time to take advantage of the discounted "early bird" membership fees (which have not increased from last season).

Please click here for all the details and for the links to online registration system

2015 Coburg Lions VFL Memberships are Now Available

3/1/2015

Check out the membership options available which includes 126 prizes and $14,000 to be won throughout the season.

Click here for more details

In Preparation For Next Season

18/12/2014

In preparation for next season returning and new players will need to be aware of some mandatory changes to registration system as advised by Vic Metro. To be clear these changes were not set by the club or Vic Metro but by the National body. We will try to keep this as simple as possible:

1. All registrations must be completed online therefore there is no paper version of the registration form. All players must fill in the form individually online. The club can assist with this when we hold registration nights at the club.

2. No player can participate in competition without an email address. This is not actually a change from last year but it is mandatory. All players will need to have their “own” email address. Vic Metro have in place a “no tolerance”, “no excuses” policy on this and will be taking a hard line in 2015. Players (and the club) are not to use generic club or official club email addresses as their own. If players do they will be removed from the database and will be unable to play. If you don’t have an email address we suggest you get one prior to the registration period commencing in January. Again the club can assist in setting up an email address on registration nights at the club.

There are also some changes that the club have implemented to membership for next season. These changes are to streamline the system and make simplified options available to each member.

1. There will be no membership increase on last season for individuals who pay for membership prior to 1 April 2015. This is referred to as the “Early Bird” membership. After 30 March 2015 membership will increase.

2. We understand that some members cannot always afford to pay their membership upfront so we have implemented a “Payment Plan” where individuals can pay their membership over 15 fortnights and conveniently using a debit direct function. This means individual does not need to be concerned with remembering to make ongoing payments and the club doesn’t have to follow up. It’s set and forget process allowing everyone to get on with the good stuff, the footy!

3. On top of the standard cash, cheque and direct deposit methods of payment we have also introduced a Credit Card option via BPay for those that wish to pay by credit card.

4. We are not selling steak knives but wait…there’s more! We have also introduced benefits and incentives to members of the club in order to continue to grow the membership. This means that members will receive a discount benefit on their membership by introducing new members to the club. You can find out more about our “bring a buddy” and “sign a super” incentive soon.

Finally the Online registration system will be up and running very soon and once set up the club will advise you accordingly and at the same time publish the membership costs for season 2015. Stay tuned.

Full Calendar for 2015

18/12/2014

No fixtures released yet but the full calendar has been released from Vic Metro:

5/4/2015            No Games (Easter)
12/4/2015          Home and Away Round 1
18/4/2015          Mini Carnival Tasmania
26/4/2015          Home and Away Round 2
3/5/2015            Home and Away Round 3
10/5/2015          No Games (Mother’s Day)
17/5/2015          Home and Away Round 4
24/5/2015          No Games
31/5/2015          Home and Away Round 5
7/6/2015            Vic Metro v Vic Country (Queens Birthday)
14/6/2015          Home and Away Round 6
21/6/2015          No Games
28/6/2015          Home and Away Round 7
4/7/2015            >55 Game North v South
12/7/2015          Home and Away Round 8
19/7/2014          Carnival Training
26/7/2015          Home and Away Round 9
2/8/2015            Carnival Training
9/8/2015            Home and Away Round 10
16/8/2015          Carnival Training
23/8/2015          Home and Away Round 11
30/8/2015          Semi Finals
6/9/2015            Carnival Training (Father’s Day)
13/9/2015          Grand Final
20/9/2015          Carnival Training
27/9/2015          Carnival Jumper Presentation
4/10/2015          Carnival First Day
10/10/2015        Carnival Final Day

Mini Carnival Vic Metro v Tasmani

18/12/2014

The Big V have organised a mini carnival in Rocherlea, Tasmania (5 km from Launceston) on the Saturday 18th April 2015. There will be three games: >35s, >45s and >55s. Vic Metro are looking for 24 players for each age group and coaches. The cost will be kept at a minimum. Around $50 for players and $50 for wives, this includes buses from Launceston to Rocherlea and back to airport and a meal on Saturday night. After dinner there will be a band on at the club. Drinks available at bar prices.

If you need jumper, shorts or socks, Big V clothing is available from Chris Spencer [email protected]

We will nominate some accommodation locations as soon as we can lock them in

FYI - flights are about $200 return

If you interested in attending please email Bruce Chaplin [email protected]