Melville Magic E - Newsletter 2023/02

Bates Banter

We welcome Wanderers Sports Club to Gower Park (No 6) today in circumstances that have been less than ideal for both clubs, given the upheaval necessary to facilitate hosting for the forthcoming FIFAWomen’sWorldCup.

Wanderers have had to find a new training base at discovery Park, while here at Melville our latest hurdle is working around a floodlight upgrade to Gower No 6 (and 7) while pitch 1 is still out of commission.

The floodlight upgrade is a club-financed initiative that has been in the works for over 18 months and is distinct from the Hamilton City Council plan to offer floodlighting to alowerilluminationonpitches3,4,and5laterintheyear.

HostingWanderersisalwaysoneoftheseason’shighlights,soinasenseitisashame the game couldn’t have been scheduled for a time when we had access to our No 1 pitch–andperhapsevenusedasoneofthefirstmatchesforthenewfloodlights

In the same contest last year Melville won 4-1 in a thrilling performance at Gower Park, though it is also worth noting that all Melville’s goalscorers on that day are no longerwiththeclub.

So it was a real tonic for the Unicorns to win 1-0 away to Takapuna last week It mirrored events of the 2022 season when we also went to Taharoto Park seeking our firstpointsoftheseasonandcameawaywitha1-0win.

Our women’s premier team have had their season start delayed after Tauranga City sought a postponement last Sunday, so now don’t begin their campaign in the WLeagueuntilSundayApril16,athometoOtumoetaiat1pm

On the facility development front, the club is currently soliciting professional advice on preparation of a business plan to press the case for new clubrooms development on the eastern side of Gower No 1. This follows advice from Hamilton City Council on the best way to proceed in the wake of in-principal approval to progress such development.

A reminder we have the Melville Golf Classic (ambrose event) coming up on Sunday April 30 at Ngaruawahia Golf Club, 11.30am, $50 per head. See the club website for moredetails.

Batesy

Jarrod says

Welcome everyone to the first derby of the season inwhatissettobeanentertaininggame.

I’ve been really impressed with the team not just on the field but off it in how they have been dealing with minor set backs from field availability to light usage to having basically a whole knew squad this year and coaching staff, we are showing good resiliencewhichtiesintoourMO

The boys come off a good win against Takapuna who are always tough to beat at home and before that a really tight game against Suburbs who scored in the last minuteofthegame.

WewelcomeJoeandhisWanderersteamandstaffacrosstheriver

We will be expecting a tough game today as we all know derby’s bring out high levels ofenergyandemotion

Enjoy!

JarrodYoung

Max TOMMY (GK)

Riley SEXTON

Aaron SCOTT (c)

Braeden QUILTER-PHIPPS

Campbell BROWN

Ethan RICHARDS

Ry MCLEOD

Liam HAYES

Jack CONNOR

Matthew D'HOTMAN

Quinton KIPARA

Jakob ENGLAND

Dylan WILLIAMS

Sean LIDDICOAT

Erik PANZER

Alec BOWDEN

Keagan THOMPSON

John OAKMAN

George BROWN

Nate CAMPLIN (GK)

Joey OMOTANI

Isaac BATES

Conor JAMIESON (GK)

Coach: Jarrod YOUNG

Assistant Coach: Jet LIM

GK Coach: Neil MOUNCHER

Analyst: Kshitij GOHEL

Physio: James YOUNG

Trainer: Ben TAYLOR

Manager: Danny MILNER

1 Matt OLIVER (GK)

2. Joseph NOTTAGE

3.

4 Dylan GARDINER

5. Brock MESSENGER

6. Anton GANAS

7 Mark JONES

8 Thomas WALTERS

9. Jordan LAMB

10 Tomas ARAMBERRY

11 Liam JESSEP

12. Sergio SENDRA

13 Bee HONG

14

15. Oliver CAMPBELL

16 Mirko BRINKMANN

17 Xavier PRATT

18.

19 Aaron BAYLISS

20 Derek TIEKU (c)

21. Tesco GRUNWALD

22 Mason SAS

23 Laurence I'ANSON (GK)

Coach: Joseph HINDS

Assistant Coach: Geraint WALTERS

GK Coach: Dave DOUGLAS

Analyst: Facundo RAMIREZ CASABONNE

Physio: Elliot COOPER

Manager: Shane CAMPBELL

Referee: Andres CASTRO | AR1: Ben NORMAN | AR2: Sarah JONES

Thommo nabs a beauty as Melville win on the road

It was a reprise of 2022 as Melville trousered their first points of the season at Taharoto Park. It was not a game for the purist, but was much-needed after heartbreakingfirst-up94thminutelossathometoEasternSuburbssevendaysearlier

It was also a great tonic ahead of a tricky home Good Friday derby with a Wanderers teamstillhuntingitsfirstpointsoftheseason

Flashpoint in the match came in the 16th minute when diminutive midfielder Keagan Thompson drove home a shot hard and low from the edge of the area with his right foot. The keeper got a hand to it but on a very skiddy wet surface it found is way homejustinsidethepost.

It was the 18-year-old’s first goal for Melville at northern premier level after potting about18forthereserveslastseason.

And in a contest which was generally competitively dour, it was the stand-out piece of individualbrilliance.

Thompson was later named Melville’s player of the day, despite being subbed off in the 60th minute. He was nursing a very tender left foot, though advised it was from having stood on a blade at his workplace rather than being a match injury If the ultimate outcome is to be three points for Melville, they should make him stand on a

Feature of the Melville line-up was the debut of the widely-travelled Erik Panzer, who took over the role of the suspended Aaron Scott in midfield. The tall 29-year-old has played national league with Canterbury United and Southern United and for various clubs in the United States, Northern Ireland, England and Scandanavia, having first left New Zealand as a 19-year-old to play and study at Quinnipiac University inConnecticut.

Late in the second half Braedan Qui to have added a second with a head Quilter-Phippshadastronggamein

Melville were captained by Liam Hayes, who returned from having been suspended for the first game of the season for the second successive season. Melville’s only bookings went to Sean Liddicoat and Quinton Kipara, who was yellow carded about 15secondsaftercomingoffthebench.

CoachJarrodYounghadmixedfeelingsonMelville’sperformance

“I think we were pretty good up till the goal – great goal by Keagan – but were dogshit afterthatandTakapunadictated,”hesaid

HecalleditrolereversalfromMelville’sopeninggame.

“We thought we played pretty well against Suburbs but they scored the goal This is a hardplacetocomeandgetthreepointssoweareverypleased.”

TakapunacoachChrisMilicichsaidhisteamhadachangedstylethisseason

“We are transitioning from last year when we were fairly direct, fairly tough and ran veryhardtoateamwhichnowutilisestheballandcreatesopportunities,”hesaid

“It’s a massive step for the boys – just disappointed we didn’t get a goal, but in saying thatthereareenoughteamsinthiscompetitionthataregoingtostruggle

And he was generous enough to suggest Melville would be battling for a top four spot

Melville United: 1-Max Tommy (GK), 4-Braedan Quilter-Phipps, 5-Campbell Brown, 6-Ethan Richards (13-Dylan Williams 66'), 7-Ry McLeod, 8-Liam Hayes (c), 9-Jack Connor (12-Jakob England 66'), 14-Sean Liddicoat, 15-Erik Panzer, 17-Keagan Thompson(11-QuintonKipara66'),18-JohnOakman

Subsnotused:10-LuccaLim,16-AlecBowden

Helping drive women's football forward

Melville United’s women's football programme is making enormous strides under the leadership of Tarena Ranui, having evolved from one team of about 16 girls operating inaboysleague,toanacademyof80girlsforthe2023season

But Ranui, the club’s director of women's football, says this progress has only been made possible thanks to critical support in the form of a sponsored Hyundai car and fuelcard.

Hamilton football supplies retailer Soccer United, based in Alexandra Street, has coordinated a sponsorship package in conjunction with football apparel brand Lotto, and Research Motors in Hamilton East. Meanwhile fuel is supplied courtesy of Harrisons Carpet & Flooring (Waikato North), a flooring retailer specializing in carpet, hardwood,vinyl,laminatesandrugs.

This year Melville is fielding U14 and U16 girls academy teams in the Lotto NRFL and U13s in the WaiBOP federation-wide league. And a group of under 18s form the backboneoftheMelvillewomen’sfirstteam,contestingtheW-League

“It’s massive,” Ranui said of the sponsorship. “I probably couldn’t do it without the vehiclesupport

“The car and the fuelling of it is enormous. Obviously we are playing across Auckland, Tauranga, Rotorua and NRFL goes all the way up the Whangarei Sometimes we (girls andwomen’steams)areinthreedifferentcitiesinoneweekend.”

Soccer United proprietor Brooke Macdonald said Ranui had developed a girls football programme that was unmatched within the wider region and her contribution to the codewas“quiteremarkable”

“As a result we have a nucleus of football-playing girls here who just now assume that there has always been this energy and sophisticated planning around the girls game,” Macdonaldsaid.

“Tarena’s drive and vision has created immense possibilities for the girls who have comewithinherorbit.”

Lotto Sports principal Blair Dawkins said it was encouraging to see a relatively young coachmakingsuchbigstrideswithfemaledevelopmentprogrammes.

“Within our wider support for the northern league, we are pleased to see Tarena’s development as a coach and happy to assist her on her journey and see where it leads,”Dawkinssaid

Girls now represent almost 50 per cent of the Melville United Football Academy, wherethetotal2023intakeis190

Meanwhile Ranui said the biggest challenge this season would be trying to win the WaiBOPFederation’sWLeague

While Melville would be a young team, her vision for Melville was to also be a space where older players could return to the game after having kids or having settled with mortgages

“They can still experience the sport at a level they enjoy and can contribute to, and eventakementorshiprolesindevelopingyoungplayers

“But overall it is still a place where our young players can hopefully move beyond us. For instance, I’m really happy we were the club that produced the most homegrown playersinthelastNewZealandU-17team(withthree).

“SoIthinkwe’vefoundsomethingthatworksreallywell”

Melville U14 Girls Academy and U16 Girls Academy kicked off their northern league campaigns a fortnight ago, and enjoyed big wins over Eastern Suburbs last weekend 8-5 (U16) and 8-0 (U14). Eastern Suburbs are of course new Zealand’s reigning senior women’schampions

Meanwhile, the women's first team begin their W-League campaign with a home fixtureagainstOtumoetainextweekend

# On April 3 Soccer United moved permanently across the road to larger premises in AlexandraStreet

Northern League Easter fixtures

Games to be played on Friday April 7, 2023

Auckland City v Birkenhead United

Kiwitea St, Sandringham, 2pm

West Coast Rangers v Manukau United

Fred Taylor Park, Whenuapai, 3pm

Auckland United v Manurewa

Keith Hay Park, Mt Roskill, 3pm

Melville United v Hamilton Wanderers

Gower Park, Hamilton, 3pm

Eastern Suburbs v Takapuna

Riverhills Park, Pakuranga, 3pm

Bay Olympic v Western Springs

Olympic Park, New Lynn, 6pm

Games to be played on Monday April 10, 2023

Auckland City v West Coast Rangers

Kiwitea St, Sandringham, 3pm

Hamilton Wanderers v Eastern Suburbs

Porrit Stadium, Hamilton, 3pm

Manurewa v Melville United

Manurewa War Memorial Park, Manurewa, 3pm

Western Springs v Takapuna

Seddon Fields, Westmere, 3pm

Manukau United v Auckland United Mangere Centre Park, Mangere, 3pm

Bay Olympic v Birkenhead United

Olympic Park, New Lynn, 6pm

Melville Golf Classic

The 2023 Brian Coe Memorial Golf Classic has been set for Sunday April 30, tee off 11.30am at the Ngaruawahia Golf Club. Please lend a hand to one of Melville’s key fundraisingactivitiesfortheyearbyentering.Foodanddrinksuppliedon-course.

Entry is $50 per player or $180 per team of four. Alternately you can sponsors a hole for$500plusGSTandenteracomplimentaryteam

Tolodgeanentrypleaseemailinfo@melvilleunited.co.nz