Season preview: Dandenong Thunder
2013 finish: After winning the 2012 Victorian Premier League (VPL) title, Dandenong Thunder failed to reach those lofty heights in 2013. The Thunder finished seventh and lost premiership coach Chris Taylor to South Melbourne – a disappointing season for a club with huge expectations. It wasn’t all doom and gloom for the Thunder though, as they were a runner-up to Green Gully in the Dockerty Cup.
NPL 2014 squad: Frazer Siddall (GK), Jarryd Barnes, Ilir Pali, Ramazan Tavsancioglu (vice-captain), Faisal Sakhi Zada, Alan Mulcahy (captain), Kieran Dover, Matthew Miller, Ivan Skorich, Feston Azizi, Kristopher Kioussis, Brendan Elmazovski, Anthony Giannopoulos, David King, Ryan Burns, Alan Kearney (vice-captain), Marcus Schroen, Brendan Craig, Zaim Zeneli, Jake Nakic
Key signings: Ramazan Tavsancioglu (Southern Stars), Alan Mulcahy (Hume City), Jake Nakic (Port Melbourne), Alan Kearney (South Melbourne), Kristopher Kioussis (Bentleigh Greens), Frazer Siddall (Northcote City)
Key departures: Shane Rexhepi (Hume City), Nate Foster (Oakleigh Cannons), Sean McIlroy (St Albans Saints), Steven Topalovic (Dandenong City)
The gaffer: Dean Hennessey was appointed senior coach in November 2013 and will lead the Thunder in their inaugural NPL season. Hennessey, who was replaced as Green Gully coach early last season, has rebuilt the senior squad, with its average age just under 22. The experienced Hennessey will be investing on youth heavily this year.
One to watch: After an injury-ravaged 2013 season with South Melbourne, new signing and vice-captain Alan Kearney is reportedly fit and firing and ready for a huge season. The Irishman is a clever central midfielder and a brilliant distributer of the ball.
“I got injured early in the season last year which impacted in me missing a fair few games, so I would like to have an injury-free season this year and contribute to the team and hope we can finish as high as we can...there’s no reason we can’t finish in the top five, even though there is no finals this season” – Kearney.
Pictured: New recruit Alan Kearney calls the shots during a pre-season friendly (image credit: The Sporting Wall)
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