Saturday's encounter at JJ Kelly Park between Coniston and Bellambi is arguably the most high profile regular season District League match in years. Neither side have dropped a point through the opening nine rounds meaning they occupy the top two places, nine points clear of Thirroul in third.

 

Bellambi lead the league thanks to their remarkable plus 38 goal difference which is made up of 40 goals for and just the one against. Without question, their most noteworthy win of the season came in Round 1 where they destroyed the 2017 Grand Final winners Warilla 9-0. Some of the star performers for Bellambi include Andy Keep and Ilija Prenzoski who have combined for 21 goals this campaign while the likes of captain Tor Preece and Sean Poulton have kept things tight at the back.

 

As for Coniston, the goal difference is only plus 28. To put both sides goal difference into some perspective, the next best Helensburgh's plus 12. Coniston haven't had the jaw-dropping results the Rosellas have, however they have scored three or more in every match so far this season. Coniston have their own sharpshooters in Dinko Terzic and Mark Picciolini who have scored 12 and 7 goals respectively while their midfielder has a number of Premier League calibre operators including captain Franc Pierro and Hiroaki Kohinoki.

 

While the match promises to be a cracker, the occasion should also be recognised as a key bookmark in the history of both clubs who have been right up against it in recent seasons.

 

At the end of the 2013 season, Coniston were relegated from the top flight after finished eight points adrift at the foot of the table. The club couldn't arrest the slide and they finished bottom of the District League for two consecutive seasons after winning just three matches.

 

This ultimately saw the club drop into Community League after a reformation of the second division and at the time, current Coniston assistant coach Vlado Miceski admits there were serious considerations about the club closing its gates for good.

 

Miceski explained how the club had done too much too much to throw it all away, “We had worked hard in clearing out debt, restoring our ground and amenities as well as building a strong connection with our youth through Coniston Junior Soccer Club.”

 

Coniston began their rebuild by recruiting a core group of players including current club captain Pierro in search of promotion at the first time of asking. They managed to achieve their goal in impressive fashion losing just two matches all season before claiming the Grand Final trophy after a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Dandaloo.

 

Balgownie were Coniston's first opponents on their return to District League and their new recruit Dinko Terzic scored the only goal of the match at JJ Kelly Park. After the win, Coniston coach Willy Alarcon who had helped steer the side back into division said, “Coniston is a club with a lot of history. It deserves to be on this stage if not higher.” The side would go on to miss out on finals football by three points, however, their Youth Grade side, which did not exist a year prior, won the League Championship before going down in the Grand Final.

 

As for Bellambi, they were relegated from the Premier League in 2015 after finishing 12 points behind the pack. Since then they have finished at the bottom of the second tier for two consecutive seasons and Bellambi Vice-President David Wallace acknowledges the club is aware how lucky they were to be spared relegation to Community League.

 

Wallace admits the club realised a number of key decisions had to be made to ensure the on-field stability. This would start with the recruitment of a First Grade coach, “We needed to appoint a First Grade coach who as well as being a quality coach recognised that First Grade is important but so is the overall strength of the club."  

 

The man for the job was former Premier League stalwart Andrew Paine who had hung up his playing boots after a successful 2017 season with Fernhill which saw them promoted to Premier League. Wallace explained how appointing Paine was a no-brainer, “When he expressed interest in taking on the role we looked no further… We were confident that although he is a first-year coach, he would be a quality coach as he had great pedigree as a player and is well respected by those that he played with and against.” before adding, “He has been instrumental to our success this season.”

 

Wallace is keen to highlight how the success of a club can't be purely based on the success of the first team, “Over the last few seasons in District League the semi-finalists in First Grade were almost always represented in Reserve Grade Semi-Finals as well.” This is reflected through both clubs this season with all six sides (First Grade, Reserve Grade and Youth Grade) sitting in the top five.

 

These two clubs are poignant examples of how quickly circumstances can change in football. Both of these clubs have endured heartache in recent seasons, however, the respective committees' commitment to the cause is paying dividends with both clubs now in a stronger and more sustainable position.

 

It will be an all-day affair at JJ Kelly Park with the first match getting underway at 9 am with Coniston playing University in an under 18s division 1 match. Youth Grade kicks off at 11 am, followed by Reserve Grade at 1 pm with the main game at 3 pm.

 

You can hear the captains of Coniston and Bellambi on this week’s FSC Weekly.

 

Story by Dylan Arvela, on Twitter @dylanarvela