Khrapko named NPL 1 player of the month

Winning Edge Presentations NPL 1 Player of the Month, Rounds 9-12 - Oleksiy Khrapko (Avondale Heights)

It’s a cold Monday night at Bulleen.

Avondale Heights forward Aleksiy Khrapko hasn’t had the most prolific game of his career.

Less than 10 minutes until the end of the first half and the table-toppers are down 1-0.

There’s a restart off a throw-in. Two combatants go up for the challenge but neither get a solid head on it and it goes deeper into the Bulleen half.

Enter Khrapko.

The big, Ukrainian-born forward springs to life. He checks away from his marker and takes the ball on his thigh. He sprints towards goal with the ball at his feet.

A defender jumps in to challenge the big man, but instinctively he pulls the ball inside the defender and skips past him.

Defender number two dives in to win the ball off of him. Khrapko stays strong and advances towards the edge of the 18. The defender has no choice, he fouls Khrapko.

There’s no discussion; Kraphko wants the free kick.

The wall is set up immaculately for the position of the free kick.

The goalkeeper is showing him the far post towards his right.

No deal; Khrapko wants near post.

He takes two steps and effortlessly nestles it well away from the wall and into the bottom left corner.

The big Ukrainian is humble. He turns away from goal, puts his head down and points to the sky. He’s swamped by his teammates.

Pandemonium, but he’s focused.

Avondale went on to win 3-1, with Khrapko playing an integral role in the victory.

It was just one of the games which sealed him this month’s Winning Edge NPL 1 Player of the Month award.

FFV’s Alen Delic caught up with Aleksiy Khrapko and told him the good news.

How does it feel to have won the Winning Edge Player of the Month award?

It’s exciting. But it’s not just about one player. It’s about the whole team. We’ve been playing well.
We’ve played well the last 10 games, we had a loss against George Cross but since then we’ve pulled together as a team and been on a good run.

We’ve been working hard at training. Every day counts. It’s a good organisation to be a part of.

You were born in Ukraine, how long have you been here and how have you found football here?

I’ve been here eight years but I’m now an Australian citizen.

The beauty of soccer is that it is the same everywhere. It is a bit more physical and technical in Australia, but that’s good.

Is there anyone you model your game on?

[Ukrainian former Milan and Chelsea centre forward] Andriy Shevchenko.

He has always scored goals and that’s what I like about him.

He’s a good technical and physical player and was probably the best player in the world in 2007.
Can’t be many better than him.

You’ve scored nine goals so far this season, and we’re not even halfway. Have you always been a goalscorer?

It’s my first year that I’m actually scoring this amount of goals. Last year I scored eight goals for Altona Magic and when I played for Port Melbourne I scored seven goals.

What’s been the best game that you’ve played?

I think the Bulleen game on Monday night wasn’t bad. But the whole team was playing really good soccer.

I was also happy with the way I played against Box Hill.

All the games we’ve played well, but Box Hill, Bulleen and Richmond, I’ve been particularly happy with my performance.

What are your aspirations in football?

I think every player should want to play at the highest level they can. Any player who wants to continue in their soccer career should be aiming high.

I would be very happy if I played in the A-League one day.

What do you think of Anthony Barbieri as a coach?

I think he’s a good coach. At the same time, he can give you pressure but he can also support you. He can also control the team well. He’s got a big future at Avondale Heights.

You’re nine points clear now, can Avondale Heights win the NPL 1 title this year and get promotion?

It’s what we’re trying to do. We’re doing everything we can do to win the title and I think we can do it.

The NPL 1 Player of the Month is voted by FFV’s match reporters in a 3-2-1 voting system for each match.

Image credit: Mark Avellino




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