Collingwood Warriors Soccer Club was an Australian semi-professional association football (soccer) club based in the inner-

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

suburb of Abbotsford. It participated in the

National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its d ...

in 1996–97, lasting only a solitary season. The club's most notable achievement was winning the last NSL Cup in the 1996–97 tournament, which would be the only silverware the club celebrated.

History

The club was formed as a joint-venture between

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling the laws of the gam ...

club Collingwood and Greek backed former NSL club

Heidelberg United Heidelberg United Alexander Football Club (founded as Alexander the Great-Melbourne Soccer Club) established in 1958 is a football (soccer) club based in the northern Melbourne suburb of Heidelberg West, Victoria, Australia. The team currently ...

, that was then trading as 'Melbourne Warriors'. The home strip was of a shirt with black and white stripes resembling the Australian rules club, with streaks of yellow resembling Heidelberg, with black shorts and white socks. The kit provider was

Lotto Lotto may refer to: * Lotto, original, 15th century name of the Italian lottery * Lotto (Milan Metro), a railway station in Milan, Italy * Lotto carpet, a carpet having a lacy arabesque pattern * Lotto Sport Italia, an Italian sports apparel manu ...

which also provided a third kit, which was worn in the 1996–97 NSL Cup final. The club's match-day home-ground and place of training & administration was

Victoria Park Victoria Park may refer to: Places Australia * Victoria Park Nature Reserve, a protected area in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales * Victoria Park, Adelaide, a park and racecourse * Victoria Park, Brisbane, a public park and former golf ...

in Abbotsford, sharing with the Australian rules club during their respective off-season. In the pre-season the club recruited Zoran Matic who had previously taken

Adelaide City Adelaide City Football Club is a soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia. The club was known historically as Juventus — the original name given to the club by its founders in Adelaide's Italian community. Adelaide City is one of Aust ...

to two NSL championships and signed multiple experienced players leading to high-anticipation for the season. The Warriors defeated Marconi-Fairfield 1-0 in the

last A last is a mechanical form shaped like a human foot. It is used by shoemakers and cordwainers in the manufacture and repair of shoes. Lasts typically come in pairs and have been made from various materials, including hardwoods, cast iron, and ...

NSL Cup Despite a strong start to the season in which the team went seven matches without defeat, Collingwood's form slumped and it ended up finishing second from bottom on the table. The team also lacked money, and disbanded at the end of the 1996/97 season. Throughout this period, Heidelberg maintained a separate team in the

Victorian Premier League The National Premier Leagues Victoria, commonly known as NPL Victoria, is a semi-professional soccer league in Victoria, Australia. The league is a part of the National Premier Leagues, and is the highest level within the Victorian soccer leagu ...

Con Boutsianis Constantinos "Con" Boutsianis (born 27 December 1971 in Melbourne) is an Australian football (soccer) player and former international, noted for his ability in dead ball situations. Career South Melbourne FC After impressive performances fo ...

Goran Lozanovski Goran Lozanovski (born 11 January 1974) is a former Australian football (soccer) player of Macedonian descent, and current manager holding the role of senior coach at Sydenham Park SC. Playing career Club Noted for his ability at taking se ...

and

Kimon Taliadoros Kimon Taliadoros (born 28 March 1968) is a former Australian footballer, sports commentator and businessman. He is President of Football Victoria. Football career Taliadoros played over 11 seasons in the National Soccer League for South Mel ...

scored equal most goals for the club at seven each, with

Frank Juric Frank Juric ( hr, Frank Jurić, ; born 28 October 1973) is an Australian former goalkeeper. Club career Born in Melbourne, Juric began his professional career in the former Australian national league with Melbourne Knights, where he won two l ...

making the most appearances, of twenty-five for the club.

Notable former players

Dean Anastasiadis Dean Anastasiadis (born 6 June 1970 in Melbourne, Australia) is a former Australian football (soccer) player. Biography A goalkeeper, he played for many years at a variety of clubs in the National Soccer League. This included being part of ...

* Alan Davidson *

Ernie Tapai Ernie Tapai (born 14 February 1967) is an Australian former professional soccer player who spent the majority of his career in the Australian National Soccer League (NSL). He also had stints in England, Portugal and Singapore. Tapai played 52 ...

Andrew Vlahos Andrew Vlahos (born 20 April 1976) is a former Australian-Greek footballer. Biography Andrew Vlahos began his senior career at Heidelberg United FC in the National Soccer League from 1994 to 1996. When Heidelberg and Collingwood Football Clu ...

Honours

NSL Cup *Winners: 1996–97

External links

Collingwood Warriors page on OzFootball

References

{{AUS fb NSL Collingwood Warriors SC Defunct soccer clubs in Australia Association football clubs disestablished in 1997 National Soccer League (Australia) teams 1996 establishments in Australia 1997 disestablishments in Australia Association football clubs established in 1996 Greek-Australian culture Sport in the City of Yarra

History

Notable former players

Honours

See also

External links

References