Rockdale Ilinden FC
| Full name | Rockdale Ilinden Football Club | ||
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| Founded | 1969 | ||
| Ground | Bicentennial Park South, Rockdale, Sydney | ||
| Capacity | 5,000 | ||
| Chairman |   Zak Agioski | ||
| Coach | Mile Todorovski | ||
| League | NSW Premier League | ||
| 2010 | TBD | ||
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Rockdale Ilinden Football Club (commonly known as the Rockdale City Suns), founded in 1969, is an Australian association football (soccer) club based in Sydney suburb of Rockdale and competes in the highest men's competition in New South Wales, the NSW Premier League.
The Club's home ground is Bicentennial Park South, located in the suburb of Rockdale, New South Wales.
History
The Rockdale Ilinden Soccer Club was formed in 1969 by a group of Macedonian Australians who gave the team the name "Ilinden" which has special meaning for all Macedonians throughout history. The club’s first President Simon Zipevski laid the foundations as did the late Vlade Temelkovski who was President in 1978. The name Ilinden represents the Macedonian people’s struggle for freedom, justice, and recognition.
On the field, the highlights would have to be the Grand Final wins (of different Leagues) in 1984, 2002 and 2006. The 1984 NSW First Division Grand Final team was coached by Ilija Takac, winning 3-2 over Inter Monaro at Marconi Stadium and is firmly entrenched in the memories of the Rockdale Ilinden supporters.
It took 18 long years for Rockdale Ilinden to rejoice another First Grade Grand Final victory. In 2002 the coaching team of Mile Todoroski and Bill Pilovski led the team to an amazing Premiership/Championship double with only 1 loss in 24 games. In the Grand Final, they would meet the Hajduk Wanderers (who Rockdale defeated 5 goals to 3 just two weeks earlier in the Semi Final) in very rainy and windy conditions at the Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre. The team was captained by Spase Najdoski who scored the only goal in the game which in turn was the winning goal in the Grand Final in front of a crowd of 3000 at Melita Stadium.
Four years later in 2006, Rockdale Ilinden would claim another Grand Final victory this time over Penrith Nepean United. Rockdale won 1-0 in front of a crowd of 2000 at Melita Stadium. Penrith Nepean United would gain promotion to the New South Wales Premier League as Rockdale's application would be denied by Football NSW due to the Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre not meeting specific stadium criteria for the Premier League.
The Rockdale Ilinden Soccer Club has been led by a wide array of coaching identities over their history. Kaz Kulak, Archie Blue, Ilija Takac, Ati Abonyi, Ljubo Gojkovic, Geoff Hoggart, John Fleming (1980s), Ljubo Jancev, Bill Pilovski, Manfred Schaefer, Risto Gojkovski, Rale Rasic, Doug Utjesenovic, Bill Temelkovski, Bill Boskovski, Gerry Gomez (1990s), Mile Todoroski, Ivan Petkovic, Zlatko Nastevski and current coach Mike Grbevski.[1]
Mile Todorovski, the 2008 Super League Coach of the Year was announced as the new coach for the 2009 season with all members/guests and players welcoming the announcement. Hugo Sanchez was also named as the new Youth League Head Coach. The Club Committee also announced STOBI Int. as the new supplier of the playing strip and accessories for the 2009 season and beyond.
The 2009 Super League season officially began on March 15, 2009 with Rockdale Ilinden drawing 1-1 with the Northern Tigers at the Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre.[2] The club finished the season in first place on the ladder, claiming the Premiership and advancing to the finals. They were, however, eliminated during the Preliminary Final by the eventual Champions Spirit FC 2 goals to nil.
On 12 October 2009, Football NSW announced that the Rockdale City Suns would be promoted to the Premier League competition for the 2010 season.[3]
Colours and badge
The primary club colours of Rockdale Ilinden are red and black with a secondary, less-used colour of white.
The Rockdale Ilinden badge was created and used since the clubs founding in 1969. It contains the Vergina Sun, with the centre disc replaced by a traditional black and white soccer ball surrounded by the name of the club.
Stadium
From its founding in 1969 through to 2009, the Club played their home games at the Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre, except during 2001, when the proximity of construction of the M5 East Freeway caused them to relocate their home games to John Crehan Park in Wollongong, New South Wales. The club continued to enjoy considerable support during this time, due in part to the size of the Macedonian community in the Illawarra Region.
In 2008, the club announced that they would be moving 1km south from the Rockdale Ilinden Sports Centre to Bicentennial Park South in Rockdale.[4] Bicentennial Park South was to be transformed into a new football ground meeting the stadium standards of Football NSW,[5] with new turf laid, an underground irrigation system installed, and a new clubhouse and facilities building constructed.
On Saturday, December 12, 2009, the club officially opened its new facilities at Bicentennial Park South.[6] Youth teams and Juniors occupy the nearby sporting fields of Bicentennial Park East, which adjoins the main ground of the club by a footbridge.
Supporters
Many supporters of the Suns are traditionally of Macedonian background. The fan base known as the "Suns Army" or "Komiti Sydney" are based on the highly regarded supporters in Europe "Komiti" who support Vardar Skopje, one of the most successful football teams in the Republic of Macedonia.
Current Squad
First Grade
The Senior First Grade squad.[7] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Coach: Mile Todorovski
Under 20's
The Under 20's squad for 2010. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Coach: Žarko Odžakov
Notable Former Players
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Chairman and Coaches
The current Chairman of the club is Zak Agioski. The current Frist Grade and Under 20's coaches are Mile Todorovski and Terry Jones respectively. The head coach of the Youth League is Mr. Hugo Sanchez who manages Under 18's. The previous Chairman was Mendo Cklamovski who was previously the Club Secretary and has been with the club since 1992.
Sponsorship
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Major Sponsors
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Minor Sponsors
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Honours
- NSW Premier League:
- Champions (1): 1984 (Division One)
- NSW Super League:
- Premiers (3): 1983, 2002, 2009
- Champions (2): 2002, 2006
References
- ^ "Rockdale City Suns History".
- ^ "Super League Round 1 vs. Northern Tigers".
- ^ "2010 Football NSW Premier League Circular" (PDF).
- ^ "Rockdale City Suns shining bright for the future". Retrieved 3 Feb 2010.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "Bicentennial and Scarborough Park Upgrade Plans" (PDF).
- ^ "Rockdale City Suns FC open Bicentennial Park". Retrieved 3 Feb 2010.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ "2010 Player Profiles".
- ^ "Francis Awaritefe".
- ^ "Scott Baillie".
- ^ "Paul Bilokapic".
- ^ "Shannon Cole".
- ^ "Daniel Farias".
- ^ "Alvaro Folladoza".
- ^ "Iain MacDonald".
- ^ "Sam La Macchia".
- ^ "Spase Najdoski".
- ^ "Ivan Necevski".
- ^ "Jordan Lando".
- ^ "Stewart Porter".
- ^ "Michael Reda".
- ^ "Tony Sekulic".
- ^ "Darryl Sharp".
- ^ "Christopher Steel".
- ^ "Sasho Stevoski".
- ^ "Goran Talevski".