Hakoah FC aim high for season 2025

AFTER a highly successful 2024 season for Hakoah FC in which their U13 and U15 boys’ teams both won NSW Youth League 2 premierships and their men’s State League One team placed fourth out of 16 teams, a clear aim of the club this year is to achieve more great results and ultimately earn promotion to the NSW National Premier League. That goal was expressed at Hakoah FC’s 2025 season launch last Sunday inside a packed Moriah College auditorium, where all Hakoah players from the SAP program, through juniors, U20s and men’s, received their new 2025 jerseys and were wished all the best by Rafi Assouline from platinum sponsor HSN Property Group. Emcee, sport reporter and broadcaster Daniel Garb welcomed two very special guest speakers to the stage – Western Sydney Wanderers striker and former Hakoah junior Zac Sapsford and ex-Brentford, Sheffield Wednesday, Adelaide United and Hakoah FC striker Lloyd Owusu. Sapsford fondly recalled eagerly sitting in the same seats during his playing years for Hakoah at season launches and receiving his playing shirt, “just like you are doing now”, and encouraged the youngest players in particular to enjoy their football, listen to their coaches, learn every week and be a good teammate. Hakoah president Paul Heilig highlighted the strong, supportive and respectful culture of the club, and the pride of everyone involved in continuing its proud 86-year history in Australian and NSW football. The club’s youth and SAP football president, Ofer Greenberg, commented on the exciting talent coming through the Hakoah Pathways system from juniors to U18s, U20s and men’s, and confirmed the club is aiming to earn promotion to the state’s top tier of football.

Greenberg told The AJN that there is still a strong Jewish player contingent that have earned retention of their spots in Hakoah squads across the age divisions. “Some of them have been in “I’ll just have half to begin with.” our pathways system for many years, from SAP and U13s up and a few are returning to the club after recent seasons elsewhere,” he said. Greenberg said some Jewish players to watch this season include Toby Eckowitz and Nate Mizrachi in U15s and five players in U16s including Jeremy Skurnik who captained their championship winning U15 team last season. He added that Daniel Gordon, who has been with the club for six years, is a potential captain of the U18s this season, in a team that will welcome back to the club Shannon Selby from a stint at APIA Tigers. Jewish players who have earned spots in Hakoah’s U20 State League One squad include Bailey Reid, Ethan Jurst, Maor Rubinstein and Eli Sheard, while in the men’s squad, Zach Pillemer and Josh Fuchs have retained their spots and Ben Fuchs returns to the squad after a year away from the State League in which he played for Maccabi-Hakoah in the Easts men’s division 1 competition. The men’s squad will be coached again by Craig Sharpley, it again features 2024 State League One men’s goalkeeper of the year Nick Loe and prolific goalscorer Nick Drummond, while Connor Shaddock and Luke Kraljevic rejoin the squad from other clubs. The biggest new signing is striker and French import Valentin Cuny. Drummond said, “We’re pushing for that promotion, so I’m pretty keen to see what the guys can deliver.” Hakoah’s SAP and youth league teams will enjoy a pre-season camp this weekend in Narrabeen, which will include a trial game, before they kick their season off on February 16. The club’s U20 and men’s teams begin their season with a round one away fixture this Saturday against Dulwich Hill, before hosting the Raiders on Sunday, February 16 at Hensley Field, with the men kicking off at 4.30pm, followed by the U20 team at 6.30pm.

Source AJN