SUNRAYSIA is talent laden when it comes to junior soccer, and one side in particular has taken it to a new level.
Sunraysia’s Under 18 boys squad were undefeated at the Victorian Country Leagues Junior Championships in Ballarat, laying claim to being one of the brightest junior squads in the state.
The impressive unit, coached by George Moraitis, scored 28 goals and conceded just one over six games, including a commanding 5-0 victory over Albury Wodonga to claim the title.
There were brilliant performances across the board from the seven Sunraysia sides at the tournament, including the Under 18 Girls and Under 15 boys finishing as runners-up.
Moraitis, who has been at helm of this group of boys since Under 12 level, said he is proud to see how they have developed over the years.
“They did exceptionally well,” he said.”It was probably a stronger tournament that these kids have been part of with opposing players being a bit bigger and stronger but they performed really well.
“We dominated most games but there were also some games where it was really tight at half-time so the final scores maybe didn’t reflect how close of a contest it was.
“A lot of kids in this team got some confidence back that may have been missing at at local level, but because it’s such a close-knit squad everyone can help pick each other up.”
When quizzed if he believed the squad was one of the best junior outfits in Victoria, not just regionally, Moraitis admitted “I think so”.
“Other clubs aren’t able to field NPL players in tournaments like this, which doesn’t affect us as we don’t have a NPL team, but we can’t take away from what these guys are doing at senior level here in Sunraysia,” he said.
“Probably 13 of the squad are playing senior soccer on a regular basis.
“As a coach who’s been with them all the way through the ranks, I’m just so proud of what this team and what they’ve been able to produce.”
Sunraysia’s Under 18 girls, coached by Jason Gowers, put in a huge performance in their final, however they went down in a penalty shootout against Latrobe Valley 3-0 following a goalless draw during regular time.
The girls recovered from an early 2-0 loss to Bendigo to record three wins from their five qualifying games, including impressive performances against Ballarat (3-1) and Albury Wodonga (4-2).
The Under 15 Boys, coached by Sam Primarano, were also runners-up, having secured two wins, a draw and a loss in their four round robin games.
The final result however would be repeated in the grand final with Albury Wodonga getting the win over Sunraysia 1-0 in both games.
Sunraysia’s Under 12 Boys reached the semi-final stage after four wins and two losses, including a strong 6-1 win over Shepparton.
After finishing second on the Group B ladder they weren’t able to make it past Albury Wodonga in the semi.
The Under 14 Girls finished fifth, while both the Under 13 and Under 14 boys finished in fourth place.
