Stars align for football squads
AUSTRALIA will send five teams to compete in the highly anticipated football tournament at the 19th Maccabiah Games in Israel in July.
AUSTRALIA will send five teams to compete in the highly anticipated football tournament at the 19th Maccabiah Games in Israel in July.
The open men’s side will be led by Mark Robertson, who brings expertise from his 15 years as a professional player in Australia and abroad.
The bulk of the side plays under Robertson at Maccabi Hakoah in the NSW State League Division 1, but most are going to their first Games.
And it will be an experience to savour, with the Aussies set to take on powerhouse nations Israel, Brazil and France.
The squad is headlined by former Central Coast Mariner Laurence Braude, who now plays in the US, and incoming Maccabi Hakoah president Mike Katz, who is a former National Soccer League player.
The open women’s side is the product of a four-year plan under the management of Sydney Kahn, which sees nine players with international Maccabi experience.
They’ll be under the guidance of Mark Abro from Maccabi WA, who was with the Pan Am team in Brazil and whose UEFA A-licence qualifications make him one of the highest trained coaches in the country.
Inspiring goalkeeper Amy Seskin will lead the side, which includes Lani Kahn and Bec Joseph on their third tours.
That experience will be vital and Kahn rates the squad, with an average age of 23, a strong chance of medalling in the 10-team league, despite the loss of Perth Premier League player Raffi Waltman and Matilda Ashley Browne to injury.
It’s a family affair in the masters over-45s, where Hakoah legend Alex Robertson, Mark’s father, will coach a side featuring Maccabiah debutants through to players at their seventh Games.
Jon Pillemer headlines a squad including three-time representatives Terry Sperber, Larry Mendelowitz, Michael Pillemer, Jeff Akres, Steve Lowy, Alon Cohen and Clive Mazin.
The junior boys side has left no stone unturned on the road to Israel, according to section manager Phil Filler.
Former NSW Institute of Sport coach and Socceroo Brad Maloney will coach the team, which is made up of players coming through the ranks at Maccabi Hakoah and others featur- ing in rep teams in Melbourne and Perth.
The squad has already enjoyed a couple of training programs and will stop off in Bangkok for a camp at a Premier League academy to fine-tune their preparations before arriving in Israel.
The teams are rounded out by the junior girls side, who have been boosted in recent weeks by the inclusion of Mechalie Aizen, a Northern Spirit rep player in Sydney.
AJN Staff
Photo: Peter Haskin
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