Post by Aliti on Mar 9, 2011 11:34:59 GMT 10
My fellow Sydney Olympic fans we look back an intresting artical on December 19th 2003 in the Sydney Morning Herald written by the most passionate respectable journalist in Australian Football and during the NSL years Michael Cockerill writes A true Gentelman of Sydney Olympic FC during the NSL years Elias Augerinos
Elias Augerinos has had a difficult love affair with Sydney Olympic, but his perseverance has been inspirational, writes Michael Cockerill.
Every so often a milestone comes along that means a lot more than a statistic. Elias Augerinos, 32, never thought he would reach 200 games in the national league. But that's exactly what he will do, barring mishap, in the local derby against Sydney United at Edensor Park early next month. That 199 of those games will have been played in the colours of Sydney Olympic adds extra meaning to the occasion.
A boy who used to jump the fence at Pratten Park to get the autographs of the first-grade players has lived the dream for the past 13 years. A dream, it must be said, that has often threatened to become a nightmare. But in the love-hate relationship Augerinos has endured with the only club he ever wanted to play for, this is a milestone worth celebrating.
"I never thought I'd get there, to be honest," he says. "In fact, I never even thought I'd play national league. But here I am, and I'm pretty proud of the fact. I hope to keep going for another five years. I love the game, I don't ever want to stop."
Worn-out knees - he's had five operations - might eventually force his hand, but right now Augerinos is playing arguably the best football of his career. The fact that he finally has a coach (Peter Papanikitas) who believes in him might have something to do with it.
Consider this. Augerinos and Pablo Cardozo started out at Olympic together, but Cardozo has played almost 100 games more. In that time, Augerinos has played under 12 different coaches and virtually every season has had to prove himself all over again. Twice he has been shown the door, but after brief stints in the state league he has returned.
"I've known him since we were 17 or 18, he's a gem of a bloke," says Cardozo. "He's the real honest player that every team needs. Having said that, he's definitely underrated, his crossing is as good as any I've seen. I've got nothing but praise for him - he's been through a lot, he's had a lot of people on his back - and he's pulled through to get 200 games. That's a big thing for any player, but for Elias it's awesome."
Certainly, appearances can be deceptive and a languid gait suggests a player who doesn't like to roll up his sleeves. Far from it - Augerinos works as hard as anyone else, prides himself on playing the simple ball and reads the play better than most. Not only that, he has two undeniable assets, a sweet left foot and great power in the air.
For all that, Augerinos has perennially struggled to cement his place in the team. In more than half of his 197 appearances to date he has started on the bench or been taken off during the game. Maybe because of his laconic style and ready smile, he's an easy player to drop.
Whatever the case, his contribution to the Olympic cause deserves a lot more recognition. He might have given up many times, but pride, and passion, kept him going. Two years ago, he received his reward - a championship medal, albeit from a familiar position on the bench. Last season, he was a spectator as Olympic failed to make it consecutive titles in Perth.
At the time, Augerinos was playing for Bankstown City in the state league, but there was never any doubt where his heart lay. Last summer the Lions often played at the same time as Olympic, but if he went off injured, or was substituted by the coach, Augerinos would jump in his car and speed to Cronulla to catch Olympic's second half.
Given his obvious affection for the club - his contracts reflect his willingness to play for love rather than money - the mystery is why the Olympic fans have ridden him so hard. Ten years ago, when he was a regular under then-coach Berti Mariani, things threatened to get out of hand when fans crept into Leichhardt Oval overnight and burned a message "Sack Elias #3 - Berti (Mariani) sucks" into the turf, where it was visible during TV coverage of the game.
Asked why he had found it so hard to win over the fans, he replied: "I wish I knew."
Augerinos admits being a Greek/Australian doesn't make it easy to play for Olympic, the flagship of Sydney's Greek community. "I go down to the local shops [Earlwood] and everyone's a coach, everyone's got something to say," he says.
There is also the issue of his father, Jim, who has long been a generous backer of the club, has had his own Greek-language radio program, and earlier this year was instrumental in saving Olympic from extinction when the former owners, headed by Nick Politis, withdrew their money shortly after the grand final.
"Some people in the Greek media don't like Dad, so maybe they want to get back at him by having a go at me," he says.
For his part, Jim - a former professional player in Greece with Aris Salonika - has often been his son's fiercest critic, but equally he's full of admiration.
"He's always struggled to prove himself, but I take my hat off to him, he's kept going," says Jim.
"In 13 years, he hasn't missed a single training session, not one. He's part of my [painting] business, and that's probably cost us a lot. But I've never regretted it, because Olympic is part of my life, too. Two hundred games is a big thing. I'm very proud of him.
"He's done it the hard way, that's for sure."
Labour of love: Elias Augerinos, centre, trains with his Olympic teammates at Tempe reserve (2003)
Elias Augerinos has had a difficult love affair with Sydney Olympic, but his perseverance has been inspirational, writes Michael Cockerill.
Every so often a milestone comes along that means a lot more than a statistic. Elias Augerinos, 32, never thought he would reach 200 games in the national league. But that's exactly what he will do, barring mishap, in the local derby against Sydney United at Edensor Park early next month. That 199 of those games will have been played in the colours of Sydney Olympic adds extra meaning to the occasion.
A boy who used to jump the fence at Pratten Park to get the autographs of the first-grade players has lived the dream for the past 13 years. A dream, it must be said, that has often threatened to become a nightmare. But in the love-hate relationship Augerinos has endured with the only club he ever wanted to play for, this is a milestone worth celebrating.
"I never thought I'd get there, to be honest," he says. "In fact, I never even thought I'd play national league. But here I am, and I'm pretty proud of the fact. I hope to keep going for another five years. I love the game, I don't ever want to stop."
Worn-out knees - he's had five operations - might eventually force his hand, but right now Augerinos is playing arguably the best football of his career. The fact that he finally has a coach (Peter Papanikitas) who believes in him might have something to do with it.
Consider this. Augerinos and Pablo Cardozo started out at Olympic together, but Cardozo has played almost 100 games more. In that time, Augerinos has played under 12 different coaches and virtually every season has had to prove himself all over again. Twice he has been shown the door, but after brief stints in the state league he has returned.
"I've known him since we were 17 or 18, he's a gem of a bloke," says Cardozo. "He's the real honest player that every team needs. Having said that, he's definitely underrated, his crossing is as good as any I've seen. I've got nothing but praise for him - he's been through a lot, he's had a lot of people on his back - and he's pulled through to get 200 games. That's a big thing for any player, but for Elias it's awesome."
Certainly, appearances can be deceptive and a languid gait suggests a player who doesn't like to roll up his sleeves. Far from it - Augerinos works as hard as anyone else, prides himself on playing the simple ball and reads the play better than most. Not only that, he has two undeniable assets, a sweet left foot and great power in the air.
For all that, Augerinos has perennially struggled to cement his place in the team. In more than half of his 197 appearances to date he has started on the bench or been taken off during the game. Maybe because of his laconic style and ready smile, he's an easy player to drop.
Whatever the case, his contribution to the Olympic cause deserves a lot more recognition. He might have given up many times, but pride, and passion, kept him going. Two years ago, he received his reward - a championship medal, albeit from a familiar position on the bench. Last season, he was a spectator as Olympic failed to make it consecutive titles in Perth.
At the time, Augerinos was playing for Bankstown City in the state league, but there was never any doubt where his heart lay. Last summer the Lions often played at the same time as Olympic, but if he went off injured, or was substituted by the coach, Augerinos would jump in his car and speed to Cronulla to catch Olympic's second half.
Given his obvious affection for the club - his contracts reflect his willingness to play for love rather than money - the mystery is why the Olympic fans have ridden him so hard. Ten years ago, when he was a regular under then-coach Berti Mariani, things threatened to get out of hand when fans crept into Leichhardt Oval overnight and burned a message "Sack Elias #3 - Berti (Mariani) sucks" into the turf, where it was visible during TV coverage of the game.
Asked why he had found it so hard to win over the fans, he replied: "I wish I knew."
Augerinos admits being a Greek/Australian doesn't make it easy to play for Olympic, the flagship of Sydney's Greek community. "I go down to the local shops [Earlwood] and everyone's a coach, everyone's got something to say," he says.
There is also the issue of his father, Jim, who has long been a generous backer of the club, has had his own Greek-language radio program, and earlier this year was instrumental in saving Olympic from extinction when the former owners, headed by Nick Politis, withdrew their money shortly after the grand final.
"Some people in the Greek media don't like Dad, so maybe they want to get back at him by having a go at me," he says.
For his part, Jim - a former professional player in Greece with Aris Salonika - has often been his son's fiercest critic, but equally he's full of admiration.
"He's always struggled to prove himself, but I take my hat off to him, he's kept going," says Jim.
"In 13 years, he hasn't missed a single training session, not one. He's part of my [painting] business, and that's probably cost us a lot. But I've never regretted it, because Olympic is part of my life, too. Two hundred games is a big thing. I'm very proud of him.
"He's done it the hard way, that's for sure."
Labour of love: Elias Augerinos, centre, trains with his Olympic teammates at Tempe reserve (2003)
