We are so excited to announce that our Season Launch will be going ahead on Friday 18 March 2022!
It will be fantastic night with a delicious 3 course meal, DJ and dance floor and a silent auction, with some awesome items up for grabs including a jumper signed by the reigning premiers Melbourne FC!
We will also be doing jumper presentations, and recognising our B&F winners from 2021!
Current Senior co-captain Nick Gedge, joined St Mary’s Junior Club back when he was 8 years old in tackers.
At the end of his junior career, Nick didn’t hesitate to join the St Mary’s Senior Club in 2013. His senior career kicked off with a bang, and he placed second in the club U19s Best & Fairest, before winning it in 2014 following the club’s very first premiership!
His natural talent and skill stood out, and Nick played his first senior game within 12 months of joining the senior club, becoming a permanent part of the senior team in 2015. By 2018, he had the chance to play in his first Senior premiership, and was named as part of our club Team of the Decade (2009-2018) on the half forward flank.
The success didn’t stop there, and Nick has continued to be a skilful and valuable player today – 9 years since joining the club!
In 2021, Nick assumed the co-captaincy role in the Senior time, and placed fifth in the club Best & Fairest which is an incredible feat given he only played six games due to injury and COVID-19.
Head Senior Coach, Fab Carelli, shared how valuable Nick is to St Mary’s.
“Nick is looked highly upon by his team mates and coaches, and it’s not hard to see why.”
“He has been an outstanding contributor to the footy club since I arrived as coach in 2018. His commitment to the club and his team mates is second to none where he’s always shown qualities of selflessness for a team first attitude.”
“ He has always had great leadership skills and they were rewarded last year being instilled as a Co-Captain of the senior team.”
“He has great ability to build rapport with all players and coaches going above and beyond to help others underpinning his leadership skills as well being a fantastic contributor as a player on the field.”
Nick has also played a key role in building a great culture off the field, and often participates in events with other players, including captaining the winning Gracie’s Gift charity cricket side.
With his senior career still going strong, Nick has no plans on leaving St Marys:
“I play at St Mary’s for the amazing friendships that I made in the junior club that have carried into the senior club.”
“The sense of mateship, community, and a grounded yet competitive environment gives me no thought to ever leave.”
“In my opinion, I am in the best young club in the Northern Football and Netball League.”
In case you missed it – the NFNL released the senior men’s fixtures for 2022! Round one kicks off on Saturday April 2 2022 with back to back blockbuster games at Whatmough Park! Both our Senior and Reserves team will be taking on Banyule in what will be two fantastic opening matches!
Happy New Year to all our loyal players, supporters and members! The last 2 years have been difficult for community sport and we are so proud of how our club has come together and made it through all the challenges that we faced. Let’s hope that this year we can have a full season and come back better than ever! We hope that everyone is able to celebrate tonight with loved ones, and can’t wait to see everyone back at the club!
Merry Christmas to our St Mary’s community! Christmas is a time of giving and we would like to give you all a huge thank you for your continued commitment to our club during the last 2 years! We hope you are all spending time with loved ones and have a fantastic day – you all deserve it!
As we close out another year, we want to congratulate all our players that have achieved a milestone in 2021! Congratulations to all these players, and we look forward to seeing you play many, many more games at St Mary’s!
This week are are taking a look back at our first ever football premiership in 2014, where the U19s defeated Hurstbridge by 22 points at Preston City Oval! The winning team was made up of 42 players, with 37 of them coming up from Colts together from our junior club. Unfortunately many of the players had just missed out on a grand final after losing their preliminary final in their last year of Colts in 2013. Luckily, the Senior Club could provide a pathway for these players and their families to continue their friendships, and of course enjoy a premiership win together! Even more incredible is that many of these players still play in our Seniors and Reserves teams today, including: – Nick Gedge – Joe Bergman – Daniel Castagnini – Nic Daisley – Jake Dambrauskas – Nick Dean – Jordan DuPont – Lachie Potter – Aaron Batchelor – Ben Batchelor – Cruz Bradshaw – James Girolami – Mitchell Lee The team was also coached by long time St Mary’s player Ben Joyce, who still coaches at St Mary’s today! Football Director Greg Hanlon shared how amazing it is that these players have stuck together. “How fantastic it is that our club has evolved largely as an extension of our junior club.” “Unlike many other clubs, we have developed our junior talent, rather than sourcing ready made, experienced players and we are now poised to enjoy the rewards that come with a very close and united team.”
Join us for a Christmas catch-up on Monday 20 December, 7pm at Whatmough Park! The BBQ will be on, and drinks will be available for purchase. Everyone is welcome, and we can’t wait to see you there!
Today is International Volunteer Day, so we want to take the opportunity to thank everyone who offered their skills, time and enthusiasm to support St Mary’s this year! Whether they are behind the bar or canteen, an umpire escort, runner, trainer or anything else, running our club would not be possible without our volunteers. Given the challenging 2 years we have had the continued time and efforts of volunteers have become even more critical, and these people have played a huge role in keeping our club alive and shaping the future for St Mary’s. Thank you for your support and we look forward to an incredible 2022!
SMFNC 