They've proven they can match it with the Illawarra Premier League's strongest teams. Now, Albion Park have called in the reinforcements as they eye a tilt at the 2022 premiership.
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Head coach Alvin Ceccoli is bolstering the White Eagles' squad this off season, bringing in a raft of new signings. While he wants to strengthen the side across the field, Ceccoli has identified supporting striker Cameron Morgan as a key area.
Morgan led the Premier League's 2021 Golden Boot race with 17 goals in 13 games before the season was cut short due to COVID, with Albion Park in fourth spot but only three points behind leaders Wollongong Olympic. He also found the back of the net eight times last season as the White Eagles fell just short of the grand final.
To address the issue, the club will bring in former Western Sydney Wanderers Youth League talent and Australian under-16s representative Adrian Viggiani, as well as recruiting Mitchell Cross from NSW NPL club Blacktown Spartans.
"Mitchell has played in NPL3 for the last few years, and he was the leading goal scorer in 2019," Ceccoli said.
"Adrian is a massive coup. He's only 21 and he represented Australia in the under 16s AFC World Cup qualifiers, so he's got good pedigree. He hasn't played the last two years and it looked like he might be lost to the game, and he shouldn't. When I saw his highlights on YouTube, I was excited.
"I really needed someone to help Cameron Morgan. Although he scored a load of goals this year, he was like a lone wolf up forward, so this will help put more pressure on the opposition's defence. So we've got Mitchell coming, and Adrian will play in behind them."
However, Ceccoli also hasn't forgotten about shoring up the White Eagles at the other end of the field.
Former Park defender Kohei Suzaki will return to the IPL in 2022, while Ethan Kamoises joins the club after recently departing the Wollongong Wolves.
"Ethan used to play down in his league. I played with him when I was at the Kemblawarra Fury, he's a good player. Coming from the Wolves, he should have a bit of pedigree," Ceccoli said.
"Kohei was at Albion Park a few years ago and he's back. My assistant Rob (Saverino) and I identified that we needed someone to help Cameron Morgan, and we needed someone at the back because our defence was really inconsistent. We were either really good, or really bad, so hopefully we've tightened up our defence now."
Ceccoli also hopes to maintain stability within the White Eagles roster. The 47-year-old, who stepped into the head coaching role in April following the departure of Rob Birkin and Chad Bishop, will keep the majority of his squad for 2022.
"We've only lost three players, Blake McGinn, Robbie Delbanco and Hamish Lamberton. Hamish is going to the NPL in Sydney and I'm not sure what the other two boys are doing, but I wish them well," he said.
"I came to the club at the wrong time I guess, the season had already kicked off, and within the space of four weeks, I had to get them fit and try to create a system with the players I had. I tried to install things that I wanted to. But next season, I won't have to start from scratch because there's already a few processes in place."
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
