You can listen to the full interview with Peter Tsekenis on the Tier Two Talk podcast here.
The inaugural Australian Championship final is set to be a historic occasion for Australian football.
Saturday’s Grand Final will see the completion of the first season of the National Second Tier, a competition that has been years in the making and one that will help shape the future of football in Australia. It will also see a historic match-up between two of the country's most storied clubs and pioneers of the new national competition.
After eight match weeks, 54 games and 175 goals, the Marconi Stallions and South Melbourne will play on the biggest stage either club has seen since the turn of the century.
“It's exciting times. Everyone around the club, players included and staff, are excited about what's to come this weekend,” Marconi’s head coach Peter Tsekenis said after qualifying for this Saturday’s Grand Final.
The New South Wales and Victorian giants were both announced as foundation members of the then-unnamed National Second Tier over two years ago and participated in the first season of the National Soccer League in 1977. So it is fitting that the first final of this new national competition would be contested by the two clubs that played all 28 seasons of the previous highest-tier competition.
Tsekenis played 173 games in the NSL for one of Marconi’s and South Melbourne's biggest rivals, Sydney Olympic. Now in charge of the Stallions, Tsekenis isn’t ignoring the history surrounding this final, but knows that will all be put aside once the whistle blows at 3pm AEDT this Saturday.
“We had some hiccups along the way, and maybe one result that people remember and want to talk about, but we've taken it in our stride and risen to all the challenges,” Tsekenis said.
“To get to the big dance away in Melbourne, which will be fantastic, I think the atmosphere [will be] pretty hostile, but I know what to expect. So hopefully I can prepare my players as best possible for that game on Saturday.”
Having to travel down to Victoria’s Olympic Village for the decider, the Stallions know they will be up against the undefeated Hellas in their bid to lift the Australian Championship trophy on Saturday. Marconi will need to do something no other New South Wales side has done so far this tournament, and that is to beat a Victorian club.
“We obviously analyse the opposition and see where their strengths are, where their weaknesses are. It's well documented that they're very strong on set pieces, long throws,” Tsekenis said.
“But we really focus on making sure that we keep doing what got us here, and that is, even though we're defensive, we're not negative. We know we're a high-pressure team. We want to get the ball forward as quickly as possible. We want to score goals.”
This is the first meeting between the four-time national champions since the 2003/2004 NSL season, where they met in the elimination final, with the South emerging victorious that day. It has been a long road back to the national spotlight for both of these clubs, though with one team only 90 minutes away from tasting national glory once again, both clubs would agree that the hard work has paid off.
“I remember the first day they discussed [the NST], and then there wasn't much information about it,” Tsekenis said.
“Now, to be in the Grand Final, the inaugural Australian Championship, it's a privilege, and we're blessed, and everyone's excited. I'm happy to do my part as the coach and as the leader of that team.”
Regardless of the result on Saturday, Tsekenis hopes that the clubs take advantage of the new stage and leave their mark on both clubs' history.
“I just hope that the teams deliver on the day, and the best team on the day gets the result,” Tsekenis said.
“I think it's a great advert, I'm hoping that it's a great spectacle, and a game that people will be talking about for years to come.”