ADF tri-service soccer beats the best of corporate NSW

Volume 11, No. 41, April 20, 2006

Stacks-on: WO2 Eddie Balarezo after kicking the winning goal. Photo by Bill Cunneen.

TRI-SERVICE men’s and women’s teams have proven the ADF’s formidable soccer talent by almost taking a clean-sweep of the NSW Corporate Games.

Of the two women’s teams and three men’s teams fielded in the event, the all-ages men’s team won gold in a nail biting 5-4 penalty shootout, and the women’s teams took gold and bronze after at one stage looking like they’d be competing against each other in the women’s final.

Each team played against teams fielded by Sydney corporations during seven half-hour matches over three days, and in hot conditions, at Sydney’s Marconi Oval.

Men’s all-ages team captain Capt Mark Pierson said the final game against D Plan was a tough and fast contest.

“[We’re] absolutely ecstatic to win the competition. We played hard in what were fantastic matches,” he said.
“It was a long couple of days. It was top quality opposition and our lads came through with the goods – the skill level was absolutely sensational for this tournament.”

The all-ages men’s team players ranged in ages from 19-39, and it fell to the boot of veteran Army player, 39-year-old WO2 Eddie Balarezo, to seal the win as he shot the final winning penalty goal to take the match and the championship.

“As I came up to shoot I was thinking that I had noticed the goal-keeper in the last couple of penalty goals move before the ball was kicked. I then took a long run-up and waited for him to move left or right then I kicked the goal,” he said.

Although he’s played since he was a 7-year-old, WO2 Balarezo said he still felt nervous as he lined up for the shot.

“The tension was horrible, everything depended on the last kick – and it’s the adrenaline that goes through you that takes you through. And once it’s over – there’s the elation.”

Coach of the ADF team, Air Force’s Cpl Garry Baverstock, said one of the things that made the win so much more impressive was that many of the team members hadn’t met before the competition.

“Most of the players on our side didn’t know who the other players were in the squad,” he said.

“Most of the players met for the first time at 7.30am on the first morning, with the exception of a few Army blokes.”

He said he didn’t get much of a chance to plan tactics before the match, which he found very daunting, but he did get a rundown of the players that would be attending, which included five Navy and 10 Army.

“From there I put together the team and, considering many of the players had never played together before, [we did well] not to concede a goal in any of the first three matches. In the first match our goal keeper didn’t touch the ball.”