The Corner Flag is back with the Team of the Season, rewarding the most consistent performers over the course of the PS4 NPL Victoria campaign. In a new format, we’ll publish an article with two teams: our media select, along with a fan voted XI, where you select your standouts in 2015. Every few days we’ll post the shortlist for a particular position.
Today we present the goalkeepers, the guys relied on to protect the goals from being encroached, who can change the course of a game with a single fingertip. They’re strong, vocal and commanding, but also display cat-like reflexes to pounce at the first sign of danger. They sometimes also think they’d make the best outfielder in the team, but if that were the case, they wouldn’t also be allowed to use their hands!
Pick the goalkeeper that you believe have stood out most this season via the link at the bottom of the page. You can vote once per day and make sure you share this around to ensure your pick makes the cut and let us know your thoughts with the hashtag #PS4NPLVICTOTS!
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In alphabetical order:
Alastair Bray (Bentleigh Greens)
25 appearances, 10 clean sheets
1 TOTW nomination: 25
The former Melbourne Heart youth consolidated his position as one of the best young keepers outside of the A-League, with calls growing ever-louder for a shot at a higher level. Whilst he benefited from having one of the league’s most miserly defences in front of him, he contributed to Bentleigh’s ratio of less than one goal conceded per game with consistent performances between the sticks. He was commanding, confident, strong in the air, quick off his line, and always on hand to make an important save when required. Rewarded with Olyroos selection.
Chris May (Melbourne Knights)
27 appearances, 10 clean sheets
7 TOTW nominations: 10, 11, (12) 14, 20, 21, (23)
A brick wall at times this season, May pulled off a number of clutch saves to single-handedly preserve vital points for the Knights throughout the campaign. His form culminated in two consecutive extra-time penalty saves in less than a week to deny Bentleigh Greens and South Melbourne. It’s not too farfetched to say that without the 29-year-old, a top-four spot would almost certainly have eluded the Knights in 2015.
Chris Oldfield (Hume City)
28 appearances, 11 clean sheets
2 TOTW nominations: (21), 26
The 2014 NPL Goalkeeper of the Year put in another solid year – not missing a single minute – especially towards the latter end of the season as Hume City embarked on a foray into the latter stages of the FFA Cup and the NPL finals. Nobody will forget his four consecutive penalty saves at Somers Street to knock the Knights out of the competition anytime soon. His form earned him a recent trial for A-League side Central Coast Mariners.
Alex Pavlidis (Pascoe Vale)
23 appearances, 7 clean sheets
1 TOTW nomination: (13)
A late bolter, the 2014 NPL 1 Goalkeeper of the Year had to bide his time for playing minutes after being signed by Pascoe Vale in the state’s top division. Eventually grasped his opportunity with both hands, deposing previous first choice Stefaan Sardelic and didn’t look back. Helped Pascoe Vale to a maiden top-six finish in the NPL, where his heroics between the sticks helped knock out Heidelberg United in the finals.
Nikola Roganovic (South Melbourne)
27 appearances, 11 clean sheets
4 TOTW nominations: 1, 6, 17, 23
It’s like the 30-year-old was never out of the game, such was his impact at Lakeside Stadium this season. Despite taking a sabbatical from football for a few years, the twice-capped A-League player returned to show all his class and experience, keeping the points ticking over for South even when the team was going through a mini-slump. Was always excellent when called upon, putting in a number of man of the match performances to help the premiers concede the least amount of goals in the home-and-away season: only 22 goals in 26 games.
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