Image: Smile for Peter
The Bentleigh Greens have confirmed the signing of former Box Hill United goalkeeper Alex Connell following the departure of Brandon Osipov to Richmond.
The 27-year-old returns to Melbourne having spent the past year playing in the Welsh Premier League for Haverfordwest Country, appearing in a total of four league games over the course of the season.
Originally hailing from Canberra, Connell had previously featured in the NSW Premier League before moving to Victoria in 2013 where he spent some time with the Oakleigh Cannons.
A move to the Port Melbourne Sharks followed in 2014, with the shot-stopper serving as back-up to the experienced Adam Hrehoresin before his mid-season departure.
Connell then swapped JL Murphy Reserve for Wembley Park by agreeing to a switch to Box Hill United, where he was understudy to Alex Pavlidis.
He finally received his chance to be the undisputed number one at Pythagoras the following season, making a total of 25 appearances between the sticks to add to his two from the previous year.
Connell’s move to Kingston Heath Soccer Complex comes days after the Cheltenham-based club parted ways with new signing Osipov, who was expected to serve as Ryan Scott’s back-up.
Te youngster sought first-team opportunities elsewhere with Richmond in search of a replacement for number one Savas Ozdemir, who has suffered a long-term injury.
Connell becomes Bentleigh’s sixth signing of the off-season following the arrivals of Stipo Andrijasevic and Nick Glavan (both Melbourne Knights), Trent Clulow (Brisbane Strikers), Marco Jankovic (Lions FC) and Keanu Moore (Edgeworth Eagles) to the existing playing group.
The Greens suffered defeat on Wednesday night following a 2-1 loss away to Heidelberg but have also in recent weeks recorded comprehensive victories over Box Hill, Oakleigh and Kingston.
Bentleigh open their 2017 campaign with a Community Shield clash against reigning NPL Champions and title-chasing rivals South Melbourne in a re-match of last year’s fixture, which saw John Anastasiadis’ men run out comprehensive 3-0 winners.