Rinor
It does’t come as much of a surprise that Fadil played a major part in Rinor’s involvement in football at an early age.
“He had a huge influence on me getting involved in the game and going forward as a player,” Rinor recalls.
“My earliest memories were going to watch him play wherever he went, and it grew on me, as the passion for the game has not left since.”
Whilst idolising his father growing up, Rinor also admired Newcastle striker Alan Shearer and sought to replicate him on the pitch as a junior. His football upbringing in Europe saw him hone his skills on the streets of Pristina, whilst also representing the Kosovo under-15 side at a youth tournament in Denmark.
“Going back to Kosovo did help my game in terms of the helping me develop a more aggressive side to it,” he says.
“It was tough, definitely tough, but not the best football organisation as we played a lot of games in paddocks.”
Upon his return to Australia, Rinor made his senior debut for the Melbourne Knights at the back end of the 2008 Victorian Premier League season, as Chris Taylor’s star-studded side fell agonisingly short of winning the Grand Final after a dramatic extra-time defeat to Altona Magic.
With four senior appearances under his felt, he decided to transfer to the newly-promoted Dandenong Thunder, his father’s former club. Fadil describes the move as a “mistake of mine”, as he took him out of Knights to move to Thunder where he struggled for game time – playing only five further games – under Stuart Munro, whose squad lost on penalties in the Grand Final, also to Altona Magic. One highlight for the youngster was his dramatic stoppage-time winner away to Heidelberg United.
Rinor dropped down two divisions to Dandenong City the following season, where he father was the head coach. Featuring alongside the likes of former Socceroos striker Ante Milicic, emerging star Stipo Andrijasevic and seasoned campaigner Dario Matkovic, Rinor’s full potential failed to materialise at City. After half a season at Heidelberg United struggling with injuries, Rinor decided to join Altona Magic, the side who had denied him in two Grand Final victories. A year-and-a-half at Paisley Park saw him rediscover his form, notching 16 goals in 32 appearances, winning the club’s best and fairest in 2012, and claiming the State League 1 Golden Boot.
NPL Victoria
A move to Box Hill United in 2013 saw Muriqi form an effective strike partnership with current Heidelberg United striker Athiu, combining to score 48 goals between them in two seasons as United narrowly missed out on promotion to the NPL in 2014.
“They were two good years I had at Box Hill, as I won the Best and Fairest at the club, and also finished second top goalscorer in the league in that time,” he says.
Despite a magnificent 2014, failure to earn promotion for Box Hill saw the club lose the majority of its starting eleven from last season.
“It’s a tragedy that everyone has left Box Hill, we did have a really good team and not a lot of players have stayed at the club, but you cannot blame them for going up into the top flight. Michael Gerace is doing really well at Dandenong Thunder, as is Alex Pavlidis at Pascoe Vale. Kenny has gone to Heidelberg and George Howard is doing well at Victory.”
The lure of top flight Victorian football was too strong for Rinor, who decided to try his luck in the top league once more. So far he has made a good start to his Green Gully career, scoring two goals in six appearances as his side sits in the top six early on. Coach Bob Stojcevski has heaped his own praise on the attacker, saying “every player has added a bit of a different feature, he’s come in to give us some set-play ability and a bit more composure on the ball”.
National team selection
While success in the NPL this season is Rinor’s priority, another accomplishment exists on his wish-list. With Gully teammate Rani Dowisha earning a call up to the Iraqi National Team, and ex-Box Hill teammate Josh Valadon currently representing Maurititus, Rinor hopes his good form with Gully will translate to a call-up to the Kosovo representative side.
“It’s definitely something I’d like to explore in the future,” he says.
“Representing my country would be a dream come true for me and I hope that playing well here will see interest from the national side in me.”
For now, Rinor can only let his football do the talking and hope that such honours come with quality performances. Whatever the case, football in this country has benefited from the presence of Fadil Muriqi, both in his playing days and now through his son Rinor, who tries to replicate his father’s success in the round ball game.