St Albans Saints have finalised preparations for the upcoming NPL2 season with the signings of Ivan Skorich and Alex Baird, along with the re-signings of Tedros Yabio and Dilen Ibrahim.
The 21-year-old Baird is expected to be the club’s first-choice goalkeeper after the departure of seasoned veteran Stuart Webster to Geelong SC.
An Under-20 youth international, he was on the books of both Derby County and Newcastle United before being loaned out to SPL side Dundee in addition to a stint at fellow Tyne-Wear side Gateshead.
At both clubs he was deployed as second choice, and was part of the latter’s play-offs for promotion from the Conference into League Two in 2014-15.
He returned home to Wollongong mid-last year after five years in the United Kingdom and has impressed in pre-season for the Saints lately.
Skorich meanwhile arrives at Churchill Reserve from Nunawading City, where he was the captain last season as one of the more experienced heads at the age 21.
Originally from Perth, the midfielder made his debut for the Perth Glory Youth Team in 2010 while also making his senior debut with the Western Knights.
He moved to Victoria in 2013 where he first featured for State League 2 outfit Brunswick Zebras, before spending 2014 with the Dandenong Thunder where he made a solitary league appearance.
The central midfielder is the younger brother of former Perth Glory striker Anthony Skorich, who also played for the Bentleigh Greens and Moreland Zebras in 2012.
The duo are the club’s 10th and 11th signings respectively following on from the acquisitions of Josh Knight and George Tsiakalakis (both Richmond), Andrew Milicevic and Josip Hercog (both Port Melbourne), Michael Grgic (North Geelong Warriors), Adrian Barresi and Reuben Quinn-Walters (both Melbourne Knights), Joseph Monek (Melbourne City Youth) and Daniel Slovacek (Avondale).
In further news for Zeljko Kuzman’s men, winger Tedros Yabio and youngster Dilen Ibrahim were confirmed as re-signings for the 2016 NPL season.
A former Australian Under 17s international, the 23-year-old is a VIS Graduate and was a part of the Melbourne Victory Youth Team in addition to spells with State League One sides Western Suburbs and Altona Magic.
Of Ethiopian descent, Yabio has been at Dinamo since the 2014 NPL season and has accumulated 41 appearances for the Saints, scoring 10 goals with four of them coming in the club’s 7-3 defeat of Nunawading City late last campaign.
Meanwhile, 19-year-old Ibrahim will provide back-up for Baird as the club’s second choice goalkeeper after impressing in the Under 20s last season before featuring on the senior bench towards the end of the season.
They join Captain Ryan McGuffie, veteran Barry Devlin as well as Konrad Dobraszkiewicz, Nicholas Sarbin, Nana Yaw Otuo-Acheampong, Ben Sharper, Anthony Boras, Ante Kozul and Trent Waterson as re-signings while Daniel Duzel has been promoted into the seniors from the 20s.
The Saints begin their new era under Kuzman with a home game against sister club North Geelong Warriors on Sunday February 21 at Churchill Reserve.