Image: Graeme Furlong
The Whittlesea Ranges have secured the services of striker Nicholas Scerri, who returns to football after a sabbatical in 2016.
The 24-year-old featured for the St Albans Saints in 2015, where he netted 11 goals in 23 league appearances as Joe Kovacevic’s side failed in their pursuit of winning promotion to the top tier.
Scerri’s 11-haul goal saw him tie with veteran and former Sunshine teammate Barry Devlin for the club Golden Boot, including a strike in a 2-2 away draw with the Ranges in Round 24.
The then-teenage striker shot to fame in 2011 when he netted on his senior debut for the Sunshine George Cross by scoring a 70th minute opener in a 2-1 away win against Pascoe Vale.
However, injuries would disrupt his season at Chaplin Reserve under Fabrizio Soncin, with the youngster failing to find the net in his other nine outings for the club.
His fortunes began to change the following year under new manager Tony Ciantar, as he scored four times in 20 league games for the former NSL side in State League One at the time.
A frustrating 2013 saw Scerri fail to find the net in ten league appearances before securing a mid-season switch to near neighbours Western Suburbs.
A goal on his league debut for Lenny Catalano’s men followed as he extended his time at Ralph Reserve into the following year.
The 2015 move to the Saints proved to be his most fruitful as he exceeded his entire league goal tally at Churchill Reserve before deciding to take a year off from the game in 2016.
In that time, Scerri – an avid boxer – made his professional debut in the boxing ring and will resume his round ball career in addition to continuing his aspirations with the gloves.
He becomes the second striker to join Vinko Buljubasic’s men in the space of a week following the capture of 18 year-old forward Matthew Conversano from Pascoe Vale.