Musings and other bits and pieces

I would love to see a game between the imports (from overseas and from interstate) playing in this season’s NPL Tasmania and a Tasmanian State selection.

There are enough imports here this year to form a team, but it would have to be arranged in the next few weeks and the organisation at such short notice could present problems.

The Tasmanian team could be a State-of-Origin selection.

It would be ideal if Football Tasmania could organise such a match to bring the curtain down on the 2019 season.

The foreign imports include Olympia’s Jordan Scott, Jack Ryan and Bay Kurtz, Riverside Olympic’s Nil Sanz, Michael Monticchio, Luca Vigilante and Chris Wademan, Launceston City’s Martin Mitreski, Kingborough Lions United’s Kenneth Perkinson and Cameron Steele [Horatio Gutierrez Jr is injured and is returning to the USA for treatment], Glenorchy Knights’ Diego Gutierrez, Devonport City’s Raphael Reynolds, Hobart Zebras’ Ryu Yonezawa, and South Hobart’s Gilly Desouza.

Unfortunately, Zebras’ Jan Charuza and South Hobart’s Iskander Van Doorne have already left.

I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

*****

Glenorchy Knights’ Jade Clay is one hell of a player.

He played the entire 90 minutes on Friday night in the Knights’ Challenge League game against Clarence United and then played for the Knights’ NPL side in the 2-1 win over Hobart Zebras on Saturday.

Not only that, but he scored the opening goal for Knights against Zebras.

Clay is a stalwart for the Knights and he is also a good cricketer.

In years past, he’s been known to play Aussie Rules and senior football (soccer) on the same weekend.

He is an inspiration and a fine role model for all at the club.

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Photo:  Noah Mies (right) and Eddie Bidwell (second from right) at Warrior Park on Saturday evening [PlessPix]

Devonport City’s star winger, Eddie Bidwell, and Launceston City’s ace marksman Noah Mies were at Saturday evening’s NPL game at Warrior Park between Olympia Warriors and Kingborough Lions United.

Bidwell, 19, had the weekend off as Devonport City had the bye, while Mies, 21, had just scored a hat-trick for Launceston City against Clarence United just over the road at Wentworth Park.

Incidentally, Olympia’s star midfielder Jordan Scott received his ninth yellow card in the game.

Darby Randall was in goal for Olympia in place of Kyle McDonald.

McDonald has an ankle injury and may not see action again this season.

And, Olympia’s Austin Yost is recovering after being injured and then taken to hospital by ambulance the previous week in the Challenge League game against South Hobart.

Yost was concussed and suffered bruised ribs in a heavy collision with an opponent 10 minutes from the end.

The game was abandoned by the referee after a half-hour delay due to Yost being treated on the pitch by trainers and ambulance paramedics.

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 I got to see two brilliant football movies at The State Cinema recently.

“Diego Maradona” was a two-hour masterpiece, including previously unseen footage of the Argentine genius.

Much of the film concentrated on Maradona’s time with Napoli in Serie A.

His time with the Argentina national team is also covered.

Many world stars enhance their reputations by joining big-name clubs, but not Maradona.

He showed his genius as a footballer by winning two league titles and a UEFA CUP with the unfashionable Napoli, who had never won a league title before his arrival, and then virtually winning the 1986 World Cup for Argentina single handedly [forgive the pun].

The other movie was “The Keeper”, which is the story of Manchester City goalkeeper Bert Trautmann, who played in an FA Cup Final with a broken neck.

Trautmann was a German POW who stayed in England after World War II and became one of the country’s most famous footballers.

Trautmann died in 2013 aged 90.

The story is beautifully filmed and the re-creation of English life and lower-league football in the 1950s is wonderful.

“Diego Maradona’ has finished at The State, but “The Keeper” is still showing.