Olympic FC head coach Jim Bellas says missing stars will be no excuse for subpar performance in his team’s Lions FC Silver Boot opener on Wednesday night.

While captain Danny Byrne is yet to return from England and defenders Matt Mundy and Eoghan Murphy will miss through suspension and injury respectively, their absences are softened by the efforts of the squad’s young players in Sunday’s 3-0 friendly win over Wolves FC.

“We were still a bit rusty but there were some positive signs,” Bellas said of the weekend’s match.

“We tried a lot of young kids and the good thing is they did well. It is their time to show us what they have got so we can use them throughout the year.”

Olympic lost to Brisbane Strikers in the Grand Final of the 2013 Silver Boot, an invitational pre-season competition held at Luxury Paints Stadium in Richlands, and Bellas wants his side to use its first match against North Star as a springboard to silverware.

“We want to win every game we play and there is an added incentive of prize money for the players to keep,” he said.

“We have had two or three games now in pre-season and obviously we have been trying new players.”

Joining the youth players in the squad will be a quartet of signings tipped to play big roles in the Club’s NPL Queensland title defence, in goalkeeper Ryan Meskell, defender Darren Gray, midfielder Terry Hughes and attacker Reuben Way.

The Olympic boss is confident the new faces will combine to kick the season off on the right note.

“It does throw us out a little bit when our regular starters aren’t playing as will be a bit the case on Wednesday night, but we have prepared for the game and there are no excuses.

“The team is ready,” Bellas added confidently.

Olympic FC will begin its Lions FC Silver Boot campaign against North Star at Luxury Paints Stadium at 8.30pm, to be followed by further group stage clashes with Eastern Suburbs on 29 January and Western Pride on 5 February.

 

Words: Matt Dorman (Olympic FC)
Image: Olympic FC