On Thursday, October 27 the Victorian Paralympic football team departed for Sydney for the National Paralympic seven-a-side football championships.
A 12-man squad made up of three Victorian Pararoos (Benny Roche, Cosimo Cirillo and Christian Tsangas) also features two debutants in Joshua Beekes (13 years) and Adam Torey-Toth (15 years).
Victoria kicked off its campaign with a tough loss against defending champions New South Wales on Thursday October 27. The team will be playing four matches across three days with finals to follow on Sunday 30 October.
Since joining the competition seven years ago, Victoria’s best finish came in 2015, winning the bronze medal.
"The boys have been working hard in training and taking on board what we are teaching which is great to see," coach & Vicsport member Seb Zancan said.
"We are most excited about the youth that we will be bringing to Sydney this year, with half of our 12 man squad being 16 years or under.
"This coupled with the experience of some of the older players including Victorian captain and Pararoo Ben Roche, will hopefully lead to a successful tournament. The future is bright for Victorian Paralympic football and we can't wait to give the boys an opportunity to show everyone what they are made of, and also to put their hands up for national selection."
SQUAD: Christian Tsangas (gk), Benny Roche (Captain), Josh Barry, Joseph Accetta, Nelson Gray, Brad Fisher, Cosimo Cirillo, Matthew Holland, Oran Jones, Josh Beekes, Adam Torey-Toth, Hayden Bognar.
Follow the Victorian Paralympic Football Program on Facebook to get updates, scores, photos and more.
Credit: Football Federation Victoria
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