The Hobart Zebra’s Football ClubThe Tilford Zebras were formed in 1956, they were then known as the Hobart Juventus Soccer Club. The Club was formed by Italian immigrants who had a great passion for football. After a slow start to our history, the Southern and State Premierships started to roll in, not to mention the Statewide Cups & Pre-Season Cups. This has made the Tilford Zebras the most successful Football Club in Tasmania over the last fifty years. |
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For 2012 player fees and our new self registration process go to ‘REGISTER NOW’ (on the right hand side of our homepage). There is the choice to register now and instructions on registration.
Please Note: All Central Region Players need to go through Tilford Zebras and not Tilford Zebras CR. Once in you will find you can select the junior teams from U/9 to U/12′s.
The 2012 Summer Cup kicks off this weekend and our club representative teams the Premier League Men’s, Premier League Reserves Men’s, Premier League Women and Premier League Reserves Women’s teams are ready to take to the park.
Keep an eye on our ‘Upcoming Matches’ (on the right hand side of our home page)advising date, grounds and kick off times for this tournament over the next few weeks.
COME ALONG AND SUPPORT OUR PLAYERS
We went, we trained, and it rained, no game, but lots of experience gained.
What can be said, Brisbane certainly dealt us a heavy dose of rain.
With games pre organised it wasn’t to be due to the ground closures.
The guys did not let any barriers slow them down. They trained in excessive humidity up to 96% most days there.
They had the fortune of seeing Brisbane Roar train for 2 hours and then the players coming and introducing themselves to our team at the end of it. On Saturday night we all attended the game between Brisbane Roar and Newcastle Jets at Suncorp Stadium with the Jets coming out the victors 1-0.
We did have a positive note though; the guys went to Kendron Indoor Stadium and played a round robin against a few other Queensland Football teams. It was a hot, sticky day but our boys performed to their best ability not letting the heat defeat them.
[Premier League Reserves Men's Coach, Nick Harrison and Premier League Men's Coach, Eamonn Kelly are ready for Brisbane]
Raelene Hennicke: On Wednesday, 25 January, you fly out to Brisbane with the Zebras squad of players for a pre-season tournament. How many players are you taking? What number of games will you play?
Eamonn Kelly: Wednesday 25 January we do fly to Brisbane at 6.00am. Thanks DJ! We will be taking a squad of 16 players. We would and could take about 20 as it has been a very difficult decision to pick the final squad. There has been a tremendous battle among the boys for a spot in the squad, but, unfortunately, as always, some people have to wait for the next opportunity, which will be the start of the Summer Cup. We will be playing three games in four days, so it will be a great test to see where we are at with our fitness levels.
The schedule will be: Arrive Wednesday 25at 9.30 am. Transfer to the accommodation and then train at 11.30am and 2.00pm, and then play our first game the same day at 7.00pm.
RH: What teams will you be playing in Brisbane?
E.K : First game, 25 January 2012 at 7.00pm versus Mitchelton F.C., Queensland Premier League 1.
Second game, 26 January 2012 at 7.00pm versus Samford Rangers, Queensland Premier League 1.
Third game, 27 January 2012 at 7.00pm versus Mt Gravatt Hawks S.C., Queensland Premier League 1.
RH: Do you think that playing and training in the heat over the five days will benefit the team for the Summer Cup more so than preparing in our cooler climate?
E.K : I firmly believe that training and playing in their sort of temperatures can only benefit the players for our assault on the 2012 Summer Cup and also be a good stepping stone for the up-coming season. We train and play in our climate every day of the week, so it will be great to, hopefully, see the benefits.
RH: What are your expectations of the tournament?
E.K: The expectations are very high from me and the coaching staff, as the club has invested a lot of money. We are not travelling that far to lose anything.
RH: What are your expectations of the players?
E.K: The expectations of the players is also at a very high level as they have worked their behinds off since November 2011 for this trip and beyond. I can only commend nearly all of the squad as most have been training five nights a week, and also week-ends. I would like to wish every one of them all the very best for the trip and 2012 season, and always remember that nothing in this world comes easily. If you want to be the very best, you have to work very hard, and harder again after that.
Malcolm Minty has taken on the new position as the club’s Premier League Women’s coach after assisting Robert Corradetti last year.
Raelene Hennicke: 2012 brings a new role as Premier League Women’s Coach for you. What are you looking forward to in this new coaching position?
Malcolm Minty: To continue the good work that Robert Corradetti put into the women’s programme over the previous years and bring in fresh ideas along with Bill Rowe as assistant coach.
RH: Do you have any past playing experience yourself?
MM: I started youth soccer at school, progressed to Metro Soccer Club at 12 years old and then was asked to go to Tilford Zebras as it is known today. I played state soccer during this time also until U/16s, then went to the senior programme at Zebras and later went to another club.
RH: Is there anything you will be introducing into the women’s programme this season that is different to previous seasons?
MM: No, not really. You can over analyse how football is played. What we will bring this year is going back to basics, with fitness and ball skills, and also working on movement off the ball.
RH: In 2011 it was reported that there were 29 million female football players around the world playing and enjoying football. Would you like to say anything to new players who are thinking about coming along to train with you?
MM: We feel that any new player that comes to our club would feel welcome as we have three different levels to play through. We work in an overall team environment that everyone can benefit from in terms of improving fitness and skill levels.
[Current women's training photos are featured in the slide show]
