Walter Pless on Football

By Walter Pless

All southern Premier League clubs have now appointed coaches for the 2008 season.

The 10-team league will be reduced to eight clubs for 2009, so the battle to avoid the bottom three places will be intense next season.

The bottom two sides will be automatically relegated, while the third-last team will face a promotion/relegation play-off with the Division One champion.

Last year’s champions, Hobart Zebras, have retained Nick Lapolla as coach, the rookie supremo having won the title at his first attempt.

South Hobart, which finished second, has appointed Ken Morton following the retirement of Steve Adkins.

Hobart Olympic has retained Farrell Shaw, while Clarence United will again be coached by Andrew Brown.

Matthew Shaw has relinquished the reins at University and his replacement is New South Welshman, Scott Gallacher, who coached a Glenorchy Knights junior side last season.

Kingborough Lions United has retained the services of Geoff Freeman, while Ian Parker stays in charge at New Town Eagles.

Metro-Claremont has Ahmed Abdaltam as coach in place of Matthew Gasparin, while Taroona has appointed defender Ben Horgan.

Taroona started last season with Matthew Rhodes, who resigned during the year and was replaced by Greg McVeigh.

Glenorchy Knights have made a surprise move in appointing players Janko Begovic and Josh Fielding as joint player-coaches, and George Krambousanos as director of coaching.

How this arrangement will work remains to be seen as Krambousanos has already decided to stand down, apparently seeing difficulties with the arrangement.

Launceston City, of the northern Premier League, has appointed a former star player, Peter Savill, as its coach.

Savill played with Leeds United before coming to Tasmania in the late 1970s as a City import.

George Krambousanos waves goodbye to the Knights