Green Gully will break new ground when it hosts Bulleen Lions in the seventh round of the FFA Cup at Green Gully Reserve on Wednesday night (June 8).
The Cavaliers are multiple winners of the old Dockerty Cup but have never had such a deep run in the two years so far of the expanded cup competition.
They can move through to the national round of 32 with a win over Bulleen, with a victory having the potential of creating big-drawing clashes with A-League sides.
Cavaliers general manager Raymond Mamo told Star Weekly the importance of beating Bulleen and creating a bit of internal history has been lost on no one at the club.
“We haven’t progressed to this stage in the FFA Cup before,” Mamo said.
“We’ve won the Dockerty Cup, I can’t even remember how many times, but this is a little bit different.
“The recognition that clubs in the NPL and the lower levels get through the FFA Cup is really good. In the next round, you could end up getting an A-League club.”
While Green Gully is thrilled to be one of the last eight remaining Victorian clubs in the FFA Cup this season, the club is concerned about the physical toll the schedule will take on players.
The Cavaliers will play tomorrow night at 8pm and then have to back up against Avondale on Saturday at 3pm.
That will be a mere 65 hours after walking off Green Gully Reserve for the mid-week cup fixture, less if the game goes to extra time and penalties.
The Cavs are seething their request to the FFV to avoid the short turnaround has fallen on deaf ears.
“We tried to speak to the FFV to have it on a later date but they weren’t accommodating,” Mamo said.
“Maybe it’s something the FFV can look at with these FFA Cup games, that they’re not all mid-week games because it doesn’t give players enough time to recover from knocks.”
Green Gully heads into the Bulleen clash full of confidence after a 3-2 win over Pascoe Vale in the NPL at CB Smith Reserve on Friday night.
New recruits Jay Davies (from Cairnlea) and Aaron Ward (Northcote City) made a strong first impression with the Cavaliers.
Davies capped his debut with the decisive goal in the match, while Evan Christodoulou fired in a double for the Cavs. The focus quickly turned to the FFA Cup for the fifth-placed Cavs.
Meanwhile, Melbourne Knights came up short in a 1-0 home loss to Heidelberg United at Knights Stadium on Sunday.
Sean Ellis scored from the penalty spot in the first half to give the Bergers the goal they needed to secure all three points.
The Knights will experience their own FFA Cup adventure on June 15 when they host Port Melbourne Sharks at Knights Stadium for the right to move into the national round of 32.
In National Premier League 2 west, Sunshine George Cross claimed its second win of the season when it eclipsed Eastern Lions 2-1 at Chaplin Reserve, while St Albans Saints were beaten 4-2 by Dandenong City at Churchill Reserve.
