1988 Wollongong City FC season

Wollongong City 1988 football season

Wollongong City1988 season

Manager| John Fleming
Stadium| Brandon Park
National Soccer League| 1st
NSL Finals| Preliminary Final
NSL Cup| First round
Top goalscorer| League: Marshall Soper (6)
All: Marshall Soper (6)
Highest home attendance| 7,106 vs. Sydney Croatia
(21 August 1988)
National Soccer League
Lowest home attendance| 1,284 vs. Brisbane Lions
(10 April 1988)
Average home league attendance| 2,753
Biggest win| 6–1
vs. Brisbane Lions (H)
(10 April 1988)
National Soccer League
Biggest defeat| 0–4
vs. Marconi Fairfield (H)
(5 March 1988)
National Soccer League

<- 1986

1989 ->

The 1988 season was the eighth in the history of Wollongong City (now Wollongong Wolves). It was the seventh season in the National Soccer League. In addition to the domestic league, they also participated in the NSL Cup. Wollongong City finished 1st in their National Soccer League season, and were eliminated in the NSL Cup first round by Brisbane Lions.

## Players

[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

| No. | Pos. | Nation  | Player

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-- | DF |  ENG | Jeff Ainsworth
-- |  |  AUS | Jeff Allport
-- | MF |  AUS | Mineo Bonetig
-- | FW |  SCO | Alan Brazil
-- | FW |  AUS | Pat Brodnik
-- |  |  AUS | John Brown
-- | MF |  AUS | Brian Cokely
-- | MF |  AUS | Roy Cotton
-- | MF |  SCO | Danny Crainie
-- | MF |  AUS | Randall Easthorpe
-- | FW |  ENG | Trevor Francis
-- | MF |  AUS | Robert Giraldi
| No. | Pos. | Nation  | Player

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-- |  |  AUS | Paul Keyes
-- | DF |  AUS | Jason Higgs
-- | DF |  ENG | Mike Hollifield
-- | MF |  AUS | Peter Kotamanidis
-- | FW |  ENG | Paul Mariner
-- | FW |  AUS | Jock Morlando
-- | DF |  AUS | David Ratcliffe
-- | DF |  AUS | David Skeen
-- | FW |  AUS | Marshall Soper
-- | MF |  AUS | Rade Stefanovski
-- | DF |  AUS | Ray Vliestra
-- | GK |  AUS | Warwick Young

## Competitions

[edit]

### Overview

[edit]

Competition  | First match  | Last match  | Starting round  | Final position  | Record

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Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win %
National Soccer League | 31 January 1988  | 7 August 1988  | Matchday 1  | 1st  | 26 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 44 | 32 | +12  | 050.00
NSL Cup | 23 January 1988  | First round  | First round  | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | −2  | 000.00
Total  | 27 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 47 | 37 | +10  | 048.15

Last updated: complete
Source: Competitions

### National Soccer League

[edit]

#### League table

[edit]

Pos | Team

* v
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* e

| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation

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1  | Wollongong City | 26  | 13  | 8  | 5  | 44  | 32  | +12  | 34  | Qualification for the Finals series
2  | Sydney Croatia | 26  | 15  | 4  | 7  | 38  | 30  | +8  | 34
3  | South Melbourne | 26  | 13  | 8  | 5  | 36  | 29  | +7  | 34
4  | Marconi Fairfield (C) | 26  | 12  | 8  | 6  | 46  | 26  | +20  | 32
5  | Sydney Olympic | 26  | 9  | 9  | 8  | 28  | 22  | +6  | 27
6  | Adelaide City | 26  | 10  | 7  | 9  | 36  | 35  | +1  | 27  |
7  | Sunshine George Cross | 26  | 11  | 5  | 10  | 38  | 39  | −1  | 27
8  | St George-Budapest | 26  | 10  | 6  | 10  | 41  | 35  | +6  | 26
9  | Melbourne Croatia | 26  | 9  | 6  | 11  | 28  | 33  | −5  | 24
10  | Footscray JUST | 26  | 7  | 9  | 10  | 34  | 32  | +2  | 23
11  | APIA Leichhardt | 26  | 8  | 7  | 11  | 28  | 35  | −7  | 23
12  | Preston Makedonia | 26  | 5  | 12  | 9  | 29  | 35  | −6  | 22
13  | Brunswick Juventus (R) | 26  | 7  | 5  | 14  | 31  | 43  | −12  | 19  | Relegation to the Victorian State League
14  | Brisbane Lions (R) | 26  | 4  | 4  | 18  | 28  | 59  | −31  | 12  | Relegation to the Brisbane Premier League

Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

#### Results by round

[edit]

Round| 1| 2| 3| 4| 5| 6| 7| 8| 9| 10| 11| 12| 13| 14| 15| 16| 17| 18| 19| 20| 21| 22| 23| 24| 25| 26

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Ground| H| H| A| H| A| H| A| A| A| H| A| H| A| H| A| H| A| H| A| H| H| H| A| H| A| A
Result| W| D| W| W| D| L| W| W| D| W| W| W| L| L| D| W| W| L| D| D| W| D| W| W| L| D
Position| 4| 2| 1| 1| 1| 3| 2| 1| 1| 1| 1| 1| 1| 2| 2| 2| 1| 1| 2| 2| 1| 3| 1| 1| 2| 1

Source: worldfootball.net
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

#### Matches

[edit]

Wollongong City v St George-Budapest 31 January 1988 1|  Wollongong City | 3–1|  St George-Budapest | Wollongong

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* Brazil 28'
* Easthorpe 58'
* Stefanovski 84'

| Report |

* Fletcher 90'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 1,969[1]
Referee: John McConnell

Wollongong City v Preston Makedonia 7 February 1988 2|  Wollongong City | 0–0|  Preston Makedonia | Wollongong

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|  | Report |  | Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,140
Referee: Bob Marshall

Adelaide City v Wollongong City 15 February 1988 3|  Adelaide City | 2–3|  Wollongong City | Adelaide

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* Mullen 39'
* Vidmar 51'

| Report |

* Skeen 2'
* Ainsworth 26'
* Easthorpe 80'

| Stadium: Olympic Sports Field
Attendance: 3,120
Referee: Mike Browning

Wollongong City v Melbourne Croatia 21 February 1988 4|  Wollongong City | 4–1|  Melbourne Croatia | Wollongong

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* Giraldi 10'
* Ainsworth ?' (pen.)
* Crainie ?'
* Easthorpe 78'

| Report |

* Biskic 57'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,836
Referee: Arthur Owens

Footscray JUST v Wollongong City 28 February 1988 5|  Footscray JUST | 0–0|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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|  | Report |  | Stadium: Schintler Reserve
Attendance: 2,861
Referee: Jim Rossis

Wollongong City v Marconi Fairfield 5 March 1988 6|  Wollongong City | 0–4|  Marconi Fairfield | Wollongong

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* Lowe 39'
* Gomez 75'
* Nastevski 76'
* Gray 79'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,176
Referee: Rob Davies

Sydney Olympic v Wollongong City 20 March 1988 7|  Sydney Olympic | 0–1|  Wollongong City | Sydney

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* Brazil 58'

| Stadium: Sydney Football Stadium
Attendance: 4,616
Referee: Gary Power

Sunshine George Cross v Wollongong City 27 March 1988 8|  Sunshine George Cross | 0–1|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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* Brodnik 72'

| Stadium: Chaplin Reserve
Attendance: 2,200
Referee: Chris Bambridge

APIA Leichhardt v Wollongong City 3 April 1988 9|  APIA Leichhardt | 1–1|  Wollongong City | Sydney

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* Bundalo 74'

| Report |

* Brodnik 79'

| Stadium: Wentworth Park
Attendance: 1,050
Referee: Richard Lorenc

Wollongong City v Brisbane Lions 10 April 1988 10|  Wollongong City | 6–1|  Brisbane Lions | Wollongong

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* Ratcliffe 6'
* Soper 13', 58', 65', 76'
* Crainie 88'

| Report |

* Wheeler 85'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 1,284
Referee: Terry Seacy

Brunswick Juventus v Wollongong City 17 April 1988 11|  Brunswick Juventus | 1–2|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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* Egan 31'

| Report |

* Brazil 15'
* Morlando 50'

| Stadium: Olympic Park
Attendance: 850
Referee: John Fraser

Wollongong City v South Melbourne 24 April 1988 12|  Wollongong City | 4–0|  South Melbourne | Wollongong

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* Easthorpe 21', 51', 55'
* Crainie 72'

| Report |  | Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,995
Referee: Gary Power

St George-Budapest v Wollongong City 1 May 1988 13|  St George-Budapest | 2–1|  Wollongong City | Sydney

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* Moffitt 46'
* Koczka 63'

| Report |

* Hollifield 83'

| Stadium: St George Stadium
Attendance: 1,548
Referee: John McConnell

Wollongong City v Sydney Croatia 8 May 1988 14|  Wollongong City | 0–3|  Sydney Croatia | Melbourne

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* Lamond 6'
* Arnold 14'
* Slater 48'

| Stadium: Olympic Park
Attendance: 4,755
Referee: Bob Marshall

Preston Makedonia v Wollongong City 15 May 1988 15|  Preston Makedonia | 1–1|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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* Stewart 61'

| Report |

* Brodnik 68'

| Stadium: B.T. Connor Reserve
Attendance: 2,353
Referee: Bernie Upjohn

Wollongong City v Adelaide City 22 May 1988 16|  Wollongong City | 2–1|  Adelaide City | Wollongong

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* Francis 6'
* Brazil 62'

| Report |

* Melta 26' (pen.)

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,539
Referee: Richard Lorenc

Melbourne Croatia v Wollongong City 29 May 1988 17|  Melbourne Croatia | 0–1|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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* Francis 89'

| Stadium: Olympic Park
Attendance: 1,851
Referee: Chris Bambridge

Wollongong City v Footscray JUST 5 June 1988 18|  Wollongong City | 1–4|  Footscray JUST | Wollongong

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* Brodnik 75'

| Report |

* Bozinovski 4', 45'
* Dimoski 9'
* Spink 58'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,795
Referee: Bill Monteverde

Marconi Fairfield v Wollongong City 13 June 1988 19|  Marconi Fairfield | 1–1|  Wollongong City | Sydney

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* Farina 18'

| Report |

* Morlando 55'

| Stadium: Marconi Stadium
Attendance: 2,949
Referee: Roger Doneau

Wollongong City v Sydney Olympic 19 June 1988 20|  Wollongong City | 1–1|  Sydney Olympic | Wollongong

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* Brodnik 37'

| Report |

* Polak 71'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 2,230
Referee: Jim Reeves

Wollongong City v Sunshine George Cross 26 June 1988 21|  Wollongong City | 3–1|  Sunshine George Cross | Wollongong

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* Easthorpe 21'
* Cokely 67'
* Crainie 80'

| Report |

* Markovac 40'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 1,432
Referee: Rob Davies

Wollongong City v APIA Leichhardt 3 July 1988 22|  Wollongong City | 0–0|  APIA Leichhardt | Wollongong

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|  | Report |  | Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 1,731
Referee: Don Campbell

Brisbane Lions v Wollongong City 16 July 1988 23|  Brisbane Lions | 2–3|  Wollongong City | Brisbane

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* Cole 34'
* Lowey 81'

| Report |

* Soper 44'
* Ainsworth 61'
* Easthorpe 87'

| Stadium: Richlands Stadium
Attendance: 320
Referee: Arthur Owens

Wollongong City v Brunswick Juventus 24 July 1988 24|  Wollongong City | 3–2|  Brunswick Juventus | Wollongong

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* Soper 6'
* Kotamanidis 54'
* Easthorpe 77'

| Report |

* Egan 51'
* Palatsides 82'

| Stadium: Brandon Park
Attendance: 1,716
Referee: Richard Lorenc

South Melbourne v Wollongong City 31 July 1988 25|  South Melbourne | 2–1|  Wollongong City | Melbourne

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* Tasios 67'
* Wade 70'

| Report |

* Ainsworth 45'

| Stadium: Middle Park
Attendance: 4,830
Referee: Don Campbell

Sydney Croatia v Wollongong City 7 August 1988 26|  Sydney Croatia | 1–1|  Wollongong City | Sydney

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* Jones 90+2'

| Report |

* Ratcliffe 79'

| Stadium: Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 6,702
Referee: Richard Lorenc

#### Finals series

[edit]

Wollongong City v Sydney Croatia 21 August 1988 Major semi-final|  Wollongong City | 0–0
(3–4 p)|  Sydney Croatia | Sydney

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|  | Report |  | Stadium: Marconi Stadium
Attendance: 7,106
Referee: Rob Davies

Wollongong City v Marconi Fairfield 28 August 1988 Preliminary Final|  Wollongong City | 0–2|  Marconi Fairfield | Sydney

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|  | Report |

* Lowe 55'
* Farina 57'

| Stadium: Croatian Sports Centre
Attendance: 3,592
Referee: Gary Power

### NSL Cup

[edit]

Brisbane Lions v Wollongong City 23 January 1988 First round|  Brisbane Lions | 5–3|  Wollongong City | Brisbane

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* Lightbrown 17', 90+3'
* Cummings 22'
* Stewart ?'
* Druery ?'

| Report |  | Stadium: Richlands Stadium
Attendance: 2,855
Referee: Alan Kibbler

## Statistics

[edit]

### Appearances and goals

[edit]

Players with no appearances not included in the list.[2][3]

No.  | Pos.  | Nat.  | Name  | National Soccer League | NSL Cup | Total

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Apps  | Goals  | Apps  | Goals  | Apps  | Goals
| DF  |  | Jeff Ainsworth | 22(1) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 4
|  |  | Jeff Allport | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0
| MF  |  | Mineo Bonetig | 1(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0
| FW  |  | Alan Brazil | 12 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 5
| FW  |  | Pat Brodnik | 22(2) | 5 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 5
| FW  |  | John Brown | 0 | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 1 | 0
| MF  |  | Brian Cokely | 15(4) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 2
| MF  |  | Roy Cotton | 1(2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0
| FW  |  | Danny Crainie | 28 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 5
| MF  |  | Randall Easthorpe | 21(3) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 0
| FW  |  | Trevor Francis | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2
| MF  |  | Robert Giraldi | 3(1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1
|  |  | Paul Keyes | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0
| DF  |  | Jason Higgs | 0(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0
| DF  |  | Mike Hollifield | 21(1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1
| MF  |  | Peter Kotamanidis | 12(8) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 1
| FW  |  | Paul Mariner | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0
| FW  |  | Jock Morlando | 21 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 2
| DF  |  | David Ratcliffe | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 2
| DF  |  | David Skeen | 26 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 27 | 1
| FW  |  | Marshall Soper | 6(3) | 6 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 6
|  |  | Rade Stefanovski | 8(4) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 1
| DF  |  | Ray Vliestra | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 0
| GK  |  | Warwick Young | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 0

### Clean sheets

[edit]

Rank | No. | Pos | Nat | Name  | National Soccer League | NSL Cup | Total

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1 | —  | GK |  | Warwick Young | 8  | 0  | 8
Total | 8  | 0  | 8

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "1988 National Soccer League Results". ozfootball.net. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
2. ^ "Australia's Premier Football Player Archive". ozfootball.net. Aussie Footballers. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
3. ^ "1988 National Soccer League Cup Results". ozfootball.net. Retrieved 17 December 2022.

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*[No.]: Number
*[Pos.]: Position
*[DF]: Defender
*[MF]: Midfielder
*[FW]: Forward
*[GK]: Goalkeeper
*[Pld]: Played
*[W]: Won
*[D]: Drawn
*[L]: Lost
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[GD]: Goal difference
*[Win %]: Winning percentage
*[Pos]: Position
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Pts]: Points