Altona Magic has been crowned kings of the FFV men’s state league 1 north-west – 24 hours later than expected.
The wasteful Magic played out a frustrating 1-1 draw with Keilor Park at home on Saturday that was not enough for the engravers to put their name on the trophy.
A helping hand came on Sunday from lowly Cairnlea in the form of a 0-0 draw with second-placed Preston Lions, the only side that could catch the Magic.
Only three points for the Lions would have kept the premiership race alive, with any other result rendering the Magic’s 10-point lead at the top of the ladder unassailable.
Magic coach Vlado Tortevski declared the “good days” had returned to the grand old club after securing the title.
“We did it!” he said with a hint of relief. “We thought Saturday night would be a night of celebration, but we had to wait 24 hours.
“With three games to go, mathematically we are champions, so I congratulate every single person at the club – the players and everyone else who was putting their hard work into the club, especially the president, Igor Georgievski.
“Now we can breathe a little easier and prepare ourselves for the play-off game at the end of the season at Bob Jane Stadium against the winner of the south-east group.”
Altona will not party too hard in the coming weeks.
The Magic has the chance to eclipse the 50-point mark and will be eager to go through the season having lost just one game.
The play-off final against the winner of the south-east conference will determine the overall state league 1 champion.
That game could be played at the pristine Lakeside Stadium as a curtain-raiser to the NPL grand final.
“We’re going to concentrate on that last game now that we’ve achieved what we wanted in the league,” Tortevski said.
“We can try and bring as much points as we can to break a club points record, but more importantly, I just want to win that play-off game.”
Altona will wrap its stars in cotton wool the next three weeks in readiness for the state league 1 final. Until then, the Magic will promote youngsters and rest any first team regular not 100 per cent fit.
“We will be getting a couple of players in who haven’t had much of an opportunity,” Tortevski said.
“We have some injuries, so I have to give the medical staff the opportunity to fix all this in the next couple of weeks.
“Now is an opportunity for some of the young boys … it doesn’t matter who is going to step up, everyone should be capable of doing the same job.
“They practise all the time, they’re pushing and want to play in the highest level, so now they can prove why they’re there in the squad.”
Tortevski said Georgievski took over the Magic in troubled times and was working towards making the club a powerhouse once more.
“He is a true leader to the whole club,” Tortevski said.
“He came into the club at the worst time, when the club was going down. A club like Altona Magic, with this history, to go down to play in the first division really is not something we deserved because we know we can do much better.
“He came in, stepped up and said to the people, ‘From now on, we’re trying to get the club to the previous position’. So far what he’s done has been outstanding.”
