Full name | Sunshine George Cross Football Club |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Georgies |
Founded | 1947 |
Ground |
Chaplin Reserve, Sunshine, Victoria, Australia |
Capacity | 5,000 |
Chairman | Darren Farrugia |
Manager | Tony Ciantar |
League | NPL2 |
2015 | 8th West 15th Overall |
Website | Club website |
Sunshine George Cross Football Club is an Australian soccer club from Sunshine, a western suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and plays in the National Premier Leagues Victoria 1. Sunshine George Cross play at Chaplin Reserve. The club was founded by Maltese immigrants.
Having been one of eight Victorian clubs to have participated in Australia's National Soccer League, the club's best achievement was reaching the playoffs as finalists in the 1986 season. Winners of the Australian Cup in 1964, Sunshine George Cross were named champions of the 1977 Victorian State League and were also runners up on 9 occasions. Producing 5 Weinstein Medalists and three Bill Fleming Medalists throughout its history. The club was once proudly home to John Markovski, Craig Foster, Kevin Muscat, Emmanuel Muscat and Andrew Nabbout.
Sunshine George Cross wear red and white stripes for their home colours, the colours on the Maltese flag.
Maltese migrants Danny Gatt, Bill Sandham and Angelo Puli instigated the formation of a Maltese backed football team after the Second World War. The club was officially launched on 12 March 1947, and was called George Cross Football Club. The club first entered a team in 1948, when they joined the Third Division. The club's first home ground was Royal Park. They played their first match on Saturday May 8, 1948, beating Woodlands 2–0. They finished the season in second place.
The next year, the young club took out the championship and was promoted to Second Division. In 1954, the club won the Second Division and were promoted to the highest level, the First Division, despite being just seven years young. In 1958, the First Division was named the State League for the first time, with George Cross achieving their goal of surviving in the league. 1959 was a great year for the club, finishing runners up in the league, but taking out the Sun Cup, the State League Cup and the Dockerty Cup. The trophies were celebrated in front of our 1,000 people, with the number of supporters of the club rapidly growing. 1961 saw the club introduce Juniors for the first time. In 1962, the club won its second Dockerty Cup. In 1964, the club won the Australia Cup, beating A.PI.A from N.S.W. 3–2 in front of over 15,000 at Olympic Park. The following year George Cross won the Ampol Cup beating Hakoah 3–0 in front of 10,000 fans in South Melbourne.