Heidelberg United

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Heidelberg United

Full name

Heidelberg United
Football Club

Nickname(s)

Alexander, Warriors
Bergers

Founded

1958

Ground

Olympic Village
Heidelberg, Australia

Capacity

10,000 approx

Manager

Doug Hodgson

League

VPL

VPL 2006





Home colours





Away colours

Heidelberg United Football Club is an Australian association football club based in the northern Melbourne suburb of Heidelberg, Victoria. The club is commonly referred to as Alexander, Warriors, or Bergers.

The team currently competes in the Victorian Premier League.

1 History
2 See also
3 Honours
4 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Foundation and pre-NSL era

Originally called Fitzroy United Alexander SC, the club was established in Melbourne in 1958 by Greek Macedonian immigrants from Florina, Greece. The colours chosen - yellow and black - were similar to those of the Greek football club PAS Florina. The more common name for the club, Alexander or Megas Alexandros (Greek: Μέγας Αλέξανδρος), was given in honour of the famous Macedonian king Alexander the Great.

As with many football clubs formed by new arrivals from Europe at the time, the club began as a social gathering, with the players consisting of the sons and relatives of the founders and others, until eventually developing into a professional league team.

They initially struggled for success, variously occupying the bottom rungs of the Victorian State League, or trying to regain promotion, until the mid 1970's. From 1973 onwards, their performances improved significantly, with the pinnacle being capturing the 1975 state league title.

[edit] NSL era 1977-1995

In 1977 under the managament of lawyer Jim Mangopoulos, they became a founding member of the National Soccer League. In 1979 the side became known as Heidelberg United Alexander FC. While the side performed well for most of that competition's first decade, they could never quite capture the title. From 1987 onwards, Heidelberg then struggled, being relegated in 1987 and 1989, and despite holding onto their place in the national league until the end of the 1994/1995 season, they generally fared poorly, with their 1993 Cup win against Parramatta Eagles the sole highlight. Since then they have only returned once to national competition under the name Collingwood Warriors in the joint venture with the AFL Club Collingwood.

[edit] Return to Victorian competition 1996-present

On their return to the Victorian leagues in 1996, Heidelberg had a successful return, eventually losing in the Grand Final against Altona Magic in penalties after scores were locked at 3-3 after extra time. In 1998 they found themselves relegated, but won promotion back at their first attempt, rejoining the VPL in 2000, and winning the title in 2001. Their rollercoaster recent history however saw them relegated the next season, until they found themselves back in the VPL once more in 2005, and finishing runners up to Green Gully. A solid season in 2006 saw them reach the Preliminary Final, where they were knocked out by Altona Magic in extra time.