Nino Lazzaro is the VAFA’s Round 9 Rising Star nominee for his five goals against Old Scotch last week, hot on the heels of his selection in the Big V Under 19 squad.
18-year-old Nino burst onto the Premier B senior scene for Fitzroy in Round 2, debuting with five goals in victory over Peninsula Old Boys. He’s played every game since.
Nino gained a lot of friends that day at Brunswick Street Oval and a few more in the Round 8 win over Old Carey when he kicked a great grubber goal from the boundary line in the final quarter to help seal another Fitzroy win.
It was a different story for the team on the weekend, as they were thoroughly beaten by Old Scotch, but Nino was again prominent with another bag of five, kicking half of Fitzroy’s goals for the day.
The coaches rated him in the best players and his chase down tackle resulting in a goal during the final quarter demonstrated his effort and commitment even after the game was done.
Now settling nicely in the Fitzroy forward line, Nino is the team’s leading goal kicker at the half way mark of the season.
As a mid-sized forward he’s got a great grab and strong ground-level skills too, with a nice burst of pace, keeping pressure on the defenders even when he doesn’t have the ball. Fitzroy Senior Coach Nick Mitchell says he is a unique talent.
Nick says Nino is very quiet but also quietly determined and a joy to coach. “He trains the way he plays. He is an elite middle-distance runner and possesses a great turn of foot and a very deceptive leap with great hands.
“Nino has played very little football until this season as a forward and will continue to improve his forward craft which will make him even more formidable, but he also possesses the ability to play higher, including on a wing.”
Nino, who is still attending Princes Hill Secondary College, came up to Fitzroy seniors from the Colts at the Fitzroy Junior Football Club having played 138 junior games, starting in the Under 10s. He is a product of one of the fastest growing junior clubs on the north side of Melbourne, which just continues to nurture underage footballers into ready-made senior footballers. The Fitzroy juniors have produced 12 Fitzroy senior debutants in the last two seasons alone.
Congratulations Nino.
Welcome to the Jungle – Reds Ball tickets on sale now
Tickets have gone on sale for Fitzroy's event of the season...the Reds Ball 2017: Welcome to the Jungle.
The ball, which has a long tradition with the Fitzroy Reds, will this year be held at one of Melbourne's premier events venues, the Melbourne Zoo, on Saturday 15 July starting at 7.30pm.
Players, members, volunteers, family and friends are all invited to make this night something to remember.
The theme is open to your interpretation - if you think leopard skin shoes just give a hint of the jungle, then that's just fine. If you want to don some feathers, a suit of snake skin (all fake of course!) or a pith helmet, then you can do that too.
Make it colourful and make it fun (just don't hurt any animals in the process)…and remember there will be a prize for the best-dressed.
Purchase your ticket soon so you don't miss out - they are on sale only until Wednesday 5 July.
Your tickets include a four hour finger food and drinks package along with a DJ for the night.
You can find it on YouTube (on about Tuesday) and we’ll share it on Facebook too.
Go Gemma!
Fiona Patten to speak at Fitzroy Rotary Annual Football Lunch
Leader of the Australian Sex Party, Fiona Patten MLC, will be the the guest speaker at Fitzroy Rotary’s Annual Football Lunch on Saturday 1 July.
Come and hear guest speaker Fiona Patten talk about her key community commitments and challenges; hear about the impact Fitzroy Rotary is making around the community and hear about the contributions of 4 key people associated with the footy club as the Victorian Amateur Football Association celebrates 125 years.
Fiona Patten is a Gold Lion member and a regular visitor to Brunswick Street Oval to watch Fitzroy play. She is the founder and leader of the Australian Sex Party and a Member of the Victorian Legislative Council for the Northern Metropolitan region.
Fiona was part of a political panel at a Reds Foundation lunch last year, but this time she'll have the floor.
To coincide with the VAFA celebrating 125 years in 2017, Saturday 1 July has been designated 125 Year Club Round and competing clubs Fitzroy and Old Brighton naming the people in their clubs who have made the most significant contribution to the ongoing success of the clubs between 1892-2017.
Please book your tickets online by Wednesday 28 June.
If you have any other questions, please email Peter Hille or call him on 0407 177 457.
1 July will also feature a triple header at Brunswick Street Oval with our newest team, the Under 19 (2) side, kicking off proceedings at 9.20am. So come on down early, see if you can spot some new, young talent and make a day of it. Their game against De La Salle will be followed by Fitzroy taking on Old Brighton in the Reserves and Senior grades at the usual times.
Premier impresses!
Premier Daniel Andrews held court at the Reds Foundation lunch last Saturday and was led masterfully through a wide range of topics linking footy and politics, by the ABC’s newest recruit, Richard Willingham.
A full house enjoyed the lunch and the banter, with the Premier indicating his passion for football far outweighed his ability as a player. However, he had an early and lasting understanding of the value of a football club to community cohesion, as his father was the President of the Wangaratta Magpies when he was a kid. He said in a world where everything is changing, footy can provide some certainty for people.
A big thank you to Reds Foundation President, Peter Hille, Richard and the Premier and his team for a very entertaining afternoon.
But if you really want to know what happened at BSO last weekend, there is no one better to ask than our very own King George III (aka Steve Fenton), who whipped up a masterpiece for the Footy Almanac.
Fitzroy Under 19 (1) is the only Roy team at home this weekend, with everyone else hitting the road. They take on Old Carey Grammarians at Ramsden Street at 2pm and will be aiming for their second win of the season.
Welcome to former Essendon and current Footscray VFL player, Lauchlan Dalgleish, who takes on the Senior Women’s coaching role for the coming month, while Mick Symons travels overseas; a handy stand in!
The Fitzroy-ACU Women 1 team is absolutely flying, still in equal first on the Premier Women’s ladder, second only on percentage. Last Saturday they were 85 point winners over Old Xavs. Nevertheless, the team faces a stiff competition this week against Old Caufield Grammarians, who are just a game behind, and plays on the tricky Glen Huntly Oval in Saturday’s early game at 9.20am.
Also setting the early alarms on Saturday will be the Thirds – our only other winners from last weekend – who are playing second placed Old Scotch. After a very good win over third placed De La Salle, Fitzroy will be shaping up to cement fourth spot with an upset this Saturday.
A good road trip might be just the thing needed to get the Seniors and Reserves back on the winners’ list.
Both teams will look to bounce back from significant defeats at the hands of Old Scotch at Brunswick Street Oval last Saturday.
Unfortunately, Fitzroy featured in the VAFA’s social media this week for all the wrong reasons; on the receiving end of a record quarter of brilliance by Old Scotch, which kicked 15 goals in a quarter to put paid to any thoughts of an upset.
Fitzroy had gone into half time with scores all tied up and plenty of momentum on top of a strong second quarter… but enough of that.
A bus trip to the Peninsula might be just the thing to revive the form and the spirits. Peninsula Old Boys are sitting in last spot on both the Premier B and B Reserve ladders, but they cannot be taken lightly, especially at home.
Fitzroy-ACU Women 2 will be playing SKOB Saints 2 at 2pm at Basil Reserve, Malvern East, while Under 19 (2) has forfeited to Oakleigh due to a lack of numbers.
Indi inspires her team mates
While the big results might not yet be coming for Fitzroy-ACU Women 2, there are little wins every week.
One of the inaugural Roy Girls, Indi Benjamin, who plays up forward, recently nailed her first six pointer for Fitzroy against Swinburne and the celebrations from her team mates and coach were just one sign of how well this team is sticking together.
Indi is one of Fitzroy’s inaugural female players and it is the team and the fun that keeps her coming back.
Indi says the most important thing for her is that the team goes out each week to have fun and try their hardest. “We just play normal footy and we have a good coach. Jo has a fun, unique style; she’s approachable and easy to talk to and she helps us learn.”
Of her recent goal, Indi said “It felt alright… but that’s my job! Everyone else seemed more happy for me, which was nice and gives me confidence.”
Indi, who has kicked goals for other clubs, played her junior footy with North Brunswick from Under 10s to Under 12s and then came back to footy again with Melbourne University.
She was looking for a club closer to home when one of her workmates, who plays for the Thirds, suggested Fitzroy. “He just said to me it was a good club and a really nice crew.”
The crew is bound to be cheering again when Indi lines up for Fitzroy goal number two.
Pictured is the 2015 Inaugural Fitzroy Women’s team,
with Indi standing in the back next to Claudia Bell (right),
who has been selected in the VAFA Big V squad.
This week's games
Old Scotch vs Fitzroy Thirds – Premier B Thirds – Scotch College, 9.20am, Saturday 24 June
Caufield Grammarians vs Fitzroy-ACU Women 1 – Wilson Women Premier – Glenhuntly Oval, 9.20am, Saturday 24 June
SKOB Saints vs Fitzroy-ACU Women 2 – Development Division 4 – Basil St Reserve, 11.40am, Saturday 24 June
Oakleigh vs Fitzroy U19 (2) – Forfeit to Oakleigh
Peninsula Old Boys vs Fitzroy Reserves – Premier B Reserves – Peninsula School, 11.40am, Saturday 24 June
Peninsula Old Boys vs Fitzroy Seniors – Premier B – Peninsula School, 2.00pm, Saturday 24 June
Fitzroy U19 (1) vs Old Carey Grammarians – Holmesglen U19 Section 2 – Ramsden Street Oval, 2.00pm, Saturday 24 June
