13 AUG 1998 , Edition 2, Page 12.
Dunedin fed all the gen on Waikato foes
By: ANDERSON Ian
Dunedin Technical are confident they know exactly what they’ll be up against in the Chatham Cup semifinal.
The home side’s assistant coach, and chief scout for their soccer match against Ngaruawahia United on Sunday, is former Waikato United stalwart Darren Melville.
Melville, who moved south in 1996, also co-coached the 1993 Ngaruawahia side with Ray Pooley to promotion in the Northern League.
He has gradually wound down his distinguished playing career and is likely to be a substitute on Sunday, but his knowledge of the Ngaruawahia side could prove invaluable to the favoured home team.
The Technical side, unbeaten in league and cup matches this season, also have ex Waikato United and All White utility player Graeme Marshall and ex-Mt Maunganui player Jeremy Seales, who will also be familiar with some of their opponents.
Marshall, whose international career was as a defender, has been a leading scorer for Technical this season and should again spearhead their frontline after recovering from a broken nose.
Melville, not surprisingly, isn’t expecting anything stunningly innovative from Ngaruawahia.
“I know all the lads and I know how they play,” Melville said.
“We know they’ll be well organised and hard to break down. We’re not taking them lightly at all.”
Despite being the dominant side in Southern winter league football for the past three seasons, Technical have twice fallen over against Northern sides in Cup semifinals.