Returning Head Coach Zoran Karadzic will lead Adelaide Blue Eagles in 2014 as they look for redemption, following their Grand Final loss in the 2013 Season. 

Centre midfielder Mitchell Nicholson said that taking the premiership in 2014 is a clear goal for the team after failing to do so in 2013.

“We had a lot of new players that came in through the year and it took time to gel. In the coming season we are keeping close to the same side which means that everyone knows how each other play and hopefully this will assist us in making a better run for the title.” 

Nicholson is looking to find the back of the net more in 2014 and hopes for a full season injury free. He also looks forward to having Karadzic back on the sideline.

“I can’t wait to have Zoran back. The first season I played at Adelaide Blue Eagles he was the coach and admittedly, we weren’t the best team but we were so well organised that it translated in to success.

“Playing with him I believe we played the best football that I have been a part of so far at the club.”

Fellow team mate, striker Kym Harris noted that he too is eagerly awaiting Karadzic returning to the head spot.

“It is a very exciting time with Zoran coming in. He is a very good coach, he has a lot of experience and it is an exciting time for the club.

“He has a very successful history with the club and his records show that he knows what it takes to win championships. Hopefully his knowledge and experience can rub off on the players.”

Harris also hopes to claim the top spot in 2014 and thinks the team can learn from the result in the 2013 Grand Final.

“Losing in a Grand Final is never nice. You put in all the effort through the year and to lose in the Final is tough.

“It was a relatively inconsistent year; changing coach towards the end of the year is never an ideal situation. Credit to the boys though, they reacted and worked really hard to get to that Grand Final and hopefully we can go one better next year.”

Focussed now on the next season, Harris looks to improve on his 16 goals scored in 2013 - only 4 behind Premier League Golden Boot winner, White City’s Lloyd Owusu.

“I would have liked to of helped out with a few more goals. As a striker it’s your role to put the balls away. 

“The first half of the year was very tough for me personally with not scoring enough goals, but being a new team these things took time to gel and once we grasped an understanding of each other, things became easier.”

Both Harris and Nicholson predict a tough season ahead. Nicholson sees MetroStars and Campbelltown as teams to watch. 

Nicholson also notes that the force of West Adelaide will be an unknown. He believes it will be hard to tell how the newly promoted squad will travel against other sides, stronger than they have faced in the State League and how they will bounce back if their side doesn’t go undefeated as it did in 2013.

Harris agrees that West Adelaide is a side to keep an eye on.

“It is going to be a tough year and there are many title contenders. You can’t go past MetroStars; they were by far the most consistent team in the regular season. There is also Adelaide City who seem to have recruited well.”

Adelaide Blue Eagles has upgraded the Marden Sports Complex through a significant investment of the clubs funds. Works have included repairs and upgrading to terracing, installation of 80 solar panels, improved drainage and total rebuild of the main playing surface and lighting upgrade to the main pitch to 300 Lux. 

The renovations, at a total cost of approximately a quarter of a million dollar have already been completed and some are still in progress. All works are to be completed by the end of February 2014. 

Adelaide Blue Eagles will commence preseason training in mid December.