The 2013 Futsal Nationals kick off on Monday afternoon with the ACT men and women looking to go one step further than last year, when both lost the grand final to the NSW Thunder.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The men don't have to wait for their chance to avenge their 3-1 extra time defeat, starting the five-day tournament with a grand final rematch at the AIS Arena.
''We've got a good, experienced team, and a few young boys coming up as well. I think we're going to do really well,'' veteran goalkeeper Angelo Konstantinou said.
Konstantinou is one of a number of present and former Futsalroos in the ACT side, including Daniel Fulton, who was named MVP in last year's F-League, Australia's national futsal league, Trent Flanigan and Robbie Cattanach.
The women, who lost 2-1 to NSW Thunder in last year's final, have been hit by injury in the lead up to the tournament, but coach Kristian Collins is confident his squad of eight players are up to the challenge in the five-a-side game.
''I think the women are definitely in with a shot of making the final again, … we've had a few injury mishaps, so we've got less players than we'd like but [I'm] comfortable with what we've done and how we're playing,'' he said.
Collins will have a full schedule for the week, also leading the youth men's side, that will include eight 17-year-olds in the squad of 12. But he hesitated to make predictions about the future of Tom Rogic, who came through the futsal ranks. ''Rogic's a pretty special player,'' he said.