Gold Coast Knights F.C.
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Gold Coast Knights Football Club is a semi-professional
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
club based in
Carrara, Queensland Carrara () is a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Carrara had a population of 13,138 people. Geography Carrara is bounded to the east by the southern bank of the Nerang River and to the west mostly by the Pa ...
, Australia. The
Croatian Australian Croatian Australians (), Australian Croats (''Australski Hrvati'') or Croats in Australia (''Hrvati u Australiji'') are Australian citizens of Croats, Croatian ancestry. Croatia has been a source of Human migration, migrants to Australia, parti ...
backed club play in the
National Premier Leagues Queensland The National Premier League Queensland (NPL Queensland or NPL QLD) is the top tier state-level soccer competition in the Australian state of Queensland. The conference, run by Football Queensland, is a sub division of the National Premier Leagues ...
, the top level of the
Football Queensland Football Queensland (FQ) is the governing body for soccer, futsal and beach soccer in the Australian state of Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australi ...
and the second level of the
Australian soccer league system The Australian soccer league system is the league system, league structure for soccer clubs in Australia. The league system in Australia since 1977 has involved one top divisional league controlled by Football Australia and many leagues run with ...
. The club has won three NPL Queensland championship, one premiership, one state cup and a variety of regional honours. Gold Coast Knights was established in 1979, with the first senior team fielded within the Gold Coast's second division in 1979. The club originally played at Musgrave Hill until 1982, when it moved to the Croatian Sports Centre in Carrara. The club won its first major honour in 1981, where the club won the Gold Coast top division President's Cup under the former name, St. Anthony's Soccer Club. The club has been one of the most successful soccer clubs based on the Gold Coast. Gold Coast Knights soccer club has hosted the
Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament The Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament, also known as Croatian Soccer Tournament () is an annual tournament run by the Croatian Soccer Federation of Australia and New Zealand, an organisation founded in 1974. The inspiration for the tournamen ...
in 1995, 2012 and 2018.


History


1978−1999: Formation and name changes

Gold Coast Knights Soccer Club was formed by a group of
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
n migrants in the Gold Coast region in 1978, under the name St. Anthony's Soccer Club. The club has just one side, an U-14 side, which was coached by Mladen Marinac. The side trained at Aquinas College and played its home games at Musgrave Hill. In 1979, a senior team was formed and entered the local Men's 2nd Division competition. The growth of the Croatian migrant population in Gold Coast coincided with the growth of the club. In 1981, under the leadership of Željko Bambić, a Men's 1st Division side was entered. In 1982, the club bought land in
Carrara, Queensland Carrara () is a suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Carrara had a population of 13,138 people. Geography Carrara is bounded to the east by the southern bank of the Nerang River and to the west mostly by the Pa ...
, where two fields were put down and a small clubhouse built. The first game was played at Carrara in 1984, a year in which, under the leadership of coach Charlie Runje, the club won the Premiership and the Presidents Cup. In the late 80s, St. Anthony's became Gold Coast Croatia Soccer Club. In 1991, the club decided to redevelop the clubrooms to cater for the expanding needs of the club. In the 90s, the football federation requested "Croatia" to be removed from the club's name and so, after spending a year as Gold Coast C.S.C., the club settled on the name Carrara Cro's Soccer Club in 1993. They kept this name until 1999, when the club became known as Gold Coast Knights Soccer Club. The name change followed a meeting with
National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...
side
Melbourne Knights FC Melbourne Knights Football Club is an Australian professional Association football, soccer club based in the suburb of Sunshine North, Victoria, Sunshine North, Melbourne. The club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Victoria, t ...
, with whom a sister-club relationship was formed.


1999−2019: Gold Coast leagues

The 2003 Gold Coast Premier League season saw the Gold Coast Knights win both the President's Cup and the premiership. The club wouldn't crown another premiership for another 5 years, where they earned the 2008 trophy. In 2014, Gold Coast Knights experienced the first relegation in the club's history, falling from the Gold Coast Premier League to
Division 1 Division 1 or Division One may refer to: Association football * Azadegan League, the second-tier professional football league in Iran * Brisbane Premier League Division 1, the second-tier professional football league in Brisbane, Queensland, Austr ...
. In 2015, the Knights just avoided successive relegations, finishing just two points above the relegated Nerang Eagles, collecting only 15 points in 21 games that season. At the club's Annual General Meeting in 2015, businessman Adrian Puljich became the new chairman. Knights immediately underwent a rebrand, which saw a new logo introduced. Work commenced on new change room facilities and tower lights for the pitches at the Croatian Sports Centre were installed. The 2016 season started well, as the Knights took out the BLK Pre-Season Cup. Success continued and the Knights earned the right of promotion back to the Premier League for the 2017 season after winning the Division 1 title. Having only lost one game all season, the Knights continued their form into the finals series and took out the double by winning the championship. The 2017 season saw further success for Gold Coast Knights, winning the Premier League title for the first time in nine years in the first season back in the top flight of Gold Coast football. In the finals series, Knights lost to
Broadbeach United Broadbeach United Soccer Club is a semi-professional association football, soccer club based in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The club currently play in the Football Queensland Premier League after promoted from 2023 Football Queensland Pre ...
on penalties in the preliminary final, but beat the Burleigh Heads Bulldogs to qualify for the grand final. There, Knights lost again to Broadbeach, this time 2–1. Knights qualified for the
2018 FFA Cup The 2018 FFA Cup was the fifth season of the FFA Cup, the main national soccer knockout cup competition in Australia. 32 teams contested the competition proper (from the round of 32), including the 10 A-League teams and 21 Football Federation Au ...
Round of 32 when it defeated
Sunshine Coast Sunshine Coast may refer to: * Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia **Sunshine Coast Region, a local government area of Queensland named after the region **Sunshine Coast Stadium * Sunshine Coast (British Columbia), geographic subregion of the Br ...
, scoring two late goals to take the game out 3–2 after extra-time. It was the third straight NPL Queensland side that Knights had defeated on their way to the Round of 32. In the Round of 32, Knights drew
A-League A-League Men, also known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional soccer league in Australia and New Zealand and the highest level of the Australian soccer league system. Established in 2004 as the A-League by the ...
side
Newcastle Jets Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from the Australi ...
, going down 1–0 at
Robina Stadium Robina Stadium, commercially known as Cbus Super Stadium, is a multi-purpose rectangular stadium in Robina, a suburb of Gold Coast, Queensland. It is the home ground to the National Rugby League's Gold Coast Titans, this venue sometimes hos ...
in front of 2,220 people. The club won the Gold Coast Premier League premiership with two rounds to spare, following a 2–0 win over Palm Beach Sharks, with a record of 14 wins, 2 draws and 0 losses. In the finals series, Knights lost 2–1 to
Broadbeach United Broadbeach United Soccer Club is a semi-professional association football, soccer club based in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The club currently play in the Football Queensland Premier League after promoted from 2023 Football Queensland Pre ...
in the qualifying final, its first loss all season, before beating Surfers Paradise Apollo 5–4 in the elimination final and then Broadbeach 5–1 in the grand final, handing the club its first ever Gold Coast Premier League championship.


Since 2019: National Premier Leagues Queensland

In November 2017, it was announced that Knights would join the
National Premier Leagues Queensland The National Premier League Queensland (NPL Queensland or NPL QLD) is the top tier state-level soccer competition in the Australian state of Queensland. The conference, run by Football Queensland, is a sub division of the National Premier Leagues ...
from 2019, becoming part of the top-flight of football in the state. Knights took the place of
Gold Coast City FC Palm Beach Soccer Club is an Australian amateur soccer club based in Palm Beach, Queensland. The club was formed in 1966. The club plays in the Football Queensland Premier League 3 − South Coast, the top flight of the Football Queensland Sout ...
, who dissolved and hence gave up their place in the competition. In March 2019, Gold Coast signed
Mitch Nichols Mitchell Ian Nichols (born 1 May 1989) is an Australian professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for Olympic FC in the National Premier Leagues Queensland. He is currently the Assistant coach of the Brisbane Roar Academy in the ...
in one of the highest profile coups in the club's history. Later that season, the club also signed
Matt Smith Matthew Robert Smith (born 28 October 1982) is an English actor. He is known for playing the Eleventh Doctor in the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'' (2010–2013), Prince Philip in Netflix's historical series ''The Crown ( ...
, a former Socceroo and
Brisbane Roar Brisbane Roar Football Club is a professional soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland. competing in Australia's premier men's competition, A-League Men, which is the top tier Australia's football pyramid. When Queensland Lions F.C. were ...
championship-winning captain. In its first season in the NPL Queensland, the Knights finished in 2nd position, 4 points off premiers
Queensland Lions Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, ...
, with a 22–4–2 record. In the finals series, the Knights beat Peninsula Power 2–1 at home, setting up a Grand Final against
Olympic FC Olympic Football Club is a semi-professional soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was founded in 1967 and currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Queensland, with home matches played at Goodwin Park. The club has grown ...
who had defeated the premiers Lions FC. A 10-man Knights held out to defeat Olympic 2–1 and claim its first NPL Queensland championship. After a 4–1 loss to bottom side Sunshine Coast Wanderers on Sunday 30 August 2020, Knights parted ways with head coach Grae Piddick. Before their loss to the Wanderers, the Knights had not dropped a game since July 2019. Knights named
Scott McDonald Scott Douglas McDonald (born 21 August 1983) is an Australian former professional footballer and is the current head coach for National Premier Leagues club Gold Coast Knights. Originally a striker, McDonald could also play as an attacking mi ...
as its new senior head coach on 26 August 2021 for the upcoming 2022 season. McDonald was capped 26 times for the
Australia men's national soccer team The Australia men's national soccer team represents Australia in international men's Association football, soccer. Officially nicknamed the Socceroos, the team is controlled by the governing body for soccer in Australia, Football Austral ...
during his playing career. Gold Coast Knights finished in 2nd in the regular season of 2022. In the finals series, Knights defeated Peninsula Power 3–1 in the semi-final and
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...
2–0 in the grand final to achieve its second ever NPL Queensland championship.


Managers


Facilities

Gold Coast Knights are based at the Croatian Sports Centre, located on 181 Nerang Broadbeach Rd, Carrara QLD 4211. The site is the central hub of the Croatian community in the Gold Coast region. The centre was established in 1983 on approximately six acres of land and features a modern-club house and two full size soccer fields. In 2012, the club started a project to increase the amount of change rooms from two to six. Over the summer of 2015–16, Knights added four new light posts, increasing the lighting on the pitches to 220 lux.


Current squad


Honours


Football Queensland

*
National Premier Leagues Queensland The National Premier League Queensland (NPL Queensland or NPL QLD) is the top tier state-level soccer competition in the Australian state of Queensland. The conference, run by Football Queensland, is a sub division of the National Premier Leagues ...
(first tier) ** Premiership *** Winners (2):
2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
,
2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
** Championship *** Winners (3):
2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
, 2022, 2023 * Kappa Pro Series *** Winners (1):
2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...


Football South Coast

* FQPL 3 − South Coast / Gold Coast Premier League (first tier) ** Premiership *** Winners (5): 1984, 2003, 2008, 2017, 2018 ** Championship *** Winners (1): 2018 ** President's Cup *** Winners (4): 1981, 1984, 1986, 2003 * FQPL 4 − South Coast / Men's Coast League 1 / First Division (second tier) ** Premiership *** Winners (1): 2016 ** Championship *** Winners (1): 2016 ** Pre-Season Cup *** Winners (1): 2016


See also

*
List of Croatian football clubs in Australia The Croatian community of Australia has played an important part in the history of Australian association football, soccer. Countless clubs have been formed over the years in every state and territory, except for the Northern Territory. At prese ...
*
Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament The Australian-Croatian Soccer Tournament, also known as Croatian Soccer Tournament () is an annual tournament run by the Croatian Soccer Federation of Australia and New Zealand, an organisation founded in 1974. The inspiration for the tournamen ...


References


External links

* {{Navboxes, list1={{Football South Coast{{Soccer in Queensland{{Soccer in Australia{{Gold Coast Sports Teams National Premier Leagues Queensland Croatian sports clubs in Australia Association football clubs established in 1978 1978 establishments in Australia Soccer teams on the Gold Coast, Queensland