Eduvard "Eddie" Krncevic OAM (/ˈkrɛntʃəvɪk/ KRENCH-ə-vik;[1] Croatian: Edi Krnčević; born 14 August 1960) is an Australian retired footballer player and manager who played as a forward.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Eduvard Krncevic | ||
| Date of birth | 14 August 1960 | ||
| Place of birth | Geelong, Australia | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1976–1978 | Essendon Croatia | ||
| 1979–1981 | Marconi | 81 | (31) |
| 1981–1984 | Dinamo Zagreb | 40 | (7) |
| 1984 | MSV Duisburg | 18 | (3) |
| 1985 | Sydney Croatia | 3 | (3) |
| 1985–1986 | Cercle Brugge | 45 | (15) |
| 1986–1989 | Anderlecht | 84 | (52) |
| 1988 | → Marconi (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 1989–1990 | Mulhouse | 29 | (7) |
| 1990–1992 | FC Liège | 38 | (6) |
| 1992–1995 | Eendracht Aalst | 51 | (12) |
| 1995–1996 | Charleroi | 17 | (4) |
| 1996–1997 | Gippsland Falcons | 19 | (5) |
| International career | |||
| 1979 | Australia U20 | ||
| 1979–1989 | Australia | 35 | (17) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1997–1999 | Carlton SC | ||
| 1999–2001 | Marconi | ||
| 2001–2002 | South Melbourne | ||
| 2003 | Fawkner Blues | ||
| 2004–2005 | Maribyrnong Greens | ||
| 2007 | North Geelong Warriors | ||
| 2010–2011 | South Melbourne | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
editAfter playing his first four years of professional football in Australia, Krncevic moved to the land of his parents in 1981, joining Croatian side NK Dinamo Zagreb, where he had relative individual success, besides helping the side win one league and one cup.
Krnčević then played four months in the German second division with MSV Duisburg, after which he embarked on his most successful spell, ten and a half years in Belgium – with one season in France with FC Mulhouse in between – where he represented Cercle Brugge KSV, Royal Charleroi, R.S.C. Anderlecht, R.F.C. de Liège and K.S.C. Eendracht Aalst; he became the first Australian-born player to be crowned top scorer in a European league.
Even though silverware was hard to come even at Anderlecht, in 1988–89 Krnčević was crowned the league's top scorer at 23 goals, and helped the capital side to the domestic cup – in that competition, he scored in all three finals he won, the first being with Cercle.
In 1996, already at 36, Krncevic returned to his country and played one final season with the Gippsland Falcons.[2] In the late 1990s and early 2000s, he had a coaching career, with all the clubs hailing from his homeland, in the National Soccer League. Internationally, he opted to represent his birth country, scoring every other match in 35 caps, and helping the country to win the 1980 OFC Nations Cup.
International career
editKrncevic was captain of the Australia team that won the 1980 Oceania Cup, of which only one match, an 11–2 defeat of Papua New Guinea, counted as a full international match.[3][4]
Honours
editEssendon Croatia
- Victorian Champions: 1978
- Victorian State League Cup: 1978
- Ampol Cup: 1977, 1978
- Armstrong Cup: 1977
Marconi
Dinamo Zagreb
Cercle Brugge
- Belgian Cup: 1984–85; runner-up 1985–86
Anderlecht
- Belgian League: 1986–87
- Belgian Cup: 1987–88, 1988–89
- Belgian Super Cup: 1987
Australia
Individual
- Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) – 2021[5]
- FFA Hall of Champions Inductee – 2000
- Belgian League: Top scorer 1988–89
- NSL: Papasavas Medal (U-21) 1979
References
edit- ^ "CFMEU World Cup Tipping Competition - Socceroo Eddie Krncevic's tips". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ Cockerill, Michael (14 October 1999). "Stallion in the full metal jacket". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 43. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
- ^ "Soccer - Australia wins Pacific title". The Canberra Times. Vol. 54, no. 16, 230. Australian Capital Territory. 3 March 1980. p. 14. Retrieved 9 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Howe, Andrew (12 October 2006). "Australian Full International Starting Captains as at 12 Oct 2006". The Australian National Men's Football Team: Caps and Captains (PDF). Football Federation Australia. p. 12. Retrieved 9 March 2021 – via OzFootball.
- ^ "Mr Eduvard KRNCEVIC". It's An Honour. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
External links
edit- FFA – Hall of Fame profile
- Oz Football profile
- Eddie Krncevic at National-Football-Teams.com
- Eddie Krncevic at WorldFootball.net