How does a star goalkeeper prepare for an Australia Cup final? Managing home loans, duh

4 days ago 2

Ahead of the highly anticipated Australia Cup final on Saturday night, Yaren Sozer admits he has little to no nerves.

He’s far too busy for that.

Heidelberg United goal-keeper Yaren Sozer at his day job as a mortgage broke

The Heidelberg United goalkeeper will spend the 24-hours before the game at his regular nine-to- five job as a mortgage broker, helping clients apply for home loans.

“It’s actually been crazy busy, so I’ll be working until 5pm on Friday, the way we’re going I might even need to do overtime,” he said.

After defeating thee consecutive A-League sides, semi-professional club Heidelberg United are gearing up for a fairytale finish, and will face the Newcastle Jets at Lakeside Stadium in Albert Park in the final.

The Bergers, coached by John Anastasiadis, is made up of civil engineers, aviation managers, mortgage brokers, men’s wear shop assistants, labourers, students, football coaches and Uber drivers.

No semi-professional side has ever won the Australia Cup, and now the Bergers are just 90 minutes from the title.

“We’re ecstatic, I don’t think anyone in the team expected that at the start of the competition,” Sozer said.

“But after a couple of games, beating an A-league opposition, we started to believe, and now here we are.”

Sozer attributed the team’s success to a consistent-training program, admitting he and several other players are “fairly superstitious”.

The club blasts the Mumford & Sons anthem Little Lion Man during warm-up before every game and club president Steve Tsalikidis serves the same food the night before.

John Anastasiadis coach of Heidelberg United FC celebrates after beating Auckland FC.

“We love routine at Heidelberg,” Sozer laughed. “I think probably one of the reasons why we’ve been so consistent, we just repeat our mid-week and match-day rituals.”

Bergers’ captain Ben Collins, a former Western United defender who works in the commercial planning team for Jetstar, has often spoken about the team’s underdog energy, and desire to prove their naysayers wrong.

“You know, all of us have probably ended up here because our contracts ran out, and we didn’t get renewed contracts, so it probably is a little bit of a ‘stick it up em’ mentality’,” he told this masthead.

It’s a sentiment Sozer agreed with. However the 26-year-old said the pendulum was starting to shift.

“We are actually starting to attract some A-League players who are looking at our league now and thinking ‘maybe this is the right move for me’ because I don’t think the A-League is what it used to be,” he said.

Sozer said more football players are considering the semi-professional route.

“We do see a lot of players looking down that semi-professional route, where they can also focus on their careers outside of football and still play at a standard that’s proving itself. With this cup campaign alone, with all the upsets, that gap has bridged.”

Sozer used to play professionally for Melbourne City, before moving to Turkey to play for İstanbul Başakşehir F.K and later signed with Perak FC in the Malaysian Super League. He joined the Central Coast Marniers as a goalkeeper in 2021 and left in 2023, after his contract finished.

While he enjoyed working in finance, Sozer admitted the transition from a professional full-time footballer to regular office hours was challenging.

“After playing professionally for eight, nine years, normally after training I’d be on the golf course with my teammates, but now I’ve got a desk job,” he laughed. “I try to keep myself stretching during those office hours, so after work my body is alright for training.”

Sozer would not rule out a return to professional football, saying he always “leaves the door open” to opportunities.

“For me, it’s a case by case scenario, if there’s an opportunity there for me to step back into that professional route, I’d consider it.”

For now, Sozer was focused on the final ahead and rewarding the dedicated Heidelberg and broader Victorian football community who have supported the team.

“It gives belief to our juniors that they can play against the best in Australia, and reaching an NPL senior team means something to them, it feels like they’re a part of something special,” he said.

“Once upon a time, the A-League sometimes felt unattainable or unreachable for juniors, but seeing their local club or NPL team mixing against the best, it inspires a lot of those kids coming through.”