After a two-year hiatus, Canberra Juventus is back in the Capital Premier League (CPL) setup and will be determined to maintain their position in the second tier of Capital Football.

Juventus entered the CPL as the Australian Capital Territory’s second most successful men’s team, coming into the 70th year since the club was established in 1953.

Head Coach Jonno Zalunardo is at the helm once again and, having only been at Juventus for around three years, has already found a connection with the historic club.

“I’ve got Italian heritage and while it’s not a club I was born playing for, it is a club that represents a community that I feel a part of,” Zalunardo said.

“Whenever I go to a game, the people that I’ve gotten to know over my three years at Juventus feel like people I’ve always known, and they feel like the people I belong with.”

The environment of togetherness and community around the club fueled its ambition to pursue a place in the Capital Premier League. This ambition was made achievable after Weston-Molonglo pulled out of promotion from the State League, offering the platform to the storied club to make their move. Zalunardo notes how Canberra Juventus embraced this chance.

“When the idea came about that we wanted to get back at this level, we had people that were excited by the opportunity, and wanted to be a part of it,” he said.      

From his stint coaching with Narrabundah FC in the second tier, Zalunardo offers experience in understanding the competition, and has clear takeaways from his exploits at the CPL level, that he believes are the key to maintaining a position in the league.

“First and foremost, you need committed players and a committed committee, I feel like we’ve got both at Juventus now,” he said.

“From my time at Narrabundah for example, getting people that were committed was always the biggest challenge.”

“If you have people that are supportive and committed, then that’s what is going to help you actually be able to focus on just performing every week.”

If basing it on the club’s 2022 performances, Juventus did not necessarily merit promotion, however Zalunardo suggests that the devotion of those involved with the club, coupled with their history of success, are a justification for their presence in the Capital Premier League.

“As a club do Juventus deserve to be there? Absolutely,” commented Zalunardo.

“You only have to look at the history of Juventus to see that we’re in a position, that we as a club should be [in].”

The difficulty that comes with transitioning to Premier League football has translated onto the pitch, with Juventus currently sitting bottom of the table with four points after eight rounds. Zalunardo has emphasised the clear contrast between football in the State League and the CPL.

“There are so many little differences,” he said.

“We’re training twice a week, we’re versing teams with way bigger budgets than us, that have bigger resource pools than us, that take this level of competition very seriously.”

From the State League team, nine players have stuck around, however some key departures including Former CPL golden boot winner Danny Krajacic, alongside Tom Hirst, retired from football.

Meanwhile, the immensely talented Tom Cosentini ascended two tiers to ply his trade for Canberra Olympic. Zalunardo has noted how, while he had a quality squad in 2022, not all desired a challenge in a higher division.

“If the team that went up last year, went up, if we could all commit to the training load, I don’t think there’s any doubt that it would’ve been a squad that could compete because there was a lot of talent in the team last year.”

“A lot of players go down there [State League] as a step back, as a more relaxing way of playing football, so the team was more than capable last year, but guys had families and different commitments outside of football that were their priorities.”

On this note, Zalunardo prioritised signing players looking to progress their careers and show dedication to the cause when addressing the squad at his disposal before the start of the 2023 season.

“It wasn’t necessary like we targeted any position in particular, it was more about looking at the person, [and whether] they were going to be committed to the time that you need to put into playing at this level,” he said.

In the front line, the sensational Nathan Duck has proven to be a key retention from the State League, having already bagged five goals in eight games.

On the signings front, the capture of young defensive midfielder Van Nguyen, alongside the exciting Andre Jugovac from Canberra Croatia’s U23 side, have proven to be savvy additions to the squad in 2023 when they have played.

“They’ve both brought a lot of intensity and drive to the group that we probably didn’t have last year,” said Zalunardo.

Looking ahead to the rest of the season, the coach has been quick to focus on the positives and is full of praise for the growth achieved by the club.

“I think everyone at the club wants us to be in a better position than we are,” he said.

“With every single game, regardless of the result, there’s been something we can take out of it, so we’ve grown every single week as a group and as a club.”

“We’ve improved, not necessarily in our results, but we’ve improved as a unit.”

Words: Sam Watson