The game will take place on Friday 22 September, and will coincide with Greater Shepparton Council’s launch of the redeveloped Shepparton Sports Precinct.
Melbourne City’s Warren Joyce and CEO Scott Munn formally announced the fixture at the recently completed McEwen Reserve Shepparton venue on Wednesday afternoon, alongside Greater Shepparton City Council Deputy Mayor Kim O’Keeffe and representatives from local football clubs.
Greater Shepparton Deputy Mayor Kim O’Keeffe said she was thrilled to be able to exhibit the precinct’s upgrade with an A-League exhibition match, commenting: “This is a chance to showcase our fantastic new state-of-the-art football facilities as well as an opportunity for our local soccer community to experience elite-level football on our doorstep,” Cr Kim O’Keeffe said. “Hosting events like this supports the Greater Shepparton Football Strategy and adds significantly to the region's reputation of being the sporting capital of regional Australia. This is an event for the community and I encourage all football lovers to get along to the match in September.”
Minister for Sport, John Eren, said the Victorian Government was pleased to be supporting the game.
"The Victorian Government is proud to secure another big A-League pre-season fixture for the regional Victorian sports-mad centre of Shepparton."
"Attracting the big teams and events like this helps showcase the best of Victoria, attract more visitors to our state, create jobs, keep local businesses busy and inspires our next generation of A-League and W-League champions," Minister Eren said.
Melbourne City FC CEO Scott Munn commented on the announcement;
“Melbourne City has had a strong and productive partnership with the Council and footballing community in Shepparton region since our inception. We’re delighted to return to an area where there is an active, vibrant and passionate football base, and to see first-hand the new facilities here which will play a key part in driving grassroots engagement in the region,” Munn said.
Melbourne City FC Head Coach Warren Joyce, commented;
“Vital to our preparations for the new A-League season is playing quality opposition in a professional environment and this match will provide us with access to a great facility in a region that has a genuine passion for top-level football. To have this sort of facility and such passionate fans so close to the city will be a great experience for the players,” Joyce said.
The match will be the third time the Greater Shepparton City Council will host Melbourne City, with encounters against GNEFA All-Stars and Wellington Phoenix in pre-season friendlies in 2013 and 2011, respectively.
Melbourne City host Brisbane Roar at AAMI Park in the first fixture of the A-League campaign on Friday 6 October.
Match Details Hyundai A-League Pre-Season Friendly Friday 22 September 2017 Melbourne City FC vs. Western Sydney Wanderers McEwen Reserve, Shepparton Sports Precinct, Shepparton Kick-off: 7.30pm Tickets: $12.50 (Adult), $7.50 (Concession, Students and Children 5-17 years) Tickets for the match will go on sale on Friday 4 August via the Riverlinks Box Office, Shepparton 2017/18 Melbourne City FC Members will receive free entry to the match.
About Melbourne City FC
Melbourne City Football Club competes in the major Australian domestic competition, the Hyundai A-League and the Foxtel National Youth League. The Club, formerly known as Melbourne Heart FC was established in 2009, inspired by a vision for a broad-based community team, celebrating cultural diversity and sporting passion through football.
Becoming known as Melbourne City FC in 2014, the Club is wholly owned by City Football Group (CFG) and plays its home games at the 30,000 capacity AAMI Park stadium in Melbourne, where the Club celebrated its first ever men’s silverware, the FFA Cup, in November 2016. Managed by Warren Joyce, the Club’s training and administrative base is at City Football Academy, Melbourne, on the campus of La Trobe University. CFA Melbourne features advanced new training pitches for the Melbourne City first team, two elite women’s and youth team pitches, dedicated community pitches, world class medical and sports science facilities and expansive office space. It is also CFG’s centre for football operations in the Asia Pacific region and the training and administration base for the affiliated Women’s team, Melbourne City Women’s FC which was founded in 2015 and competes in the W-League, the top division of women’s football in Australia.
