Vasilije Lekic - Captain's final words

Captain’s farewell 

As a student at Keilor Downs College, growing up in the soccer program made me evolve not only as an athlete but also as a human. Listening to older players and learning that sport isn’t always going to give you everything that you deserve, I developed grit and took information from others to make myself better and stronger.  

My greatest honour in the soccer program was being the captain of the 2021 Premier League Cup team, where I was able to take a young and talented squad all the way to the semi-finals, where we lost on penalties. This was the greatest achievement that I had in the program and I was proud that I was part of the achievement for our boys in this competition. 

Another great experience was being able to represent my soccer program in Spain in 2019, against world-class players. This amazing experience gave me an idea of what it really takes to become a professional athlete.  

The program will always give students the chance to have memorable experiences and that is why I will never forget. I enrolled in the soccer program in 2016 as a shy year 7 thinking that becoming a footballer was simple, but with challenging training sessions, it really made me realise that I needed to put in the effort to become the best version of myself. Every session became a lesson, especially when seeing other senior players doing the hard yards early morning before school, and multiple sessions per day.  

The soccer program has not only allowed me to understand the knowledge of the sport but also improve my leadership skills, which were non-existent in my early days. As a young athlete, I was a very quiet and shy kid but with time, my confidence grew, which allowed me to be open and tell others what to improve and not repeat the errors which I’ve learnt to overcome. These things happen because of two particular people; Mr. Loncaric and Mr. Katiforis. They have had a massive impact to my life, and this is the reason I am still putting in the hard yards trying to become the best athlete I could possibly be. They supported me, regardless of if I was the best or the worst during the training sessions. They will coach you to suit your ability as a footballer and give you instructions which will help you develop a greater understanding of the game and use school competitions - which occur many times throughout the year –to develop these skills and abilities. They are the most supportive and eye-opening people and will always guide in the right direction, which they believe will help you in the best way possible.  

This program was truly a blessing to be involved in and I am very proud of how this program has evolved throughout the years that I have been at the school. I saw with my own eyes many players with limited skill and ability become able to compete with everyone because the coches believe everyone should have a chance to play football. 

My final piece of advice to all students in the KDC Soccer School is to just spend every single moment you can on our lovely soccer pitch while you can because before you know it, your time will be up and another group comes through to graduate.  

Finally, I want to leave you with a quote to inspire you that has helped me: You don’t get what you wish for, you get what you work for 

Thank you very much for everything.

Vasilije Lekic