Moreton City Excelsior are fast building a reputation for themselves on the national stage. Last year it was a maiden appearance in the Australia Cup’s national rounds; last month, they battered Campbelltown City 5-1 to set up their next chapter, a first crack at a professional side in Perth Glory, who they’ll host on August 28.
In their first season as a single entity following the off-season amalgamation of Moreton Bay United and Albany Creek Excelsior, their five goals inside 65 minutes while donning the striking ‘bruised banana’ Arsenal 1990’s throwback kit ensured they won the headlines across the Cup’s opening matchday.
Manager Cameron Millar has proven the perfect man to massage the merger together, entrenched in both clubs as player and coach across his 30 years. While spending the past two seasons hot on the heels of Queensland’s dominant club, Gold Coast Knights, Millar made it clear they’ve sought to simultaneously grow their new name nationally.
‘We played in the Round of 32 last season against Heidelberg, who are obviously very strong and got the better of us, so the national rounds were a big target of ours again this season’, Millar told Box2Box.
‘Campbelltown was a good draw, another opportunity to play a strong interstate side that were playing well, having won the South Australian Federation Cup a couple of weeks ago before travelling to Brisbane. We prepared well, the players executed the game plan and were fantastic on the night.’
Millar’s junior career with Albany Creek led him to senior NPL football with Moreton Bay, which included their run to the last 16 of the Australia Cup in 2017. That stands as the only other time either side had reached the national rounds prior to 2023.
Entering the coaching ranks while still playing has fast-tracked the second phase of his career, joining the assistant ranks at Moreton Bay in 2020 before taking the top job ahead of the 2023 NPL season. Overseeing a merger could prove challenging for the most experienced of managers, but he’s proven the perfect fit.
‘From the outside looking in if you didn’t know too much about the clubs, it could seem like a tricky process. Albany Creek Excelsior had been around for fifty-plus years, a really strong community-based club up here on the north-side of Brisbane.
‘Moreton Bay United entered the NPL in its initial year of 2013, formed as a breakoff from Albany Creek to provide opportunities for academy players to play in the NPL at senior level. In managing the amalgamation it was an easy transition, because a lot of the people and players are very comfortable with each other.
‘Merging was a chance to formalise the work already being done behind the scenes, ultimately combine our resources, and maximising opportunities for the club on and off the field. It’s been a great start to life.’
So presents a huge opportunity against the Glory, last year’s A-League wooden spooners entering their first full season under the ownership of Ross Pelligra and management of the highly-credentialed David Zdrillic. Although still in pre-season, they looked to have rekindled their hunger through their Cup play-off defeat of Brisbane Roar, and 5-4 win over Melbourne City.
‘We know they’re on a mission to improve things quickly, that’s why David Zdrillic is there, and he’s off to a great start with two wins against A-League opposition. It does make it tough to prepare, with only two games to do our preparation off the back of.
‘There’s some very experienced boys there in Josh Risdon, Adam Taggart, Brandon O’Neill. They’ve mixed them with a lot of young players who I believe have mostly come from the Perth academy and they look to have improved a lot already, so we’re looking forward to it.’