In the latest of our spotlight series, CDSFA caught up with the BBC’s record appearance maker - Inter Lions man, Con Pavlidis.
Con Pavlidis or ‘zip’ as he is affectionately referred to by his teammates, is one of the eldest statesman in the Association’s premier men’s competition.
It is Pavlidis’ style of play and on-field manner which has seen him gain a bit of a reputation amongst his Inter teammates.
“I would describe myself now as on older dude who runs his mouth more than anything else. I would like to say my intelligence is the best part of my game,” Pavlidis said.
“If you ask any of the (Inter) boys, my nickname is zip, not because I’m fast but because I’m fast with it.”
When asked about how he reached the 100 cap milestone in the BBC competition, Pavlidis told CDSFA: “Now I play predominantly centre back. It’s the easiest position because no one else wants to play there.”
“That’s the secret, you’ve just got to play a position that no one else wants to play.”
That is not the only reason behind his longevity with the Pavlidis also revealing that he trains outside of the football pitch.
“I keep myself very fit. I train twice a day. I run and do gym work, it’s not soccer related but it’s just trying to stay as fit as possible to keep up with the younger fellas in the league.”
His Inter side may only train once a week but that does not affect their performance come the weekend with a raft of former stars in their ranks.
“Our side has a lot of ex-National League players. A lot of us are very technical based, if you ask our manager, Tosc [Daniel Toscano], we should be doing a lot more running.”
“But we like catching up to one, play good football and two, enjoy each other’s company. That’s what it’s all about at this level.”
The men from Concord have performed well over the last few years however there have been some mixed emotions, particularly for Pavlidis.
In the 2019 BBC final it was Pavlidis who scored the winning penalty to hand his side the Cup in front of his young son however a year later it was Pavlidis’ spot kick which cost his side the trophy against Strathfield.
At the end of the 2020 Grand Final, Pavlidis was awarded a trophy for reaching 100 caps in the competition. It did not stay in his possession for too long with his son and arguably biggest critic making his thoughts known.
Image: Con Pavlidis receiving the trophy from former CDSFA director, Gilbert Lorquet. Credit: MMS Sports Photography
My son said to me: “Dad, can I have the trophy? Also, that was the worst kick I’ve seen you do in my whole life. You probably should have let someone else take that last kick.”
Pavlidis has since recovered from that penalty miss and his son’s brutal assessment as he continues to be a mainstay in an Inter side who are currently sitting in fourth at the halfway point this season.
He has no immediate plans of hanging up the boots but he did inform us that there may be one or two factors which may sway his mind down the track.
“I’ll definitely keep playing until either injury or humiliation kicks in, or both!”
Con Pavlidis (BBC Stats)
Appearances: 116
Goals: 5
By CDSFA Communications Officer – Samuel Greco Schwartz
