Parramatta FC


Parramatta Football Club, commonly known as Parramatta Melita Eagles or just Melita, are a semi-professional Australian soccer club based in South Granville, New South Wales. The club was established by Maltese migrants in 1956 and played several seasons in the National Soccer League winning the NSL Cup twice in 1990/91 and 1993/94 and later the New South Wales Premier League which the club has won on six occasions: 1985, 1988, 1989, 1996, 1997, 2001/02. The club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues NSW 4.

History

The club was formed in 1956 as the Melita Eagles by Maltese immigrants after the amalgamation of two Maltese clubs; Malta Eagles and Melita Soccer Club. In 1962 it changed its name to Melita Eagles-Newtown.
Melita Eagles have their origins in the Maltese community and stretch back to the formation of the original NSW Federation of Soccer Clubs in 1957. Along with higher profile clubs like Prague, Hakoah, APIA Leichhardt, St George, Pan-Hellenic and others, it was part of the original breakaway movement which was the end of the old NSW Soccer Football Association in January 1957.

2006-2012

Due to various levels of mismanagement, the club was relegated at the end of 2006 from the NSW Premier League. With backing from NSW Police Citizens Youth Club it evolved into PCYC Parramatta Eagles FC, competing in the NSW Super League in 2007. The Eagles qualified for the finals series in all four seasons under PCYC, suffering defeats in the 2008 and 2009 Grand Finals. The first team finished as 2010 Minor Premiers and, as a result, the club was promoted back to the Premier League.
In 2011, a new partnership was formed between Parramatta Melita Eagles Sports Club and Granville and Districts Soccer Football Association, in which the club became known as Parramatta FC, after PCYC would no longer be able to continue running the club’s football operations.
Even though the team finished at the bottom of the NSW Premier League ladder in 2011, strong performances by the Under 20 and Under 18 teams ensured that the club remained eligible to play Premier League for 2012, due to the state's system of promotion and relegation.
Parramatta wasn't so lucky in 2012, suffering relegation.

2013-Present Day: National Premier Leagues NSW Introduction

In 2013, the Eagles would return to the second division, now labelled the NPL NSW 2, after the introduction of the National Premier Leagues, finishing just outside finals contention. Parramatta made amends in 2014, finishing as Minor Premiers and nine points clear at the top of the table. Sadly, Parramatta would lose their Grand Final, but would return to the National Premier Leagues NSW competition for the 2015 season.
Surviving relegation on the final day in 2015, and then missing out on the finals series after being just outside the top five for much of the 2016 season, 2017 was the season the club hoped to finally qualify for NPL1 finals football for the first time since the 2002/03 season. What was to come would be a first in the club’s 60 year history and a shock to every supporters: already struggling at the bottom of the table, an exodus of senior players occurred during the mid season transfer window. Although performances had improved, the team could not avoid finishing bottom of the table and suffering relegation.
Under a new board led by businessman, local community leader and GDSFA treasurer, Steve Elriche, there was hope heading into the 2018 season. The season started very promisingly, however, as the season wore on, the lack of depth in the three senior squads began to reveal issues due to the events which occurred in 2017. The mid season transfer window saw all three grades, in particular 1st Grade, look to strengthen their squads, but the player point system which clubs were to abide by proved a massive obstacle for our club. Sadly, missed opportunities in matches throughout the season cost Parramatta, finishing last on the Club Championship table for the second season in a row, and suffered a successive relegation.
While 2019 saw an improvement in the club's performance, Parramatta FC's 1st Grade side could not grab enough wins throughout the regular season to avoid relegation once again, a rare third successive relegation occurred. With the bottom five NSW NPL3 clubs on the Club Championship table to be dropped to compete in the NSW NPL4 competition for the 2020 season, the Eagles would finish third last.
In 2020 the Eagles won their first two games of the season before all football was halted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Honours/Highlights

Argentina
Australia
Austria
Cameroon
Guinea
Lebanon
Malta
Philippines
Poland
Uruguay