By Adrian Ceddia
VLADO Tortevski has been handed the opportunity of a lifetime.
The former Altona Magic coach is back in the driving seat after almost two years, and holds a perfect opportunity to lead the club to a Vodafone Cup premiership.
With successful coach Ken Murphy making the switch from Altona to Kingston City in the past two weeks, Tortevski was invited back in an official capacity to lead the Magic’s charge toward the finals.
The last time he was in charge, in 2004, Tortevski led Altona to the grand final, which ended in a heartbreaking penalty shootout loss to Bulleen.
“It’s unfinished business for me,” he said.
“I was disappointed in myself because we lost a grand final in a penalty shootout.
“I was a bit down after the loss, but hopefully it will be a good experience for the games coming up and the finals.”
Altona officials approached Tortevski immediately after the club’s round 20 loss to Richmond, offering the former coach another chance to lead the Magic.
Tortevski had little hesitation in agreeing, and immediately set about consolidating the strong ladder position achieved by Murphy, a close friend and former team-mate, for the majority of the regular season.
“In our job anything is possible. Nothing surprises me about being a coach,” Tortevski said.
“Today you’re on the top and tomorrow you never know.”
Altona is sitting comfortably in the top three after 22 rounds, and is strongly in contention for the double chance in the finals with just four games to be played.
But Tortevski is under no illusions the rest of the season will be a simple glide to the finish.
“We have a very hard rest of the season in the final weeks,” he said.
“But I’m very positive. I’ve been there before and most of the players are still there. Most of the people at the club know me.
“I’m very happy with the response from the players. They want to continue the partnership.”
Altona finishes the season with matches against Bulleen, Frankston, Green Gully and Heidelberg – a favourable draw which includes only one team currently in the top six.
“Our club is definitely in the (premiership) race, and on their day anyone can surprise anyone,” Tortevski said.
“We’ll try to scratch some points out of the rest of the season and get a double chance, and we’ll see what happens from there.”
