Connor Becsi cannot think of anything he would rather be doing than playing the game he grew up on.   The 20-year old defender officially closed the door on a two-year absence from football over the weekend when he came on as a late substitute in Inglewood United’s 5-2 demolition of Joondalup United.

That appearance may have been brief but it marked a significant milestone for Becsi, who at the end of 2015 walked away from the game to play Australian Rules football.   However, the world game was never far from his heart and an invitation from Inglewood coach Taki Nicolaidis was all it took for him to return to the game he knows best.

“I missed my natural sport, the sport that I grew up playing,” Becsi commented, who made his first team debut as a teenager for then Perth SC helmsman Nicolaidis.   “Taki called me towards the end of last season to see if I would be interested in coming back and I could not have been happier.   I’ve been enjoying my sport ever since.”

“I’ve had some time in the Under-20s to remove the cobwebs, get back into football and now I’m ready to take the next step when my time comes.   I love being a part of the playing squad at Inglewood.   We have a really good set of coaches and players so it is a good environment to be in.”

Becsi has set some realistic goals for his return season.   “I’m hoping to mature as a centre back and really focus on my communication skills on the pitch,” he said.   “I have some experienced players I can watch and grow from such as Blacky (Scott Blackmore), Tongy (Adam Tong) and (David) Cyrus so I am quite fortunate.”

“There’s a lot of talent in the team so I’m happy just to be a part of the squad, and getting minutes on the weekend was a real bonus.   I want to contribute to Inglewood’s success as the season goes on and will be working hard to do so.   And hopefully that will lead to more game time for me.”