Adelaide United have announced Stefan Mauk as the Club’s new Captain ahead of the A-League 2020/21 season.
Mauk becomes the tenth Captain and fifth South Australian in the Reds’ history after Aurelio Vidmar, Ross Aloisi, Angelo Costanzo, and Travis Dodd.
At 25 years of age, the dynamic midfielder is also the youngest skipper since the Club’s inception and will be supported by fellow South Australian, Jordan Elsey, and winger, Ben Halloran, with the three making up the Reds’ new three-man leadership group.
Mauk joined Adelaide midway through the 2015/16 season from Melbourne City, and provided the impetus as United went on to claim an unprecedented Premiership and Championship double.
After a spell in the Netherlands and back in the A-League, Mauk returned to his hometown Club at the start of 2020 and demonstrated his immense leadership qualities from the outset.
Mauk said being bestowed the honour of wearing the armband was a tremendous privilege and is relishing the extra responsibility.
“As an Adelaide boy and someone who, as a young child, grew up watching this great Club play I’m very proud to be named Captain.
“This isn’t something I necessarily expected, but I’m honoured to be representing Adelaide United in this way moving forward.
“When you consider the immense servants this Club has had wear the Captain’s armband before me, and to even be thought of in a similar light to them, is very special.
“I’m not sure if the gravity of this has truly sunk in yet, but I understand how privileged I am to be given this responsibility and I look forward to leading this amazing group of boys, fans, and Club towards many more successes in the near future.”
Speaking on Mauk’s appointment as Captain, Adelaide United Head Coach, Carl Veart, said: “We’re very proud to have Stefan take the armband and be our Captain of Adelaide United.
“Since he returned to the Club, it was clear to me, and I think clear to a lot of people, that Stefan is a natural leader and someone who has all the attributes to represent Adelaide United as Captain.
“But our team is lucky to have a number of outstanding, experienced leaders, not just Stefan, Jordan (Elsey) and Ben (Halloran), who make up our entire leadership group.
“James (Troisi) and Michael (Marrone) have a lot of invaluable experience and knowledge to share, the same with Michael (Jakobsen), who did a fantastic job leading the team through a very challenging season last season.
“I’m sure these boys will continue to do their part for the team, leading by example and setting high standards for the younger players to aspire towards.
“In Stefan we have someone who strives for team excellence every day and is someone who I believe has the necessary respect of the entire football club to drive us further forward.”
Adelaide United Captains:
- Aurelio Vidmar (2003–2004)
- Ross Aloisi (2005–2007)
- Angelo Costanzo (2007)
- Michael Valkanis (2007–2008)
- Travis Dodd (2008–2011)
- Jon McKain (2011)
- Eugene Galekovic (2011–2017)
- Isaías Sánchez (2017–2019)
- Michael Jakobsen (2019–2020)
- Stefan Mauk (2020–present
