About us
Our story
The Futbol Academy was founded with the vision of providing high-quality football training in Far North Queensland. Our programs are designed to enhance technical ability, game intelligence, and confidence on the field.
We aim to Create technically gifted, robust, respectful, professional and hard-working athletes.
Our coaching philosophy emphasizes technical excellence, smart decision-making, and a love for the game.
Our coaches
Joshua Pin
Hailing from FNQ, Josh’ playing career has taken him to England, Melbourne, and Brisbane, and is now excited to bring his experiences back to Cairns to pass on to the next generation.
Josh came through the NPL system from 16 years old with the FNQ Heat, before moving to England for 3 years. Josh then returned to Australia signing for NPL side Eastern Suburbs before securing a move to one of Australia most prestigious clubs Heidelberg FC in NPL Victoria.
Josh has been involved in the Australian Cup quarter finals, Round of 16, and most recently scoring 2 goals against treble winners Central Coast Mariners and establishing himself as a top striker in the league.
Josh’s started coaching juniors at age 16 and has since worked with numerous academies and NPL sides. Most recent, Josh has worked for one of the biggest football performance centres in Australia developing junior & senior (semi-pro/professional) athletes technically and physically.
With a small stint at Caravella Football Academy in 2020, Josh understands the importance of developing FNQ Footballers.
Crios O’Hare
With a playing career including spells in England, Ireland and Melbourne, Crios’ experience in the game has culminated in a deep understanding of junior development.
Locally, Crios has amassed an incredible 14 trophies (out of a possible 16) in the past 6 years as head coach of Marlin Coast Rangers and Edge Hill United, while also collecting multiple coach of the year and golden boot awards. Crios also led Edge Hill United to become to the first community club to reach the round of 32 in the FFA Cup.
As a former head coach at Caravella Football Academy for 10 years, Crios has already played a part in developing the region’s best junior players.
Antony Hall
Antony joins as our Head Goalkeeping Coach and will work with our Total Performance Program goalkeepers every week.
Antony’s playing career included spells in England, Scotland and Australia, which included multiple accolades in the NPL Queensland.
Antony’s coaching career has included head goalkeeping coaching roles at Brisbane Strikers and Sunshine Coast Fire as well as being an international coach for West Ham Academy for 14 years.
Ciaran Murray
Ciaran, born and raised in Ireland and has recently moved to Australia. He has a background in ‘Sports Management & Coaching and also played in the Youth League of Ireland as a player.
Since moving over to Australia, Ciaran has continued his footballing career and has been playing at Marlin Coast Rangers & Edge Hill United. He has successfully won 2 trophies under coach Crios.
Ciaran will also be in charge of the newly branded ‘Futbol 5’s’.
Chris Knight
As a born and raised cairns local, Chris has been part of the FNQ football community since u6s at Leichhardt FC.
Some long-term injuries forced him to take an extended break from the game as a teenager and when returning discovered a new appreciation for the fundamentals of the game and the importance of a solid base of skill to be able to progress in the game.
After some short stints as an assistant on the coaching staff at Leichhardt and FNQ U17 development squads Chris spent a few years in Brisbane with Annerley FC before returning home and linking with Zenon Caravella at CFA, taking on Joeys and beginners groups to help develop their technique and basic game understanding to help them on their football journeys.
Pasco Rogato
Pasco, a proud Far North Queenslander, has been deeply involved in local football for over 40 years.
His journey began as a six-year-old junior in Mareeba. As a local player, he has won it all, including League titles, Grand Finals and Crad Evans trophies for Leichhardt, and Mareeba.
Pasco then represented FNQ in the Queensland State Cup which was a precursor for the Queensland State League.
Since then Pasco has coached Leichhardt, and worked at the Caravella Football Academy for a number of years and is now currently the head coach at Stratford Dolphins.
Widely regarded as one of the best Football minds in the Far North, we are buzzing to have Pasco onboard with our team!
Josh Taylor
With a glittering NPL career under his belt with clubs including Sunshine Coast Fire, Brisbane Strikers and Cairns FC, Taylor is still regarded as a top winger in the local league with Marlin Coast Rangers.
Josh’s junior coaching experience is almost unmatched in FNQ. While being a head coach at the Caravella Football Academy for over 5 years, he also runs the Cairns High School Boys Football Program, winning multiple titles and helping develop the next generation of FNQ Footballers.