He will play his final soccer match in Port Pirie in front of a home crowd on Saturday.

Amato, who is captain of Port Pirie City, said: “The season has not finished but I always knew I wanted to play my last game at home.

“And what will make this even a more momentous occasion is the fact that I will be opposing my close friend Anthony Fasciano who is captain of Northern Demons, the team we will be playing.”

Joe as he likes to be called was born in Port Pirie and has a great fondness for his birth town saying that it is a fantastic place to live and raise his family.

He is married to Aleasha and has three children, Bianca, 5, Ava, 2, and Cohen, nine months old.

Amato, now 32, has been passionate about soccer since he started playing at the age of seven for St Mark’s College.

At 13 he transferred to his beloved club, which was then Savoy, and played in the under 15 division, already showing leadership potential.

He was being groomed for a senior position and played his first A grade match in 1993 aged 18.

‘Awesome’ team-mates

“It was the most wonderful experience playing with players that I was basically born and bred with, players that I had always looked up to; it was awesome,” he said.

“Some of the characters of the team I have a great admiration for were the Corrieri brothers, Spider Caputo, Colin Turci and Sandro Mezzino.

“These players really helped me and playing along side them was a real buzz.”

In 1994, Savoy won the premiership in the Northern Areas Soccer Association beating arch rival Virtus in front of the biggest crowd possibly ever seen at a soccer match in Port Pirie.

About 2000 soccer fanatics divided in their loyalties saw this historic match played between top team Virtus and the underdog Savoy.

“This premiership was probably my best sporting moment and the highlight of my career,” he said.

“Savoy and Virtus have been rivals for years, but we are mostly friends off the field and have a great deal of respect for each other.”

In 1996 Savoy changed its name to Port Pirie City and made it to the big time soccer arena in Adelaide where the team played in a better and tougher competition.

“I remember the thrill of playing to huge crowds, but it was hard and even though success did not come straight away, it was a good change,” he said.

Two years later Virtus joined the State League and became the Northern Demons and again the two teams were to eventually meet in an epic match.

In 2000, Port Pirie City had to win a knock-out final against Northern Demons to advance into the Premier League which was a dream of the team.

Huge crowd

In a match that drew a huge crowd between the two Port Pirie powerhouse teams, City won on penalties.

This win advanced them to the highest level in State soccer, but the competition was the toughest the team had ever encountered which resulted in a return to the second division after a year.

Meanwhile, something happened that was to change the young soccer player’s life.

In the same year he was premiership captain and presented with life membership to the club, Amato felt a lump on his neck that could not be dismissed.

This proved to be Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and what follows is a story of courage and survival.

He was only 25 years old, at the peak of his soccer career and had been married for 12 months.

The shocked and disbelieving fighter knew he had to deal with it the best way he could and maintain as normal a life as possible.

During the time his cancer-stricken body was blasted with chemotherapy, Amato, against the wishes of his wife, decided he was going to continue playing soccer.

So throughout the nine-month treatment, the fiercely independent player took to the field every second week; the week opposite to his treatment.

“It was pretty tough, but with the support of my wife and family, my soccer mates and work colleagues, I got through the challenging time,” he said.

Continuing to play the game he loves kept his mind off his fears and was his saviour, playing a big part in his recovery.

“I was very lucky, I was young, extremely fit and stayed positive and confident,” said Joe.

“Throughout my treatment, I saw people a lot worse than me and I cherished how lucky I was.” Amato said that in the past eight years many experienced and older players had retired and the club was starting to rebuild.

He said that it had been a tough time, but the wheels turn and the future looks good.

A favorite son of the club has earned himself some outstanding credentials in his 20-year commitment.

He was first chosen captain at 23 and has served as the leader for seven years, which included four straight from 1998 to 2001.

He was a player-coach from 2004 to 2007 and in 2005 was runner-up Coach of the Year in the State League.

This was a great honor as his peers, the other clubs’ coaches, chose the award.

Although he was never to win a fairest-and-best player, he was runner-up three times. His weapon on the field was consistency.

He always suspected he would know when it was time to retire and he made this decision at the beginning of the season.

“It is time to step down and make way for some of the promising juniors,” he said.

“But I will continue to be involved in the growth and development of the club.”

He agreed that sport is a huge part of a person’s life and is the path to meeting life-long friends and bonding with teammates, “friendships like that of Vin Degioia whom I have played soccer with every season since juniors,” he said.

Praise for family

Most important, he praises his wife and children, parents Frank and Maria Amato, and his siblings who have been a massive support throughout his career.

His sister Martine Amato is an elite A grade netballer for St Mark’s Celtic and younger brother Marcus is a handy player for the”‘green-and-whites”.

One of Amato’s most treasured moments was the birth of his children and speaking of his only son Cohen, he hopes he has a future in soccer, but he will certainly not put any pressure on him.

He said his daughters would probably follow Auntie Martine onto the netball courts.

There is no denying he will miss the excitement of competitive sport and the last hooray will be a bitter-sweet moment.

Culminating a memorable career, his last game will be billed as Joe’s ultimate showdown.

PHOTO:

FOND FAREWELL…Port Pirie City captain, Joseph Amato, pictured with two-year-old daughter Ava, triumphed over cancer during his soccer career. He is now about to play his final match.