Features
The smallest club in the NPL behind one of Australian football's hottest strikers
By Sacha Pisani17 July 2026
A quick glance at the NPL NNSW standings and the Golden Boot race and two things immediately stand out: Belmont-Swansea United and Marco Gueli.
While Broadmeadow Magic lead the way atop the summit, Belmont-Swansea are well and truly in the mix for title contention. Their German-born striker Gueli is also one of the hottest strikers in Australian football with 23 goals in 17 matches.
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Belmont-Swansea - the club from Blacksmiths in the Hunter region - do not have the biggest budget. They don't boast the biggest facilities or the deepest resources.
What they do have is belief.
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Just two years after earning promotion to NPL NNSW, the community club are third in the table but only a point behind second-placed Weston Bears with a game in hand. They are eight points behind the Magic amid a remarkable 14-match unbeaten run that has them dreaming of an unlikely title.
For head coach Michael Stafford, the transformation didn't begin this season. It's been almost a decade in the making.
"We're the smallest club in the NPL with limited resources, but in the 90 minutes on matchday, it's irrelevant," Stafford told HIGHPRESS.
"The players embraced that challenge and every match that passes, our belief that we can compete at this level grows.
“The foundations are being set for Belmont-Swansea to become a mainstay in the NPL.”
That belief has been built on far more than results.
Founded 91 years ago, Belmont-Swansea enjoyed success in Northern NSW's top flight during the 1980s before spending decades competing in the second division.
Stafford first arrived at the club as a player before taking over as head coach in 2016.
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Back-to-back Grand Final triumphs in 2018 and 2019 followed, before another title in 2022 reinforced the club's ambitions. When promotion and relegation returned in 2024, Belmont-Swansea finally had their opportunity.
"The framework was there to be successful, it just needed the right people involved," Stafford said.
“When promotion and relegation came back, the vision was there to get Belmont-Swansea back into the top flight.”
"Credit to the new Board of Directors and the local community. They all backed that vision."
But climbing the divisions was never the end goal. Stafford wanted Belmont-Swansea to become a destination for local footballers.
For years, many of the region's brightest talents chose larger Newcastle clubs. Now, he believes the tide is beginning to turn.
"The aspiration has always been to create a strong pathway for local footballers to play at the highest level," Stafford said.
"For many years, talented young players bypassed Belmont-Swansea for clubs with bigger reputations.
“I believe we've broken that cycle. We now have talented young and experienced players performing at their local club, while many former first-grade players are coaching throughout our youth system.”
That culture has also helped attract talent from overseas. No signing has made a bigger impact than Gueli.
The former VfB Stuttgart and FC Heidenheim youth player arrived in Australia ahead of the 2026 season after connecting with Stafford through an overseas football network.
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Seventeen games later, the 25-year-old has scored 23 goals to lead the Golden Boot race and establish himself as one of Australian state league football's breakout stars.
"Marco is a class above this league," Stafford said. "His technical ability is unrivalled in NPL Northern NSW. His speed, strength and work ethic have been a pleasure to watch.
"Once we signed Marco alongside Andrew McGee, our playing principles really took shape. They're the perfect pairing in attack and have become the pillar of our strength."
As Gueli's goals continued to pile up, so too did interest from clubs across Australia's state leagues. Yet despite opportunities elsewhere, the German elected to stay.
For Stafford, that decision spoke volumes.
"Marco stayed true and loyal to Belmont-Swansea and wanted to finish what he started," he said. "That reflects the type of person he is, but it also shows our club values are spot on.
“When visa players arrive here, we look after them like family. As a club, we go above and beyond to provide the best environment for them to succeed.”
Stafford is equally convinced Gueli has the quality to step into professional football.
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So convinced, in fact, that he has personally reached out to Newcastle Jets general manager Nigel Boogaard in an attempt to secure the striker - and strike partner Andrew McGee - an opportunity.
"I've been pushing the case for Marco and Andrew to get a trial," Stafford revealed.
“It hasn't gained any traction yet, but in the right environment they would excel.”
"Clubs in Victoria and Sydney would also be a great test for Marco because the standard there is another step up."
For now, though, neither Stafford nor Gueli are looking too far ahead. The focus remains firmly on Belmont-Swansea's 2026 campaign.
Stafford believes the team have already accomplished something just as important. A community club once overlooked has become a club players now want to join.
If Gueli's remarkable rise is anything to go by, Belmont-Swansea's story is only just beginning.
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