Football the stuff of dreams

IT’S the 56th minute in Porto Alegre and Socceroo skipper Mile Jedinak has just fired the Socceroos 2-1 ahead over the Netherlands, my friend and I are in the stands, and we’re going crazy, as we scream to each other, ‘‘How good is this!’’.

In that moment I think back to 1997, where I was left in my lounge room in tears from a second half capitulation at the hands of Iran, which robbed us of a World Cup berth at the final hurdle.

Even to this day it still hurts, and I often ask myself, what might have been.

Revenge may just arrive on home soil in this Asian Cup, but I doubt it will heal the wound.

The point of all this, is the fact for so long just making the World Cup was a pipedream, yet back in June, we stood within half an hour of taking down the 2010 World Cup runners-up, and the side who would eventually finish third.

For so long we just wanted to be a part of it, and for many nations the Asian Cup is simply a chance to belong.

Tournaments like the Asian Cup are magical, because more often than not, the unexpected happens.

Take Iraq in 2007, then and still a country in turmoil, their squad had been weakened, with players taking political asylum in foreign lands whilst on tour. Families of the players were tortured as a result to get them home, and perhaps as a deterrent to those who remained.

Yet somehow this nation, who no one gave a hope to, not only downed the highly rated Socceroos, but went on to lift the trophy.


Palestine, who we watched here in Newcastle on Monday against Japan, is the feel good story of this edition. Their struggles are well known, and it’s a triumph that their football side is even here at the Asian Cup. They were only recognised as an independent state by FIFA back in 1998. It’s their first top-tier tournament and they booked their place by winning the AFC Challenge Cup in May.

Football is somewhat insignificant, when you look at the wider context involving Palestine, but it offers so many hope of a brighter future.

It offers hope to a child on the West Bank, that when he looks down at the crest of his jersey, he knows it means something. Those players are playing for him, and if he practices hard, and has a bit of luck, one day he could be one of them.

Just like the dreams I had in 1997. Sadly, I never became a Socceroo, but I got to the World Cup and I wore my colours with pride.

There’s simply nothing like travelling overseas in support of your country. The long walk to the stadium, is full of colour.

You sing like you never have before. We will for that excitement from the fans of other nations over the next few weeks.

And as a fan for the next 90 or so minutes, there’s no place you’d rather be. You ride every pass, tackle and cover your eyes with every shot on goal, and for that 90 minutes, you belong.

You boo, scream and battle the opposition in the stands, just as fiercely as the players are on the pitch. But at full-time, you shake hands, take photos and head to the nearest watering hole, to either drown your sorrows or celebrate victory.

Who cares about the Asian Cup?

Four hundred and eighty four million people in 80 countries watched the final between Japan and Australia in 2011, and the 2015 final is expected to be viewed by over 900 million. Asia routinely provides the biggest viewing audience for the World Cup and top European leagues, such as the Premier League.

The cup is here on our doorstep. After Monday night’s match, Newcastle still has three more games.

Don’t miss your opportunity to be a part of it.

My most treasured memories of the World Cup in Brazil was the interaction with opposition fans, learning their chants, hearing their stories and being inspired at what it took for each of them to be there.

That’s the magic of football.

Asian Cup no easy street for the Socceroos

It might be the fact that Australia’s time in the Asian Football Confederation is still in its infancy, but the perception is that the Socceroos are destined for the Asian Cup final.

In reality, it is going to be a lot harder than people think.

Big things are expected of the home country, and with expectation comes pressure. As if the Socceroos needed any more of that on their shoulders.

Ange Postecoglou’s men have been in abysmal form in recent times as the country free falls in the FIFA rankings. For the record, we’re currently sitting at 101, our lowest ever and just below Macedonia, Mozambique and Antigua and Barbuda.

The FIFA rankings have long been viewed as a joke, and I put about as much credence in them as I do the McDonalds Healthy Choice menu, but the ranking does highlight how far we’ve fallen in such a short time.

It’s not just the players under pressure either, with Postecoglou well and truly starting to wear out the public’s optimism.

In the 19 games under his tutelage the Socceroos have won four, drawn five and lost ten.


Our last four fixtures have all been against Asian opposition, and we’ve won just one of them.


A 3-2 win over Saudi Arabia in September, was followed by a 0-0 draw with the United Arab Emirates, before back to back defeats, losing 1-0 to Qatar and 2-1 to Japan.

Postecoglou has been experimenting with different players throughout this time but, to be fair, the nucleus of the squad has remained the same as have the results - disappointing.

It follows a World Cup which was strangely met with optimism despite losing all three games and conceding nine goals.

Our bad luck in the World Cup draw, which landed us Spain, Netherlands and Chile, has followed us into the Asian Cup.


Make no mistake, we’re in a difficult group. Sure we should progress, but it’s not a fait accompli.

Oman, Kuwait and South Korea have all beaten us in recent years. Oman managed a 1-0 win and 2-2 draw during the last World Cup qualification, Kuwait beat us 1-0 in Canberra in 2009 and South Korea are one of the toughest in Asia.

All have pace in their ranks, which have long proven an Achilles heel for the Socceroos back four.

Defence is the biggest hole that Postecoglou has to somehow fill. We can find the back of the net at least while Tim Cahill is still around, having scored 25 goals in our last 19, but it’s the other end of the pitch that causes issues.

We’ve conceded 32 goals in our 19 games under Ange, an average of 1.64 per game.

Injury has hampered Ange’s ability to settle on a central defensive pairing with Matthew Spiranovic and Trent Sainsbury spending time on the sidelines, allowing Alex Wilkinson to rise in favour. Jason Davidson has hardly featured at West Brom since the World Cup, whilst Ivan Franjic has had a similar experience with his move to Russia.

Whilst many are saying that home ground advantage will be enough for the Socceroos to get over the line, it remains to be seen just how much a help it is given the media spotlight is also a brighter one on home soil.

Getting out of the group will prove a challenge, and one the Socceroos should accomplish. But what’s most important is that we finish top of the group, so we avoid reigning Asian champions Japan until the final.

Finishing second in the group would mean we meet the Japanese in a semi-final in Newcastle, a silver lining for Novocastrians but not so much for the Socceroos chances.

We all know Japan’s quality and we all get to witness it first-hand when they open their title defence against Palestine on Monday. Any side with the likes of Honda, Kagawa, Endo and Nagotomo will take some stopping.

Iran is a real chance, and they’ve flown under the radar a little in the expert’s predictions.


They are the number one ranked side in Asia for a reason and impressed at the World Cup, where they stretched eventual finalists Argentina all the way.


The Asian Cup promises so much for football in Australia. It’s an opportunity for the game to continue to grow in the leaps and bounds it has in recent years, exposing our appetite for football and the growing Asian influence on it.

Newcastle has a tremendous opportunity that doesn’t come often, hosting four games. The city will see two pool matches and a semi-final which could involve the Socceroos or even Japan-South Korea, plus the third and fourth playoff.

The Socceroos weren’t performing well before the last Asian Cup last time, and should have won it, so don’t give up all hope. But if a racehorse showed this form before a big race, you’d probably send it to the glue factory rather than plonking down your hard earned.

As a Socceroos fan, I’d love nothing more than seeing Mile Jedinak lift the trophy come January 28 in Sydney. But the Socceroos must show a tonne of improvement for that to become a reality.

*Article originally appeared in the Newcastle Herald