The future of defence of Australia can probably be best described as uncertain. Below, I have listed defenders who are not in Pim Verbeek’s provisional squad for the game against China and who could potentially have a future in the national team. If I have missed anybody, please let me know.
A-League players: Griffiths, North, Milligan, Topor-Stanley, Zadkovich, Boogaard, Cornthwaite, Timpano, Ryall, Griffin, Porter, D’Apuzzo, Milicevic, Durante.
Non A-League players: Thwaite, Leijer, Spiranovic.
As you can see, all but two of the players, Thwaite and Spiranovic, are either not in the A-League or have never played in the A-League which reinforces the importance of the A-League being the breeding ground for the next generation of Socceroos. I am not going to comment on every player in the list. I will comment just on the ones I know best and have seen play on sufficient occasions.
Jade North
At the middle of the road age of 26, he could be a contender. He was part of the very impressive Under-17 squad that came runners-up in the 1999 FIFA U-17’s World Cup. He was a first-teamer and faced off against the likes of Adriano and Landon Donovan. Having already earned 15 caps for the senior team, he also has a fair bit of experience.
What is holding North back is the lack of exposure to European football. North has had a very successful career in domestic football, winning three championships, but he has yet to play professionally outside of Australia. Even with Michael Beauchamp really falling out of favour at Nurnberg, he is still preferred to North. This might give credence to Pim Verbeek’s earlier state and he might actually believe that training and playing reserve football in the Bundesliga is better than playing in the A-League.
As long as he remains in the A-League, he will remain a fringe Socceroo at best. It’s pretty obvious from the selection policy of the last three Australian managers that exposure to European football is a perquisite for selection in competitive matches. Can North make it in Europe? I think so. I don’t think that there is much of a gulf between him and Beauchamp, if any. I’ve actually never heard of North being linked to a move to Europe which is worrying and may suggest that European scouts just don’t think his got what it takes. I would love some comments, particularly from Newcastle fans, in relation to why you think North hasn’t made it to Europe yet and if you think Europe is still a realistic ambition. For me, it might be his lack of off the mark acceleration. I have seen him beaten a few times by the opponent simply knocking the ball to the side and running past him.
Mark Milligan
The captain of the Socceroos and the player touted to be the heir to Lucas Neil’s Socceroo captaincy. His talent was recognised by Hiddink as he was the youngest player to make the 2006 World Cup squad and was one of only two A-League players. In the 2007 Asian Cup, he started the tournament on the bench. Neil was suspended for the final group game against Thailand in what was a must win game. Milligan came into the centre-back position and played superbly and really solidified an Australian defence that looked very shaky in the first two games. His performance earned him the starting spot along side Beauchamp as Patrick Kisnorbo and Neil were dropped and moved to right back respectively. His rise continued as he gained the captaincy of the Olyroos, leading them to qualification for the Olympics with back-to-back man of the match performances against North Korea.
He went for a trial at French club Metz but apparently returned to Australia because he was going to be played in his non-preferred position of right-back. He is apparently on his way out of the club for good this time and has apparently signed for French outfit, Lens who are currently struggling against relegation. Metz, by the way, is bottom of the table and definitely doomed for relegation.
It is ironic that Milligan is making the move now given all the previous highlights of his career and the fact that he is coming off the back of some horror form. I remember watching Milligan give away two goals as Perth shocked Sydney. Both times, Milligan was very inattentive in his play and very clumsy in his distribution which resulted in the goals. Even when the Olyroos beat Iraq 2-0 in their must win game at Gosford, I still remember Milligan making a horrible mistake with a misplaced back header than one of the Iraqis almost got on the end of.
Given his age and the promise he showed in years previous to this, you would have to image that Milligan will have some kind of future with the Socceroos and it could potentially be a significant future. It is a bit disappointing that I am still talking about the potential of Milligan because after the Asian Cup, I really expected him to push on, move to Europe and try to establish himself as a Socceroos regular. I hope he does make it because all the right ingredients are there.
More to come.
