Socceroos Year in Review with Scott from Brisbane Football Review

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Hello and welcome to the Aussie Football Passport. And this week we have a

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little bit of a different episode and I'm joined by a special guest guest,

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longtime friend and podcaster,

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Scott from the Brisbane Football Review. How are you, Scott? Good to

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be here with you, Alex. Longtime listener, first time podcaster. Good to be with you.

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Yes, very good to have you, Scott. So look,

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first of all, I might get you to give us a little plug where our

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listeners can find your wonderful podcast, the Brisbane Football Review.

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So if you are looking to find us at the Brisbane Football Review, you can

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search for us on socials, Facebook, Twitter, X Instagram, all those good social

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media platforms. You can find us on there. Our podcast is up on Spotify,

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Apple and a bunch of others. Currently we're in our A League mode. So A

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League shows out each and every week during the A League men's and women's season

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now and our Queensland Football show that will be back in early 2026 where

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we look at the NPL, the Queensland cup and all the local football going on

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around the state of Queensland. So you can keep an eye out for those on

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your podcasting platforms over the next couple weeks. Alex. Yeah, brilliant and highly

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recommend of course, where all of our Socceroos and Matilda start at state

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level. And of course Scott and the team at Brisbane Football.

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We do a wonderful job of covering the local game, which is

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well worth checking out folks. But anyway,

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let's have a chat about the Socceroos and today we're going to talk about

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the year in review. The Socceroos had a wonderful year and

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basically first automatic World cup qualification

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for the first time since 2009, which is quite refreshing.

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Instead of going through the nail biting, hair pulling qualification,

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sudden death phase that we seem to have.

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Well, for quite a while now. But yeah, so the March

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international window we had wins against Indonesia 51 at

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home in Sydney and then away to China 2

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nil. And in that first game in particular, Scott, we won five

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one. But I thought that, I thought in fact Indonesia

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outplayed us, but we seem to get a 51 win.

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So I mean, let us know your thoughts, Scott, on,

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on that game. Well, I think the big thing at first about that game was

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the first game of the Patrick Kaivert era for Indonesia, wasn't they were really starting

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to double and triple down on the, on the Dutch route in Indonesia in terms

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of trying to strengthen their national team and that did work quite well for them

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getting as far as they did in World cup qualifying. But from the soccer perspective,

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I think they got a couple of early goals in that game and looked pretty

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good in creating those chances. And then after that it was very much

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Indonesia getting on top of them. Of course they did have the penalty very early

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on in the game and it could have been completely different if they did convert

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that opportunity very early in the game. I think attacking wise we saw

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probably little bits of what we would see on the Tony Popovich

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going for Nishan Void playing. He had a really good game on that night from

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memory as well down there in Sydney. But it was a game where Australia

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simply had to win. Wasn't after the slip up in Indonesia

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earlier in the qualifying, the slip up at home to Bahrain, there was no room

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for error. They had to win the game and they did pretty well to win

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the game. But there were signs all wasn't 100% rosy going into the rest

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of qualifying though. That was probably the, the, the lesser performance

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or the worst of the four performances in World cup qualifying because the three following

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which we'll talk about, I think they were probably all levels up that.

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Yeah, 100%. And it was, you know, you know,

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as you said, I guess maybe because the pressure was on and, and as

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you said, Patrick Clivert had put together basically the, the,

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the Dutch third string side if you like with that Indonesia side

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and they knew exactly how they wanted to play and they came here and they

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did it. But yeah, the score line just didn't reflect what they did. I mean

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that penalty was quite soft but anyway let's, let's not quite hang, let's not get

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hung up on that because we did win 5 1. But that China game,

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I think for me what really stood out with that one again the pressure

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was on, it was a way and it was a really clinical performance.

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But there's two midfielders in that game that really stood out to me and that

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was Ryan Teague who of course was

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you know, on the list for China to

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actually try and get nationalized or play in

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the team at the very least the national side. But Jackson Irvine with an

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absolute captain's knock up there in China, a wonderful performance and

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I'm sure you'll agree with. Me there, yeah, they were the two best players on

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the field for the soccer in that game up there in China. Ryan Teague making

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his debut in that game, the Melbourne Victory as he was then midfielder now

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playing overseas. He had a sensational game on debut as you said, could have gone

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and played for China. Luckily for Australia, he's a part of our team going forward

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for the next decade or so. Because that was a, a really good performance from

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him in midfield and Jackson in, in away games like this. That a must when

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you need your big players to step up, whether it's club or country. And Jack

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SN certainly did that in this game and I thought it was a, a really

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professional road win from a Tony Pop, which he's been accustomed

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to doing in Asia with the Western Sydney Wanderers. It was a cut and paste

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job from what he'd done through their Asian Championship campaign a decade or so ago.

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That was a really good performance. But I just watching it,

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I couldn't believe that. How awful ordinary

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China were in this game for the, the Pop. I know the population theory argument

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gets blown out of proportionate times, but they have a lot of people to choose

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from. They put a lot of money into their football and they just can't seem

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to find a way to win games like this or to get close in

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games like this. And I think that's the step China need to take. But from

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an Australian perspective, we were really, really, really impressive in that game.

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Yeah, it was, it was a really professional performance as

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you said, and really effective. Both, both of those games are really effective

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in front of goal. And Ryan Teague in particular, you thought,

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oh wow, we've, we've found a really good player and Unfort just didn't

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seem to work from there on in. I mean the rest of his A league

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season was outstanding as, as we saw for Melbourne Victory as they

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went on to the Grand Final. But from, from there he got his move to

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Belgium and it's just not quite worked out for him there. But I

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wanted to pick up your point about Tony Popovic knowing how to do it in

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Asia, particularly the, the Western Sydney Wonders going away to Saudi Arabia and winning the

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Asian Champions League and leads us on perfectly to the next two

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games where the, the pressure was on again for, for Autom and

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they did the business, the lads, didn't they? Going over to Perth to play

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Japan, getting a 1 nil win and then going to Saudi and beating

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them in their own backyard. Two one, nothing to be sneezed at and securing World

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cup qualification automatically for the first time since 2009.

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As we said at the top of the show, it was two really incredible performances.

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But let's start with the game in Perth of course remembered for that

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wonderful Aziz Page strike on his weaker foots and,

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and probably the, the man of the year, you'd almost say, wouldn't you?

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Certainly. Soccer of the year potentially with a moment like that. It goes right there

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with Josh Kennedy's header in Sydney. Miller, he had an ax penalty and Sydney won't

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put it with the Heroica 2005 at this stage. All the.

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All the stuff in Qatar with Andrew Redma, but in terms of moments of Australian

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football, that was certainly right up there. The funny thing is about the game is

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it was a Japanese side which was. I won't say second string, but it was

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slightly experimental in terms of they had a lot of players they were trying out

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for, see what they could build their depth for the World cup and Asian cup

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coming up and funny things. I actually thought they probably outplayed Australian

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in large parts of that game. They just had. The quintessential problem is they don't

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score enough goals, don't take the chances that they create. And in football, if you

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don't take your chances, eventually the opposition will get at least one chance. That took

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Australia until the 93rd minute to get that chance. It was a great moment over

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there in person. Almost set it up then perfectly at that point it was almost

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a short. Australia were going to qualify and just one last step in Saudi Arabia.

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It's funny though, we talk about Tony Popovic. His best performances in his campaign have

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all been on the road. When you think about it, the home games have been

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more dicey than the away games. They have. Yeah, you spot on there because you.

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You look at. I mean, yes, again, going back to that Indonesia

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game, we won 5 1, but it was. It was really ordinary performance from.

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From the Socceroos. But then, you know, the very next game after the

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Japan win was to Saudi Arabia and we beat them 2:1 in their own backyard.

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And, you know, Matt Ryan pulled off an absolute masterclass in goal.

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I think it was a significant cut from him, was. It was his 100th

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cup from memory, something like that. I think it was around that as well.

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Yeah, he's only away from the record, so that'll be about right. Yeah,

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so, I mean, he pulled off an absolute masterclass and

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in fact, little did we know that was. I think it was his last.

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Last game as the starting goalkeeper. From there, I think Paul Itzo took

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talk to Chain, but the. The starting spot, but we'll get onto that later.

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But again, a wonderful performance on the road, as you said, it's Tony

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Popovich just seems to produce these sides that have that siege mentality where

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they go away and they're able to. To do the business away from home rather

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than at home, which is rather bizarre, isn't it? It is rather

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bizarre, but that was satisfyingly professional. The way I would describe that game. It was

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incredibly professional. I went to Saudi Arabia. They needed a huge win obviously to

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try and get themselves into the ordinary qualification spot. They did go ahead in the

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game and thought oh, maybe something could happen here, something that scored in the first

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15, 20 minutes or so. But after that Australia settled down, got themselves

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back into the game. Connor Metcalfe, I admit I'm not the biggest fan of,

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in that, that role, but that was by far and away his best game in

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a, in an Australia show. It got them back into it. And then there was

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you head up from Mitch Duke later on in the second half that did get

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them the win and you mentioned the save from Matt Ryan and we'll get,

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might get onto it later on but that save could have been absolutely crucial in

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determining whether or not Australia got pot two or pot three for the World cup

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draw. Obviously they did get pot 2, but if they had a drawn that game,

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maybe they wouldn't have. So that, that save, it was important to get the win

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in Saudi Arabia to, for that moment to be even more special than it would

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have been with a draw. But go looking ahead to the World cup, it could

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have been the most important moment of the whole campaign. Yeah, again,

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and it's one that probably gets overshadowed quite a bit by of

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course the Aziz beach goal in Perth. But you're 100% right, Scott.

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It was crucial save and a,

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you know, I, I, I don't like using the word but I'm going to use

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it renaissance from Matt Ryan that year. I mean you got to remember he was

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at Roma before the January transfer window last

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year and he made the move to lawns in France and

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got the starting spot because they sold their keeper.

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In a, a weird twist of fate, he got the, the starting spot and

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had an absolutely outstanding half,

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half a season at Lons and that was what really

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propelled him back into Socceroos frame for, for beginning,

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for the beginning. And then of course Lon's actually didn't renew

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his contract. But by the by that performance was,

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was outstanding. And again talking about senior players standing up that, that really

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was Matt Ryan captain Matt Ryan doing.

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I guess that kind of leads us on to the next point around the,

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the friendlies because that was it for, for Matt Ryan for, for the year

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he was in. I think two of the, he played. The game against the United

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States as well. You're right. Yes, you're right.

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So I mean we did get one more game from Matt Ryan, but it.

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Was largely the Paul. It's o show from there and. And I must say he

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was very impressive bar the Columbia game that we'll

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talk about later on. But yeah, I don't know what your thoughts were on

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Paul. It's performances in the friendlies to follow, but Matt

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Ryan's definitely got some competition on his hands now. He does have some competition on

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his hands. I don't think anyone played well against Colombia, so I'm not going to

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hold that. That one against him. But I think the rest of the games he

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was pretty competitive, wasn't. He's playing over there in Europe now. He's obviously a

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Tony Popovic former player at Melbourne Victory. He knows Paul is though.

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He knows what he can do. So I can certainly picture that being a real

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battle between him and Matt Ryan for. For those minutes going ahead into the World

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Cup. The interesting thing will be he did also give Pat Beach a game in

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one of the more recent games as well. He's doing really well in the A

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league, so I do wonder if he's going to be the next young goalkeeper in

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the mix. A lot like when Mark Schwartz was finishing up, Matt Ryan was in

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the squad, and then he usurped everybody and became the new number one. I do

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wonder if Patrick beach is on that path, but for the World cup,

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it does feel like it is going to be a battle between those two,

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Izzo and Matt Ryan. And I tend to think at the moment, Matt Ryan probably

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does have the experience and the edge on that score. I think he'll also

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have that real determination factor. If I have to remember what happened in that Argentina

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game. Don't want to go back to it too much, but I'm sure that that

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moment will certainly make him want to get back to the World cup and redeem

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himself. So I do think he'll have that burning desire to get there and it'll

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be a contest between those two. Yeah, completely agree. And. And, you know,

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you can obviously argue as well that Matt Ryan's playing at the higher level,

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of course, playing in La Liga in Spain for Levante,

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whereas Paul it. So playing in Denmark for Rand is, you know, I guess

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there's a bit of a. A gap there where, you know, Matt Ryan's facing blokes

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like Killian Mbappe and Anton Griezmann. Whereas, I mean,

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yeah, look, no offense to Danish strikers and not.

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Not quite the same level. So Matt Ryan's probably, you know,

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getting his keeping skills sharpened. But what

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I do want to, I guess, talk about And Patrick Beach. Yeah,

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11 for the future. You'd imagine that he, he will be the

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next I guess Matt Ryan if you like and, and will probably assert both Matt

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Ryan and Paul. It's so for that factor. But yeah, so we,

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we I guess. Scott, I just wanted to pull up your point on there about

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Tony Popovich sides and, and really the, the. The players

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that he picked for those qualification games were ones that he knew and

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trusted. But once we got to the friendlies in the

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following windows in September, October,

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November, there was a lot of experimentation and

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I can't remember the exact figure of how many players there were. I think it

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was sort of, you know, upwards of 50 odd players that he's used so far

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in his, in his tenure in total. But a lot of that happened

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in these friendlies and we saw some out and out experimentation.

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Players getting called into the squads and not even playing.

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You know we've seen Nectar Triantis of course defect to, to Greece and

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you know there's still a couple of whispers on other players that that might do

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that but I guess with that the

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players that took their chances. We've talked about Paul Ito but another one that I

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wanted to talk about briefly and, and I think this position is still wide open

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is in the striking department but Motore was the one that really

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stood out for me particularly the, the New Zealand series. I thought that's what

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won him the favor with, with Tony Popovic and that's why we saw him in

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the following squads. I don't know if you felt the same Scott. Just quickly it

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was 67 players Tony Pop which I called up in this era since right back

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to the end of the previous year as well. 46 of those have played.

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So certainly you feel hard done by if you haven't been included at least in

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the extended squad as you mentioned. But I grew to motor he probably was the,

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the standout player who really did press his claims the most in

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the outfield players in terms of the, the friendlies in the

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last six months. I agree with you about the New Zealand guys were where he

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did that. His combination in that front there was a couple other players was really,

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really impressive and he started most of the games since I think Dagasina might have

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started one. All the rest have been started by Mo Toure. So he does

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look like he's firming up to be this striking option going into the World

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Cup. I just wonder Alex, is it as the backup behind Mitch Duke

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who's still got that experience. He's moved now Back to the a legal guarantee that

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he's going to play football leading into the World cup because the J Leagues of

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course, are switching their seasons around. I wonder, is it as a backup to that

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or is he now going to be that number one starting striker? Because it's the

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one thing that Australia still haven't been able to solve, have they? And look,

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in fairness, we didn't know it solved when we had a prime Harry Keel playing

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for your club, Liverpool, and prime Mark Verduka playing in the Premier League alongside of

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him in terms of that regular, consistent international goal scorer. So it's a bit hard

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to ask a young guy like Motore at the start of his career to do

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that. But he, he is the striker who has shown the most promise out of

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a whole group of strikers who have been caught up. Obviously, nobody just caught up.

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Sega just caught up. Milanovic got called up. All these players had their opportunity at

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least in camp. And Motore is what he's taken at the most in terms of

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minutes on the field. And he does look like he might be the, the option

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going into the World Cup. Yeah, definitely. It's, it's an interesting dynamic there

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because I guess the Mitch Duke and of course Motor

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have very different qualities as well. You know, Mitch Duke is that, that guy

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that just loves a physical battle with the center back so you can. Hold the

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ball up. Really intelligent. But he's quick as well, you know,

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despite his size and age. Mitch Duke is, is quite quick.

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Motore obviously loves the balls in behind and,

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and getting past, you know, the, the offside trap and,

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and scoring with those sort of quick breakaways and,

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and the transition. And I think that's probably why I lean

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more towards Motore than Mitch Duke for a starting role.

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But I think, you know, Tony Popovich

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can really use both of them either in combination or, you know,

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starting one and, and holding the other off the bench because they can

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both do jobs at different stages of matches. So that, that will be a very

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interesting dynamic. But you do feel that, I guess both

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of those will be in the final World cup squad, particularly if Mitch Dukes

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move, as you said to MacArthur in the a League, as the

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J League is sort of having a mini tournament as they change their season.

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So a good move for Mitch Duke, a sensible one and one

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to Sydney where he knows quite well and I'm sure

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Western City wonders are actually spitting chips that he's not gone there because their striking

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department's a little bit thin. Anyway, let's not talk in Asia as.

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Well, of course, with MacArthur in their ACL2 campaign. So that's another really good thing

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for him as well. Probably why he did choose MacArthur over some of the other

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A League clubs who were reportedly interested. He's got that opportunity now in

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Asia to test himself at a level where he knows and if he's going to

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try and press the clamp to Tony Poppy, I'm not sure playing in the A

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League on its own is going to do that. So playing in Asia is probably

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not a bad way of doing it. Yeah, it's. It's actually a very intelligent decision

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from, from Mitch Duke and, and a really good one from MacArthur that,

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that really bolsters their squad, even though they've got a little bit

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of depth in that striking department. But as you said, the, the Asian Champions League

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2 that they're playing in, they will need that depth because,

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you know, midweek games up to Asia and the long haul flights to and from

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will have an effect on their squad. But look,

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Tony Popovic's reign was, you know, filled with a

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lot of wins and draws and good results. But we went and played

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Canada and USA back in October and that

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is where the undefeated streak came to end against the USA

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in a feisty match. And little did we know that we were actually going to

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pull them. End up in the same pool as them, I should

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say, in the World cup draw. And I don't know about you, but I'm very

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much looking forward to this game, particularly with the absolute dribble that's

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coming out of USA with us being

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drawn, drawn in their pool. Have they stopped talking rubbish over

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there yet? Because I've had to stop listening. I just can't take anymore. They've said,

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spoken so much stuff about a game that is six months away from happening and

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they've got it booked in as a 3 nil win. Moving on to the group

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stage game. It's unbelievable. I'm very much looking forward to that game. And as you

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said, hindsight's a wonderful thing, isn't it? If we'd known what we know now about

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that game in Denver in October, I think we would have all taken it very,

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very differently. I also played okay in that game, to be brutally honest. I don't

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think they played badly at all and I think it was a very experimental side.

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I'm not sure that lineup will be the one that they do roll out in

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the World Cup. I think was Matt, Ryan, Garriott, Jakarti, Burgess, Italiano, o',

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Neill, Bella Boss, Metcalfe Boyle and Daggers. You Know, I don't think that's the

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team we're rolling out at Lumen Field in Seattle. In the actual World Cup.

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I thought that that actual wind, I thought the straight played pretty well noticed.

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Again, a good win against Canada and then a pretty good performance away to

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the United States. It wasn't a bad window. I think it was the November window

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where a lot of concerns started to arise when it wasn't it. Yeah, exactly.

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And that leads perfectly into, I guess what I want to talk about with

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your next Scott. Because those struggles against the South American opposition

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continued, what is it, nine wins in 50 matches or something

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like that, from memory and particularly,

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I know a lot of people talk about the Colombia game and because we lost

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that one, three nil. But my biggest concern was the game against

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Venezuela, a side that we really should have beaten, let's be honest. And you

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don't want to take any opposition for granted, but Venezuela haven't

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qualified for the World cup and you know, South America

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is traditionally the toughest, I guess World cup qualification

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route. And you know, when you're playing 10 quality South American sides,

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that, that is difficult. But that Venezuela side, very experimental.

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Interim coach, really that, that should have been the one

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we won. And, and I mean, obviously Tony Popovich was experimenting with his

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side as well, but I think that's where, as you said,

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the, the main concerns came about. And, and for me it was

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largely the fact that when we need to

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take the game to the opposition, we're unable to do so. And I'm

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sure you probably share the same concerns as, as do a lot of people out

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there. Yeah, that's exactly my concerns. All the defense I don't think was that big

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of an issue in that game and lost one nil to Venezuela. You shouldn't be

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losing to them. And I'll let you point out, as you said, it was a

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very experimental team. I think the commentary was saying they had two players with 15

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caps or more. So it was a very, very young. So looking to two generation

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next. From their perspective, a good result for them. But the Australian perspective we just

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didn't create anywhere near enough, did we? And the concern is you look at this,

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the players who played in that game, it was Ocon, o', Neill, Metcalfe, Erin Conda

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and Toure in the front third. That's players who mostly we're going to see at

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the World cup. And you want to see those players creating opportunities. I'm sure Tony

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Popovich was giving those players a chance to show what they can do to Create

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chances and potentially push his way in. But that's not too far off of players

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that we're going to see in the actual World cup in June. So that was

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the real concern, that we just weren't threatening enough in that game at all.

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And that was defensively, I think Colombia was probably more of

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a concern defensively, Venezuela was a concern with the ball and that was. I think

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we're starting to see the. There's the lack of a plan B with

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this Tony Popovic side. It's a little bit like the Pimver Bake side back in

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2010 where they had one way of playing and it was effective when it worked,

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but when teams found a way to nullify that and stop it, they didn't really

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have an answer to that. And I just wonder if Tony Poppich is going to

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have to spend the next couple of months really thinking of what if plan A

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doesn't work, what am I going to do? Because at the moment against

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Venezuela and Colombia, there was a bit of concern there. Yeah, I actually really like

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that point you've made, Scott. There's a lot of hallmarks to that

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pimp side. I mean, that was the last side that got the automatic qualification.

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They played very effective football. Obviously not quite pretty on the eye, but they

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used the resources they had in the side and got the

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job done. But yeah, as you said, once a team works them out or sits

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off them, there's really nothing there. And that is

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the big issue for me as well.

378
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But that Columbia game, I'm not too sure that we can be too harsh.

379
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I thought again, I mean, the defense was quite solid. It's weird to

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say in a three nil loss and that penalty was just ridiculous and,

381
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and that's where the game changed. It was really soft and you

382
00:24:21,340 --> 00:24:25,120
know, I still don't think it's a penalty. And the reaction

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from Popovich and the players said as much at

384
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the time. But two late goals and one was a, you know, a bit

385
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of a mix up by Paul. It's so in the defense there. But the

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funny thing about the defense, and I'm sure you'll, you'll agree with me on

387
00:24:42,100 --> 00:24:46,060
this, is we haven't really had our first choice, you know,

388
00:24:46,560 --> 00:24:50,740
center back combination if you like play. You know, Ali Chicati's

389
00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:54,140
played most of the games but, you know, we're still missing Harry Sutar.

390
00:24:54,780 --> 00:24:58,020
You know, Cameron Burgess has been the mainstay. I think

391
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he's played 10 games this year for the Socceroos.

392
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Chitakati's only played about eight or might be seven.

393
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But that's, that's to actually I,

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I, I'd almost take that as a bit of a positive, wouldn't you, that we

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haven't actually seen our best defense together.

396
00:25:16,370 --> 00:25:19,210
Well, I don't know if, I'm not sure if Shakati and Sutar would have ever

397
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actually played together because when Sutar did his injury so Jakarti was still that young

398
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player at Palm. So I'm not sure they would have played too much together.

399
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I'm very much looking forward to seeing that in March or at the World cup,

400
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those two at the heart of defense because it could be sensational for the soccer

401
00:25:33,230 --> 00:25:37,170
to think back to what Sutar did four years ago. But just, just to

402
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take you up on that, I do wonder if that Columbia game, it was pretty

403
00:25:40,550 --> 00:25:43,490
strong team team in that team was a lot of players you would expect to

404
00:25:43,990 --> 00:25:47,770
be potentially first string is I was in gold. Irvine came into the midfielder and

405
00:25:48,270 --> 00:25:51,330
it was Deconnek and Bird just at the back. So there were a lot of

406
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players in that side who would expect to be a part of this team.

407
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And yes, there are players to come in. Jakarti will come in, Suitor will come

408
00:25:57,830 --> 00:26:01,010
in potentially Mitchuk comes in up front. But I do think that was

409
00:26:01,510 --> 00:26:04,390
pretty close to the best team. We've fielded in a lot of the friendlies and

410
00:26:04,890 --> 00:26:08,150
they were being okay. The penalty probably did set things off down the wrong path,

411
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but that game actually did give me a bit of more pause

412
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course to pause if you like in terms of just trying to build up some

413
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sort of plan B because again, I don't think they were overly threatening in that

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game either. That was to me that's my biggest concern. I think the defense will

415
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be fine. Tony Popovich, former defender, knows how to defend teams.

416
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He seems to always been good defensively. I'm sure he'll get that right. It's the

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other end where I just worry is there enough in the front third and those

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two games, particularly Colombia and Venezuela, that gave me a lot of consent.

419
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Yeah. And look, I completely agree and I guess

420
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it takes me to the point about the March international

421
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window. Of course we've got that FIFA series. We'll touch on that in a little

422
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bit more detail after this playing it. No, we don't

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and I think it is sort of FIFA

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controlled. I don't think the football Australia has any control whatsoever as

425
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to who we play. So that's, that's really interesting as,

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as to who will be our opposition. I mean There will be teams that come

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00:27:09,810 --> 00:27:13,110
out and they'll be FIFA selected,

428
00:27:13,610 --> 00:27:17,069
but football Australia has no say in it, which. Which is a bit concerning.

429
00:27:17,569 --> 00:27:20,470
It could be good, it could be bad. We're really not sure where we're stuck

430
00:27:20,970 --> 00:27:24,310
in this sort of loop at the moment as to who

431
00:27:24,810 --> 00:27:28,160
the opposition is, and I guess we'll get to that. But what I want

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to ask you, first of all, Scott, is that side in March,

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we're talking at the moment about the attacking third and

434
00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:39,480
the lack of a plan B for you.

435
00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:44,720
Do you. Do you pick another experimental squad

436
00:27:45,220 --> 00:27:48,680
or are you trying to build? I guess you're starting 11

437
00:27:49,180 --> 00:27:52,200
for that world cup or you doing something in between squad?

438
00:27:52,700 --> 00:27:56,200
If you're Tony Popovic, I think it. Depends on firstly who you're playing in

439
00:27:56,700 --> 00:27:59,160
March as well. If you're playing teams from who are in the. In the Mino

440
00:27:59,660 --> 00:28:02,720
Mino range, it probably doesn't really serve well in terms of World cup preparation,

441
00:28:03,220 --> 00:28:06,800
but I'd probably lean more towards the experimentation time is now

442
00:28:07,300 --> 00:28:10,320
over. There were six games, two against New Zealand, Canada, USA and then the two

443
00:28:10,820 --> 00:28:14,720
South Americans. I think that's experiment experimentation time over. Anyone who comes in

444
00:28:15,220 --> 00:28:18,000
now, I think it has to be for a very particular purpose. So if he's

445
00:28:18,500 --> 00:28:20,990
going to look at a cedar ditch, for example, it's got to be, I need

446
00:28:21,490 --> 00:28:23,870
Adrian Secretary to do this and I'm bringing him in to do this job.

447
00:28:24,370 --> 00:28:26,910
If he's going to bring in a Zach Saps that who's scoring for fun over

448
00:28:27,410 --> 00:28:30,310
there in the uk, it's because I need him to do this particular job.

449
00:28:30,810 --> 00:28:34,670
I think experimentation time is now over. It's going to be about building

450
00:28:35,170 --> 00:28:38,790
up the plan A even further and also working on just little variations

451
00:28:39,290 --> 00:28:41,230
that you can use in terms of plan B, because I don't think he's going

452
00:28:41,730 --> 00:28:44,590
to deviate too far away from what he knows and what he likes. I think

453
00:28:45,090 --> 00:28:48,360
we can pretty much agree, Alex, that Tony Popovich has his set

454
00:28:48,860 --> 00:28:51,480
way of doing things. He doesn't deviate too far from it. But if you can

455
00:28:51,980 --> 00:28:55,120
just come up with a couple of subtle variations that might surprise teams

456
00:28:55,620 --> 00:28:58,080
in the World Cup. They're the sorts of things I would work on in this

457
00:28:58,580 --> 00:29:01,440
window because I think in terms of our group of points, we've also played in

458
00:29:01,940 --> 00:29:04,840
the US so we don't need to worry about finding out their style of play.

459
00:29:05,340 --> 00:29:08,440
We played South American sides, it lines up well. I'm pretty sure they'll play against

460
00:29:08,940 --> 00:29:11,720
the European team in the lead up to the World cup over there in the

461
00:29:12,220 --> 00:29:15,690
US in June. So this is almost opportunity where you just take what you get

462
00:29:16,190 --> 00:29:19,290
into terms of an opponent and you work on your way of play.

463
00:29:19,610 --> 00:29:22,970
You've brought players in now you probably know 90% of

464
00:29:23,470 --> 00:29:25,690
what he wants to take to the World cup if they're all fit and performing.

465
00:29:25,770 --> 00:29:28,010
So I'm just bringing those players in. Is that the way you kind of view

466
00:29:28,510 --> 00:29:31,770
it as well? Yeah. I tend to agree. I think the experimentation is very much

467
00:29:32,270 --> 00:29:35,690
about yeah those plan B or those match situations. You know you're one nil

468
00:29:36,190 --> 00:29:39,810
down, you know, 20 minutes to go, you throw the kitchen sink at it and

469
00:29:40,310 --> 00:29:43,290
what does that look like? Does that mean that you're taking Mitch Duke off and

470
00:29:43,790 --> 00:29:47,980
you bring your motore on, you're leaving Nestor here and Kunder on, you're playing Jordan

471
00:29:48,480 --> 00:29:51,780
Boss as, as a. As a left winger as opposed to a left wing

472
00:29:52,280 --> 00:29:56,020
back, that kind of thing. I think that's, that's what where the experimentation

473
00:29:56,520 --> 00:29:59,660
is. But I think there is still definitely room for a couple of those key

474
00:30:00,160 --> 00:30:02,980
players like a.

475
00:30:03,620 --> 00:30:07,220
Yeah, an Adrian Sega chic, a Zach Sapsfords,

476
00:30:07,860 --> 00:30:11,220
you know, Riley McGree, if he's fit. That's the big issue with,

477
00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:14,180
with Riley. We'll, we'll, we'll pick up on that point.

478
00:30:16,750 --> 00:30:19,030
Could be a part of that as well because he's also so crucial in the

479
00:30:19,530 --> 00:30:22,030
early stage of qualifying for Tony Profits. We were all shocked when he got caught

480
00:30:22,530 --> 00:30:25,470
up. Like where's this come from? He barely started for Melbourne Victory but he played

481
00:30:25,970 --> 00:30:29,390
against China at home and school, played against Indonesia and scored against

482
00:30:29,890 --> 00:30:32,990
China away and school. That one had a bit of luck to it but he

483
00:30:33,490 --> 00:30:35,310
kind of was a bit of that link player in that front that are making

484
00:30:35,810 --> 00:30:38,790
things happen. And I do wonder if there's still a path there for a player

485
00:30:39,290 --> 00:30:42,430
like that. Whether it's him or a Sega Touch or somebody else to come in

486
00:30:42,780 --> 00:30:45,420
and fill that role. I think that's the one thing that was really missing in

487
00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:49,100
the November window was that play at the front. They just dropped off and linked

488
00:30:49,600 --> 00:30:52,380
things up and made things happen. That's where the one big piece that I'm looking

489
00:30:52,880 --> 00:30:55,820
to them to find, whether it's one of those two or somebody else, is probably

490
00:30:56,300 --> 00:30:59,620
when the June, when the March squad is named. That's what I was looking

491
00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:04,100
for. So who's likely to fill that role? Yeah, and I mean for loop

492
00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:07,220
play is not really in the discussion. It's almost as if everyone's forgotten about him.

493
00:31:07,720 --> 00:31:10,470
And to be honest, I'd almost forgotten about him because he's barely, you know,

494
00:31:10,970 --> 00:31:14,350
he's obviously coming back from that injury with Melbourne Victory and he's barely played any,

495
00:31:14,590 --> 00:31:17,910
any minutes this season. And then when you've

496
00:31:18,410 --> 00:31:21,750
got players like Sega chic and, and McGree and you and Kunda who are

497
00:31:22,250 --> 00:31:25,990
doing all very well overseas, they're the ones you're thinking about a little

498
00:31:26,490 --> 00:31:29,710
bit more. And, and you know, Voluplay gets sort of pushed to,

499
00:31:29,870 --> 00:31:33,870
to the back. But yeah, you're 100% right. He, he was actually really crucial

500
00:31:34,110 --> 00:31:38,110
in those international windows, particularly March and, and June.

501
00:31:39,170 --> 00:31:43,130
Really important for, for the squad. And, and yeah, there's 100% a

502
00:31:43,630 --> 00:31:47,930
space for a player like that in that squad, particularly given that lack

503
00:31:48,430 --> 00:31:52,530
of creativity in the front third. And it's just about what Popovic wants and

504
00:31:53,030 --> 00:31:56,690
who he wants. He knows what he's going to get from Voluplay, which in

505
00:31:57,190 --> 00:32:00,610
my mind probably puts him ahead of the pack, you know, to a degree.

506
00:32:01,110 --> 00:32:04,170
And we've seen Adrian get called up in that September window,

507
00:32:04,670 --> 00:32:08,050
I believe didn't get any minutes on the pitch, but is there

508
00:32:08,550 --> 00:32:11,970
or thereabouts. But I think Sega Church is the one that has the real

509
00:32:12,470 --> 00:32:16,330
X factor in, in terms of his ability not only to create, but the,

510
00:32:16,830 --> 00:32:21,210
the long shot. And I think the long shot. We don't really have a,

511
00:32:21,850 --> 00:32:25,050
a, a, a, a,. A long shot expert in this squad.

512
00:32:25,550 --> 00:32:29,730
And I think that's probably what we're missing, particularly when we're

513
00:32:30,230 --> 00:32:33,850
going to face sides that are going to park the bus. Jose Mourinho style.

514
00:32:34,330 --> 00:32:38,650
If you've got someone with that, that's a long shot expert,

515
00:32:39,210 --> 00:32:42,730
they're the kind of players that can break open those kind of defenses.

516
00:32:44,170 --> 00:32:47,810
I'm not sure if you agree on that one at all. Yeah, gives an

517
00:32:48,310 --> 00:32:50,770
X factor, isn't he? That's what he brings is that creativity in the front third

518
00:32:51,270 --> 00:32:54,850
and the ability to do the unexpected, the things that defenses aren't necessarily

519
00:32:55,350 --> 00:32:57,890
thinking of and can't plan for. And that's really what we're talking about here is

520
00:32:58,390 --> 00:33:00,460
he can do a lot of those things in the, in the front third.

521
00:33:00,960 --> 00:33:02,980
He did a lot of that for Portsmouth earlier in the year before he picked

522
00:33:03,480 --> 00:33:06,180
up that injury, which I think ruled him out of the October window, unfortunately.

523
00:33:06,680 --> 00:33:09,380
So if he can get back to full fitness, I wouldn't be shocked if they

524
00:33:09,880 --> 00:33:12,660
do bring him in to do, just to fill that role. Because whether it's as

525
00:33:13,160 --> 00:33:15,940
a starter or if somebody comes off the bench for 20 minutes go. As you

526
00:33:16,440 --> 00:33:19,820
mentioned, game situation. 20 minutes down, need a goal he's perfect bring on

527
00:33:20,320 --> 00:33:22,980
in that sort of situation. So I wouldn't be shocked if, if he comes in

528
00:33:23,480 --> 00:33:26,060
to fill that role or somebody else if, if he feels somebody else is better

529
00:33:26,560 --> 00:33:29,720
for that role. But that unpredictability in the front third,

530
00:33:29,960 --> 00:33:32,960
that's what I think they really need to find. Yeah, and, and, and look,

531
00:33:33,460 --> 00:33:35,960
let's be honest, that's exactly what he did for Sydney FC last year. I mean

532
00:33:36,460 --> 00:33:40,200
they had. So this is such a rich attacking

533
00:33:41,160 --> 00:33:44,480
options there at Sydney. You know, had Douglas Costa and Joe Lolley, but it was

534
00:33:44,980 --> 00:33:48,280
Adrian Sega Chic who was I think tied for the golden boot from, from memory

535
00:33:48,780 --> 00:33:52,560
for the A league. And I think probably at least

536
00:33:53,060 --> 00:33:56,440
80% of his goals were as substitute. As a substitute.

537
00:33:56,600 --> 00:33:59,740
But then he's gone on to Ports red hot start and now

538
00:34:00,240 --> 00:34:04,380
he's slowly coming back from injury. So he's the man I think that Tony

539
00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:07,420
Popovich has definitely got to have a look at in that much. Do you think

540
00:34:07,920 --> 00:34:10,340
Sasser's might have missed his chance in terms of just the form a little bit

541
00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:13,300
too late? Because I think he could really fit a Popovich way of playing.

542
00:34:13,800 --> 00:34:16,420
But I just wonder if he's going to call him up because we know Paulovich

543
00:34:16,920 --> 00:34:19,900
does like to bring players in for one camp before he gives him a chance.

544
00:34:20,400 --> 00:34:24,340
Obviously we know that Sega didn't play in September. Neither did Botic. Milanovic barely played.

545
00:34:24,840 --> 00:34:27,729
So I do wonder if he's going to get that opportunity because you can see,

546
00:34:28,229 --> 00:34:31,009
as you said, strikes, you can make runs in behind. He plays in wide areas

547
00:34:31,509 --> 00:34:33,849
as well. You can fill a couple of different roles. He'd be a really good

548
00:34:34,349 --> 00:34:37,449
fit. But I just wonder if he's just slightly mistimed his run to. To make

549
00:34:37,949 --> 00:34:39,169
this squad. Yeah, it's a good question.

550
00:34:42,529 --> 00:34:45,729
It probably also depends on how Motore

551
00:34:46,229 --> 00:34:49,489
and Mitch Duke get through the rest of this year as well.

552
00:34:49,569 --> 00:34:53,569
Sorry, not this year, this season. You know, if one of those

553
00:34:54,069 --> 00:34:57,169
goes down, then that's the door wide open for Zach Saps.

554
00:34:57,550 --> 00:35:01,590
But you're right, I mean the timing hasn't been particularly good for Zach,

555
00:35:02,090 --> 00:35:05,790
but he's doing absolutely outstanding stuff at Dundee United there in the

556
00:35:06,290 --> 00:35:09,870
Scottish Premier League. And I would hope that Popper

557
00:35:10,030 --> 00:35:13,349
brings him into the squad for this March window. But then, then again,

558
00:35:13,849 --> 00:35:17,230
popper can't name 52 players, can he? So that makes a

559
00:35:17,730 --> 00:35:21,070
little bit difficult. But I definitely think he's the kind of

560
00:35:21,570 --> 00:35:23,680
player that should be in the squad wherever he gets picked. I'd be.

561
00:35:24,470 --> 00:35:29,710
You're probably right. I'd almost Lean towards saying without

562
00:35:30,210 --> 00:35:34,070
sounding like a fancy, but I think he probably has left his run a little

563
00:35:34,570 --> 00:35:38,390
too late which is disappointing because

564
00:35:38,630 --> 00:35:42,070
he's got this skill set, as you said, that a

565
00:35:42,570 --> 00:35:44,150
Tony Popovich striker really does.

566
00:35:45,990 --> 00:35:49,710
You know, he's tailor made for Tony Popovich football,

567
00:35:50,210 --> 00:35:53,270
you know, or pop a ball if you, if you want to. Coin to similar

568
00:35:53,770 --> 00:35:56,150
to your cheesy when you really think about he's got the height, the strength,

569
00:35:56,650 --> 00:35:58,510
but he can also make those runs in behind which is obviously the sort of

570
00:35:59,010 --> 00:36:01,950
play he had a lot of success was without the Wanderers. So look, if he

571
00:36:02,450 --> 00:36:05,429
scores 15 goals between now in March, he's going to get picked. But I think

572
00:36:05,929 --> 00:36:08,470
you're right, might have just missed the mission. Yeah, yeah, it's, you know, it's all

573
00:36:08,970 --> 00:36:13,070
about timing as we know with football and, and it does feel

574
00:36:13,230 --> 00:36:16,710
like it is a little bit too late for Zach

575
00:36:17,210 --> 00:36:20,430
but let's hope that that's not the case and that he does get picked because

576
00:36:20,930 --> 00:36:24,250
yeah, I really rate him and I think the fact that

577
00:36:24,810 --> 00:36:28,090
he had a really good season at Wanderers last, last season but

578
00:36:28,250 --> 00:36:31,770
the fact to be able to go over to Scotland and

579
00:36:32,270 --> 00:36:36,290
adapt so quickly and be a crucial player for your side so

580
00:36:36,790 --> 00:36:40,810
quickly and you know we've heard his manager talk in high regards about

581
00:36:41,310 --> 00:36:44,410
him as well. So in terms of both the work rate and the end product.

582
00:36:44,570 --> 00:36:48,050
So it goes to show, you know, if it's not this World

583
00:36:48,550 --> 00:36:51,460
cup, he's definitely one that for the future as well. As long as he,

584
00:36:51,960 --> 00:36:54,820
he stays fit and, and in form.

585
00:36:55,140 --> 00:36:59,300
Now let's move over to a difficult

586
00:36:59,800 --> 00:37:02,900
question but I'm going to ask you, Scott, to pick your

587
00:37:03,400 --> 00:37:06,580
player of the year. Oh gee, that is a difficult

588
00:37:07,080 --> 00:37:10,020
question. You told me there wouldn't be any difficult questions here. Well, I think in

589
00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:13,100
terms of soccer performances, there were a couple of really good ones. Jordy Boss really

590
00:37:13,600 --> 00:37:16,870
had a, had a good gmit as his badge had the moment

591
00:37:17,370 --> 00:37:19,670
of the year. But I don't think you can really give him the player of

592
00:37:20,170 --> 00:37:23,310
the year. Motorray did well in the friendlies, but I think you got to look

593
00:37:23,810 --> 00:37:27,070
at World cup form and those games when it really did matter. I think Jackson

594
00:37:27,570 --> 00:37:30,430
Ovine to me he was crucial in so many of those games. I'll give him

595
00:37:30,670 --> 00:37:33,750
player of the year in a field where there were some really good contenders and

596
00:37:34,250 --> 00:37:37,430
that's probably the positive thing for the soccer is there were a few names that

597
00:37:37,930 --> 00:37:40,870
you could give that award to. But I'll go for, for Jack Snow. Yeah,

598
00:37:41,370 --> 00:37:45,270
brilliant, brilliant choice and yeah, completely agree Particularly that that March window

599
00:37:45,770 --> 00:37:48,970
I think was, was the one Jackson Irvine

600
00:37:49,470 --> 00:37:53,250
at his best scoring crucial goals and really dominating the game

601
00:37:53,750 --> 00:37:57,530
and unfortunately he picked up an injury not too long after that international

602
00:37:57,690 --> 00:38:01,090
window which, which said set him back for the rest of the year.

603
00:38:01,590 --> 00:38:05,290
But we saw him come back into socceroo squad I think in that November

604
00:38:05,790 --> 00:38:09,450
window from memory which was fantastic to see and he's

605
00:38:09,950 --> 00:38:14,010
back getting regular minutes for his size St. Pauli in Germany. But for

606
00:38:14,510 --> 00:38:17,950
me I'd like to give a shout out. We talked about Matt Ryan

607
00:38:18,450 --> 00:38:22,350
earlier that, that renaissance he's got to be have

608
00:38:22,850 --> 00:38:25,790
a bit of a shout out Paul Idso I think taking his opportunity when he

609
00:38:26,290 --> 00:38:29,550
got it but, but for me the man of the

610
00:38:30,050 --> 00:38:33,790
year has to be Alessandro Chiricati. You know getting the captain's armband in that

611
00:38:34,290 --> 00:38:37,870
New Zealand series. Becoming the youngest Socceroos captain in

612
00:38:38,370 --> 00:38:41,710
40 odd years. Fantastic season not

613
00:38:42,210 --> 00:38:44,710
only wearing green and gold but also for his clubside Parma.

614
00:38:46,690 --> 00:38:50,690
On them as well. He did yes just, just I

615
00:38:51,190 --> 00:38:54,930
think last night local time Australian but yes first time wearing

616
00:38:55,430 --> 00:38:58,770
the armband for Palmer so like really capping off and, and and he's first came

617
00:38:59,270 --> 00:39:03,010
back from the, the latest injuries, ankle injuries so fantastic

618
00:39:03,510 --> 00:39:07,090
stuff. He's just having a wonderful year and to be only 22 years old and

619
00:39:07,590 --> 00:39:11,010
doing what he's doing like wow, this kid is. Is special

620
00:39:11,510 --> 00:39:13,690
and, and that's why I'm going to give him my player of the year to

621
00:39:14,190 --> 00:39:17,950
be honest. Just fantastic stuff. What a wonderful

622
00:39:18,450 --> 00:39:22,190
player. And and I think yeah he's going to be the, the bedrock

623
00:39:22,690 --> 00:39:25,270
for, for this side moving forward.

624
00:39:26,630 --> 00:39:29,910
You can see him being the soccer captain in the not too distant future really

625
00:39:30,410 --> 00:39:34,150
once the this Matt Ryan led soccer zero does come to him possibly after

626
00:39:34,550 --> 00:39:38,110
the World cup he will be a young captain but you can absolutely

627
00:39:38,610 --> 00:39:42,160
see him doing that. The leadership qualities he showed in that game against Japan Armor

628
00:39:42,660 --> 00:39:45,960
are not going to give him the captaincy as a, as a trivial thing.

629
00:39:46,460 --> 00:39:49,240
They're going to. They must really believe he's got real leadership qualities.

630
00:39:49,560 --> 00:39:53,680
So you can absolutely see him being that future leader looking ahead to the 2030

631
00:39:54,180 --> 00:39:57,640
World Cup. Yeah definitely. And, and I think there was a video

632
00:39:59,480 --> 00:40:04,120
maybe after the Perth game. Of course being a local Perth lads he

633
00:40:04,620 --> 00:40:08,040
spoke with such emotion about what it means to him to represent the

634
00:40:08,540 --> 00:40:12,280
Socceroos and, and I absolutely love that because you know we always have those discussions

635
00:40:12,780 --> 00:40:16,560
about and Alessandro could have well taken the different path and played

636
00:40:17,060 --> 00:40:21,080
for Italy. They could do with some good quality. Players than somebody else who

637
00:40:21,580 --> 00:40:25,040
wants to Play. Yes yeah 100. Italy would love to call him up,

638
00:40:25,540 --> 00:40:28,800
I reckon, just quietly. But the, the emotion you spoke with,

639
00:40:29,520 --> 00:40:33,790
I, I, you know, it, it made it fired me up sitting

640
00:40:34,290 --> 00:40:38,150
on the couch at home. So, you know, I just absolutely

641
00:40:38,650 --> 00:40:41,390
love that. And yeah, I agree there's, there's some,

642
00:40:41,630 --> 00:40:45,190
a little bit of Lucas Neil in terms of leadership there for me in,

643
00:40:45,690 --> 00:40:49,110
in what I see in Alessandro, so absolutely fantastic

644
00:40:49,610 --> 00:40:53,030
player and that's, that's why he's my player of the year. Now Scott, I want

645
00:40:53,530 --> 00:40:57,230
to, I want you to look into your crystal ball and, and tell me

646
00:40:57,800 --> 00:41:01,400
who your Socceroos player to watch for next year

647
00:41:01,900 --> 00:41:05,960
is. Well, Chakati would be one to watch in terms of him really solidifying

648
00:41:06,460 --> 00:41:09,600
himself as the Rock at the back for the Socceroos motore. Be another one

649
00:41:10,100 --> 00:41:12,520
you'd look at in terms of really is he going to be the starter or

650
00:41:12,680 --> 00:41:16,120
that bench option. A couple others, what we mentioned. You won't go back over

651
00:41:16,620 --> 00:41:19,880
that. Satson with a complete wild card. The other one in midfield who

652
00:41:20,120 --> 00:41:23,020
has played a bit more over the last 12 months is max Ballard and he's

653
00:41:23,410 --> 00:41:26,570
made the move over to European football. He's going pretty well over there at the

654
00:41:27,070 --> 00:41:30,370
moment as well. He might add something a little bit different in that midfield mix

655
00:41:30,610 --> 00:41:34,690
alongside a Jackson Irvine and Aiden o', Neill, a Conor Metcalfe

656
00:41:35,190 --> 00:41:38,090
and all these. Ryan Teague, all these guys are pretty similar. He might add something

657
00:41:38,590 --> 00:41:41,450
a little bit, a little bit different, a little bit more creative and that could

658
00:41:41,950 --> 00:41:43,370
be something to keep an eye. I think he would be one in the,

659
00:41:43,870 --> 00:41:47,490
in the March window. If he starts and he plays well, I wouldn't be

660
00:41:47,990 --> 00:41:50,950
shocked if it lines him up for at least one start. But in the World

661
00:41:51,450 --> 00:41:53,670
cup, in a game where you're looking to be more on the front foot,

662
00:41:54,170 --> 00:41:56,430
so I think he's probably one that I'd be keeping an eye on. Yeah.

663
00:41:56,930 --> 00:42:00,390
And talking about captains, another one that's captained his club side

664
00:42:00,890 --> 00:42:04,190
on and off there in the Netherlands Nac

665
00:42:04,690 --> 00:42:08,470
Raider that Ballard plays for and we saw that goal down in Canberra against

666
00:42:08,970 --> 00:42:11,510
New Zealand that he scored and the emotional scenes of his dad.

667
00:42:12,070 --> 00:42:15,110
Absolutely fantastic stuff and you love to see it.

668
00:42:16,390 --> 00:42:19,910
I'm going to stick with midfield and a player in the Netherlands.

669
00:42:20,070 --> 00:42:24,190
One to watch. I would normally say Adrian Sega, but we've talked about

670
00:42:24,690 --> 00:42:27,830
him. Let's go something a little bit different and an old favorite of mine that

671
00:42:28,330 --> 00:42:30,790
I've mentioned on your podcast a few times, Scott.

672
00:42:31,190 --> 00:42:35,070
Aidan Frostic. The man is on fire

673
00:42:35,570 --> 00:42:38,390
for his side at the moment. Heracles Alamello in the Netherlands,

674
00:42:39,270 --> 00:42:42,390
wonderful left foot. He's actually playing a little bit deeper. He's playing in

675
00:42:42,890 --> 00:42:47,290
sort of a deeper holding midfield type role for his club side, but still

676
00:42:47,790 --> 00:42:51,290
hasn't affected his output in terms of assists. And I actually

677
00:42:51,790 --> 00:42:55,570
think he's the player that should be partnering Jackson Irvine in that central

678
00:42:56,070 --> 00:43:00,090
midfield role. You know, we've seen Ryan Teague there unfortunately had

679
00:43:00,590 --> 00:43:03,530
a bit of a false dawn in terms of injuries and the move to Belgium

680
00:43:04,030 --> 00:43:07,490
that hasn't quite worked out. But Frustic's creative

681
00:43:07,990 --> 00:43:11,290
abilities is the kind of player I think that can unlock that attacking

682
00:43:11,790 --> 00:43:15,280
third for us. And, and you know, playing him in a deeper role will

683
00:43:15,780 --> 00:43:18,960
still allow you to fit a Sega Chic in front of him and Estri and

684
00:43:19,460 --> 00:43:22,880
Kunda and a Motore or a Mitch Duke depending on how

685
00:43:23,380 --> 00:43:26,920
Popper wants that to sort of look like. But I think he's the one

686
00:43:27,420 --> 00:43:30,680
to watch for me and probably a little bit harsh that he didn't make

687
00:43:31,180 --> 00:43:34,840
that November squad, to be honest with you. But ever since then he's been

688
00:43:35,340 --> 00:43:38,720
absolutely on fire for his club side and lifted them off the bottom of

689
00:43:39,220 --> 00:43:42,420
the ladder in, in the Netherlands and out of those relegation spots.

690
00:43:42,920 --> 00:43:46,140
So that. That's the one to watch for me. I did

691
00:43:46,640 --> 00:43:48,860
think you would go that way because I mentioned a lot on our show when

692
00:43:49,360 --> 00:43:51,940
you come onto our show. So that it's a little bit like when Marco Brochano

693
00:43:52,440 --> 00:43:55,100
went from that attacking midfield role late in his career. He dropped into a deep

694
00:43:55,600 --> 00:43:58,380
role to remember and that might be. And saw how effective that was in that

695
00:43:58,880 --> 00:44:01,660
Asian cup Run in 2015. That might be the sort of role he ends up

696
00:44:02,160 --> 00:44:04,540
playing potentially in this if he does get into the World cup squad in terms

697
00:44:05,040 --> 00:44:08,390
of that a little bit deeper, more creative, that link from defense to the front.

698
00:44:08,890 --> 00:44:11,670
So that might be potentially the role he plays. But I think that's another really

699
00:44:12,170 --> 00:44:15,630
good shot. Yeah, thanks, Scott. And the other thing we should mention too is his

700
00:44:16,130 --> 00:44:19,630
set piece quality as well. He's a wonderful on the corners,

701
00:44:19,950 --> 00:44:23,430
free kicks, that kind of thing. So it adds another different type of threat

702
00:44:23,930 --> 00:44:27,430
to the side. And yeah, I mean he's picking up that defensive side

703
00:44:27,930 --> 00:44:31,350
of the game in that deeper role quite well as well. So that certainly helps

704
00:44:31,850 --> 00:44:35,570
out. Now, Scott, quickly, I just want to get your thoughts.

705
00:44:36,070 --> 00:44:39,450
If we were able to pick our

706
00:44:39,950 --> 00:44:43,050
opposition for that March international window, would there

707
00:44:43,550 --> 00:44:46,570
be anyone in particular you'd like to play? Like,

708
00:44:47,050 --> 00:44:50,410
would you want to play another South American side perhaps,

709
00:44:50,910 --> 00:44:54,930
or another European side, considering that we will have a

710
00:44:55,430 --> 00:44:58,660
Euro qualifier in our pool as well. I think if you're looking

711
00:44:59,160 --> 00:45:02,220
in terms of World cup, we've already played against the United States and we're playing

712
00:45:02,720 --> 00:45:06,500
against Canada. It would be the nearest representation to the United

713
00:45:07,000 --> 00:45:09,380
States. I think we've covered that one off. We should be well prepared for what

714
00:45:09,880 --> 00:45:13,419
to expect from them. I think another South American opponent, if you could find one

715
00:45:13,919 --> 00:45:16,780
to come out here for that, maybe for example a Chile or something like that

716
00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:20,860
to come out and play might not be a bad option. I do think if

717
00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:25,020
you can choose opponents, I'd probably go for one South American and one team out

718
00:45:25,520 --> 00:45:28,980
of Europe who missed out on the playoffs, didn't qualify for the World cup and

719
00:45:29,480 --> 00:45:32,660
didn't make the playoffs. Who are as close to what you think those four

720
00:45:33,160 --> 00:45:36,780
teams in that playoff pool represent. Because it's impossible to know at the moment which

721
00:45:37,280 --> 00:45:39,780
of those four are going to get to the World Cup. You can have a

722
00:45:39,860 --> 00:45:43,300
thought on who might get there, but it's a four way race at the moment.

723
00:45:43,800 --> 00:45:47,860
So I do think at the moment you want one from South America and somebody

724
00:45:48,360 --> 00:45:51,460
who plays as close to that pool of European teams as possible.

725
00:45:51,960 --> 00:45:55,190
That would be my ideal combination. I'm not sure who those teams would be.

726
00:45:55,430 --> 00:45:58,590
That's the way I'd probably look to go with it. If you could ideally choose.

727
00:45:59,090 --> 00:46:02,470
Yeah, definitely A South American opponent is a must almost

728
00:46:02,550 --> 00:46:05,750
considering the terrible record we have. But, but being

729
00:46:06,250 --> 00:46:10,110
able to build some sort of plan particularly

730
00:46:10,610 --> 00:46:13,990
for that Paraguay game which is. Is. Is the. The last game of the pool

731
00:46:14,490 --> 00:46:17,590
and you know, we really don't want to be needing a result

732
00:46:18,090 --> 00:46:20,390
in that game if you ask me. And, and I'm sure you feel the same

733
00:46:20,890 --> 00:46:24,840
Scott about that. Absolutely. So yeah, if you can get a Chile or an

734
00:46:25,340 --> 00:46:29,120
Ecuador. Ecuador's got a great side. We have had a series against them recently as

735
00:46:29,620 --> 00:46:32,960
well. Great young side. Really exciting. That'd be a great

736
00:46:33,460 --> 00:46:37,240
opponent, I think. And maybe someone. Yeah, as you said. I agree. Another European side,

737
00:46:37,740 --> 00:46:41,400
someone like a Hungary maybe or a Balkan nation, maybe like a Bosnian

738
00:46:41,900 --> 00:46:45,760
Herzegovina or Albania, something like that might be

739
00:46:46,000 --> 00:46:50,200
similar ish to the sides that. In that race

740
00:46:50,700 --> 00:46:54,590
for qualification there for. For the pool. Because this FIFA series is.

741
00:46:55,090 --> 00:46:58,310
It's for developmental nations most season as well. So it might end up being the

742
00:46:58,810 --> 00:47:02,070
Hungaries and the Albanias and the. Or the. Someone like that. And then maybe

743
00:47:02,570 --> 00:47:05,990
a. Not a South American, maybe a North American team who didn't qualify for the

744
00:47:06,490 --> 00:47:09,590
World Cup. One of those. Those Caribbean teams that didn't make it. But they might

745
00:47:10,090 --> 00:47:13,430
also. Not that they're a comparison to a South American team. But that

746
00:47:13,930 --> 00:47:16,910
might be the sort of thing we might end up getting in this, this FIFA

747
00:47:17,410 --> 00:47:20,270
series. As you said, football straight don't have, have too much control over who they.

748
00:47:20,770 --> 00:47:24,230
Yeah. And I think there's a couple of different ways that they might do it

749
00:47:24,730 --> 00:47:28,190
as well. There's. I can't remember who was telling me, but there was someone.

750
00:47:29,150 --> 00:47:32,630
Basically it could be four teams where the, the win

751
00:47:33,130 --> 00:47:36,030
the two winners of the two games play each other in sort of like a

752
00:47:36,530 --> 00:47:40,590
final or it could be sort of like a round robin kind of tournament.

753
00:47:41,090 --> 00:47:44,550
So that, that's also another sort of interesting twist. But there will be four.

754
00:47:45,050 --> 00:47:48,460
Well, including Australia, there'll be four teams, but there'll be three international teams

755
00:47:48,960 --> 00:47:52,740
coming out here for it. So yes, it will be quite interesting to see who

756
00:47:52,820 --> 00:47:56,180
gets selected in that one. But I guess that's something for

757
00:47:56,680 --> 00:47:59,940
us to worry about in March when we will probably next catch up for a

758
00:48:00,440 --> 00:48:04,260
podcast either on yours or mine. No doubt. But anyway,

759
00:48:04,340 --> 00:48:07,740
Scott, we will wrap it up there and I'll get you to plug your

760
00:48:08,240 --> 00:48:11,670
wonderful podcast, the Brisbane Football Review again. So Brisbane Football

761
00:48:12,170 --> 00:48:15,470
Review on Facebook, Facebook, Twitter, X, Instagram and our podcast,

762
00:48:15,630 --> 00:48:18,350
Spotify and Apple as well as others. And you can look for it there,

763
00:48:18,850 --> 00:48:21,350
just search Brisbane Football Review. Brilliant. Thank you very much, Scott. And you know where

764
00:48:21,850 --> 00:48:24,990
to find us. The Aussie Football passport. We're on social media, Facebook,

765
00:48:25,230 --> 00:48:28,510
Instagram and X, formerly Twitter and

766
00:48:28,670 --> 00:48:32,230
of course Spotify, Apple, podcast, Amazon,

767
00:48:32,730 --> 00:48:35,950
YouTube as well. You can find us there. So thank you

768
00:48:36,450 --> 00:48:39,990
very much for your time today, Scott. Really appreciate you the first guest

769
00:48:40,490 --> 00:48:44,370
on the podcast and we'll have do this more often because I quite

770
00:48:44,870 --> 00:48:48,170
enjoyed it. Hopefully the listeners did as well. Great to join you on the

771
00:48:48,670 --> 00:48:50,890
show, Alex. I didn't know it's the first gate. That's a, that's a great thing.

772
00:48:51,210 --> 00:48:54,410
No worries at all. A pleasure as always, Scott. Thank you very much.

773
00:48:54,910 --> 00:48:58,570
And that is it for this special bonus episode of the Aussie Football Podcast.

774
00:48:58,810 --> 00:49:00,970
I hope you've enjoyed it. Goodbye for now,