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Socceroos Michael Theoklitos team training in Canberra, Tuesday, March 3, 2009. The Socceroos will play Kuwait in the Asian Cup qualifying match at Canberra Stadium on Thursday. (AAP Image/Alan Porritt)
I doubt many were surprised when news broke last week that Michael Theoklitos had finally parted company with Norwich City after a nightmare stint.
The former Melbourne Victory goalkeeper, who has since decided to return to Australia by signing on with Brisbane Roar, had been out of favour with the Canaries since his horror debut at the start of the season ended in a 7-1 loss.
Nice guy ‘Theo’ was a reliable player for the Victory, but his trouble in England’s third division begs the question: how good of a player is he?
Despite genuine interest last year from Everton and two A-League Goalkeeper of the Year awards, Theoklitos was never head and shoulders above any of his fellow Australian number ones.
He went to England with the desire to try his hand at European football as well as dreaming of richer pastures. In the end, Theoklitos seems to have come up short on both counts.
Theo’s story got me thinking again about the masses of medium quality Australians who are playing in domestic competitions overseas and why they are there.
It’s a question that is even more pertinent in light of the fluttering eyes from Australian football fans, pundits and Feyenord following Tommy Oar’s performance for the Socceroos last week.
Of course there are the top tier of Australian footballers who need to be playing overseas as well as the more talented youngsters who head to Europe (and slowly Asia) to develop their game. Beyond them however is a large amount of ordinary players in ordinary leagues.
The inconsistent performances from the likes of Rostyn Griffiths, Adam Hughes and even Mile Sterjovski since they’ve returned to the A-League prove that these players aren’t beyond A-League quality. So is it because they don’t want to live and play in Australia? Every single one of them will tell you the answers to that question is no.
Then why aren’t they coming back?
Recently I got to spend a few weeks in South Korea and caught up with Sasa Ognenovski for an interview that will air on The World Game in the coming days.
When I broached the topic of why South Korea’s K-League manages to keep most of its local talent when there is a constant stream out the door of Australia, Sasa was forthright.
“A lot has to do with what their managers say to them,” Ognenovski explained.
“In Korea when an older person tells you something that’s pretty much how it’s going to be.
“They’re happy to live at home, earn decent money and if the opportunity comes where they can move on to a bigger and better league then they go.
“But they don’t just go out and find a team in Romania or Bulgaria or wherever it might be just for the sake of playing in Europe.
“For them they’re earning decent money here and I don’t think any Aussie would leave Australia if he was earning the amount of money he’d be earning anywhere else in the world.”
Excuse the pun but Sasa was right on the money. At the end of the day, while the A-League can’t come close to competing financially, players will still leave and not come back until another life factor other then money draws them home.
All of which makes Football Federation Australia’s continued refusal to accept the “3+1” rule or an Asian marquee system all the more saddening.
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