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The 2015 Asian Cup has, without doubt, been a resounding success. As I cast my eye on the tournament in November, I couldn’t help but wonder whether the whole show would be an enormous flop.
Would Australian locals resonate with the at times obscure foreign teams? I didn’t think so.
I’m very happy to say I’ve been put in my place by what’s been a great show. It’s been a pleasure watching the various outfits bring their passion and culture to Australia, and the fans have shown up in large numbers right around the country.
What was not pleasurable was reading Robbie Slater’s latest column, in which he claimed that Tim Cahill was the best footballer (of any code) that Australia had produced. Tim is a brilliant footballer, but he isn’t Australia’s best ever.
Slater argued that football’s international presence, and its stronger competition, made Tim a superior footballer – after all, scoring goals against quality opposition counts more than against mediocre teams, a fair point.
Cahill has scored 39 international goals for Australia, which is very impressive. However the fact is that most of these goals have not come against the best of what football has to offer. Cahill has scored twice against the Netherlands, in 2006, and his infamous 2014 left-footed volley. He has also scored five times against Japan.
But the large majority of the other 32 goals have come against opposition such as Qatar, Oman and other AFC nations, that are less than the highest level that football can offer – and why Robbie argues Cahill is our greatest ever.
Further, on a technical level, it’s obvious Cahill has one of the most potent headers in international football, but in my view, for him to be Australia’s greatest ever he would need to have some lethal long shots and devastating finesse in his arsenal too.
Let’s take a look at Cahill in comparison to one of Australia’s other greatest finishers – David Campese. Campese was a genuine finisher for the Wallabies in the 1980s and 1990s, amassing an impressive 64 tries in 101 Tests. He is remembered for pioneering the goose-step, a beautiful leg movement that would bamboozle even the best defenders.
But Campese was outstanding not just with his stepping, but his passing, his kicking, his pace, reading of the game and his flair. In my view, Cahill comes up short of world class in some of those (football equivalent) areas. Commenters note – this doesn’t mean Cahill is a slouch.
And indeed, I’m sure those Roarers with longer memories will recall the outstanding Australian sportsmen of the last century, just exactly what these amazing athletes were capable of, and to be wary of hyperbole when discussing who is the best.
Tim Cahill deserves a spot on the list of top Australian sportsmen and women, but he doesn’t deserve the number spot.
Good luck to the Socceroos on Tuesday, and hopefully we will see Australia lifting the Asian Cup on the January 31.
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