Craig Moore appointed Socceroos adviser

If coaching's what he wants to get into, I applaud him getting his feet wet at a humble level.

JonJax- Whist appreciating what you are saying your last statement needs slight adjustment. If we accept that the type of professionalism we enjoy today has it's financial roots in the birth of television then ethnic "hot houses" only played a part in the development in the game in Australia.The first game I saw in Australia was in 1963 an Australian Cup match between a Brisbane team and a Melbourne team.Many of the players were quite obviously in the twilights of their careers but I can assure you had those same players enjoyed the well paid opportunities available to today's players IMO we would have had a few more Golden Generation along the way.I should clarify that. Most of the players of whom I speak were products of the coal mining area of Queensland and most were dinky-di Aussies.Bunny Nunn,Col Kitching,Mal Wild,Bobby Lawrie,Spencer Kitching,Graham McMillan,Brian Vogler,Al Warren & Cliff Sanders would all have had no trouble gracing teams in the HAL for it should be remembered these guys played for the love of the game after a 5.5 day working week.All the player I mention were all Australian internationals of the day. Then came the governments sponsored migrant programme and there is little doubt this too played it's part in developing a game which in fact had started as far back as 1884,does that date surprise you? Gombau appears to have been a huge improvement at Adelaide,time will tell,but do not forget he is not the first overseas qualified coach we have had in Australian football these last 30 years so that is not the source, or the cure, for the problem I discussed before. Thank you for your interest. jb.

Not sure it is good enough for AP. The only quotes that I have seen are from Gallop endorsing this appointment.

J Binnie, I guess it's fundamentally about quality and balance - Franz Beckenbauer said the most important element to aid the development of our fledgling A-League is quality coaching- for me Señor Gombau's appointment has been telling and could potentially have far reaching implications for the development of football in SA. He has delivered a different perspective that allows neophytes to the world game like myself raise an eyebrow or two when we hear comments from our indigenous "experts" like Robbie Slater bemoan goalkeepers always playing out from the back and his preference for a "good second ball". Your knowledge of the history of football in OZ is on a totally different level to mine but I'm thinking it took our ethnic Hot Houses (tons of respect), 40 years to produce the golden generation of 2006.

Fuss - Slowly?????. An examination of club coaching appointments,media appointments,& national team appointments over the last 3 years will throw up at least 22 ex Socceroos actively engaged at our top football level. Now you will maybe accuse me of being a cynic but this number being involved is beginning to reek of an "old boy's club" or, even worse, blatant nepotism, usually a very dirty word in any business.Not that I am against recognition of ex-Socceroos,on the contrary I welcome that adulation among youngsters who are given heroes to look up to, but what is happening is a totally different scenario & what is more worrying is that closer examination of the standard of football being presented to the public is constantly coming under scrutiny, for at ACL level,at Hal level, & at all 3 levels of national teams, results are telling us we are not improving at the same rate as our neighbours in the near North. So how successful has this transition been away from the past into the new future using recognisable ex-Socceroos.? Our National team has sunk in the world rankings,our youth teams constantly fail to progress to the higher echelons of their respective competitions,& even our 'better" HAL teams are still struggling in Asia. That brings me to the most important question,Who is pulling the strings in this overall plan of transition & how well qualified (in football terms) is that person,for the checks & balances at all levels is not holding up under constructive criticism?.We keep getting told of a mythical time frame in which we have to wait to see improvement,but the money spent on "improvement"over the last 4-6 years dwarfs the resources that saw our teams of the 90's out perform those of today.Something just doesn't ring true & I for one am not convinced we are on the right track. jb

Franko, if it's good enough for AP, it should be good enough for the rest of us.

I don't think many on here are arguing they should have been appointed ahead of Craig Moore. What some may be questioning is he the best candidate for the role? Given he has been arrested abroad for alcohol related offences, appears to have no coaching credentials and spent much of his career playing in Scotland (were many here would advocate avoiding due to perceived technical and tactical deficiencies) is he the best man to be "nurturing the right culture"? Or advising Socceroos? I think it is a fair question.

Agreed, arseumptions and opinions as facts flying around a lot today.

Another product of Australia's football factory - Western Sydney. Well done.

Fantastic decision by Ange. Craig Moore has more real-life experience to offer our AUS NT players than 99.9999% of Aussies. Slowly, our highly-respected ex-AUS NT players are taking key roles at all levels within the FFA. BRAVO!

Unfortunately great player does not mean anything but great player. Many, while possessing great physical attributes are sadly lacking in grey cells. I don't know if CM is one of them but would hope not and further hope that his playing career is not the sole reason for the appt. We shall see

Only started a few months ago I think. Should be noted that they are in the Gold Coast Premier League, as in below the QNPL.

Exactly, no one knows what Ange and Craigs relationship is like these days, who made the decision, what the selection criteria was or exactly what the role involves. Moore was a great on-field leader of the Socceroos for a long time.

A lot of assumptions in the comments above on both the selection process and the terms of reference for the job. "Football Advisor" could mean anything from advising on logistical support to being a part of a post-match review team. One thing I am confident in, is that Ange is his own man and will make decisions accordingly.

If it was Gallop's decision without Ange's input it was really dumb. How to risk dissension in the camp.

Ange I thought you said you do things your way, it looks like you are the puppet and not the puppeteer because surely you would not have had Moore in this role?

Craig Moore, team ambassador. More like the tour guide who knows how to party. Obviously Ange doesn't have it all his way. Dumb move David Gallop.

How did he go with the Coomera Colts? Serious question. Does anyone know?

Errr, has he done anything since retirement apart from coaching the Coomera Colts?

Not a brilliant appointment. Having read a bunch of Moore's articles in the Courier Mail over the past few years I haven't got the impression of a great football mind or even a particularly good communicator. He was a great defender though. Is this a make up between Craig and Ange? Craig was famously the first to go when Ange took over at Brisbane Roar.