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Chapter 1: What key moments from the Socceroos' World Cup match are highlighted?
It's Gerard Waitley. Thanks for listening to the podcast. In this episode, snap judgments after the Socceroos' awesome win to start the World Cup, the Monday means test for Round 14 with Adam Simpson, the wisdom and experience of Robert Craddock, and the latest footy news with Tom Morris. You can get in touch at any time. Waitley at sen.com.au. Thanks for listening. Enjoy.
Monday morning. This is your town. This is your station.
This is Waitley. Good morning. It's a day bursting with national pride. Australia's 2-0 triumph over Takiyah in Vancouver. A World Cup win, the equal of any. Kaiser Schlouten will always be distinct in the imagination as the first... and the climactic moment of the golden generation.
Football aficionados might hold specific views over the pair of wins to progress to the knockout stage four years ago, but there's a special place in history for what Tony Popovich's men did yesterday. A performance with magic dusted all over it. It had been very difficult to ascertain with any clarity from those who might know exactly where to peg hopes for this class of Socceroos.
They were for all, it seemed, a mystery. It had an odd effect. Rivals opted to depict Australia as a backwater, a nation with no place at a World Cup, despite participating for six straight occasions in these finals. The Americans were boorish, the Turks straight up arrogant. Popovich was gifted the material any leader dreams of, especially an Australian.
Then the coach pulled the move I most admire. He defied convention and opinion and went his own sweet way. The team sheet favoured the adventure of youth over the surety of experience. Conservatism be damned. It put the sword of Damocles over the coach and the team. If they were overawed and overwhelmed, the criticism would have been savage.
Coaches made of the best stuff are undeterred by thoughts of such consequences. They are ruled by conviction. They trust instinct and intuition. And so Popovich sent the young and free to the breach. If you love to see national character reflected in your teams, this was as green and gold as it gets. And that's why it will resonate beyond the scoreline. Impressive as it is.
Nestori Irenkunda is today a household name. Speed and precision is the most lethal combination in sports. Have we had a player quite like that in a Socceroo shirt? And the world-class finish of Conor Metcalfe? Well, that was stunning. Such surgical striking hasn't really been Australia's long suit. At many a World Cup, it's felt like mass production of chances for meagre returns.
The pair of wonder girls will rightly be on high rotation. Meritorious will be the complete commitment to defend. Patrick Beach was magnificent in goal, favoured ahead of the veteran captain. Harry Soutar wore the armband and set a tireless example. And by the end, Turkey's claims to individual superiority had been stifled and smothered.
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Chapter 2: How does Tony Popovich's coaching style impact the Socceroos?
An Australian courtesy of an errant touch by a Turkish player on the attacker. It's Connor Metcalf! Oh my word! Oh my goodness!
What a goal by Connor Metcalf! Something out of nothing from the edge of the penalty area. it is an arrow-like finish with the left peg and he's now smothered by jubilant Australians and why not the Socceroos hear this back in Australia lead Turkey by two goals to nil and the full-time whistle blows in Vancouver It's all over.
What a night for the Socceroos for only the second time in their history. And for the first time since 2006, they win their opening game in a World Cup.
Three priceless points, which gives them a great chance of progress. through Group D. It's effing unreal. It's a dream come true. You know, we've got the win now. We worked extra hard. We fought till the end. And it's just an exciting moment. It feels amazing. It feels amazing. You know, you've got to thank the staff. You've got to thank the nation.
You know, they all have the belief in me to do so well. And, you know, I felt like today, getting that goal, yeah, it's just a great feeling, yeah.
Oh, it was a great feeling for all of us. I especially like Roy Keane's conclusion. He wrote, the harsh reality is this. Australia arrived believing they could win. Turkey arrived believing they should win. One mindset creates history. The other creates headlines like this. Those Socceroos created history. Our snap judgments begin with the Socceroos.
When your country plays at a World Cup, it's a national event. It's for everyone. We will allow no sporting snobbery here. Whether you are a weekly attendee of the A-League or a once-every-four-year viewer, whether you are in Vancouver, at Federation Square, or on the couch, your snap judgments are welcome. 1-300-736-736. And the 40 Winks temper text is 0433 98 11 16. The difference is temper.
Andre, Gerard, I feel like the Socceroos are the only team that unites the country. We had people over for my daughter's second birthday and all of us glued to the TV cheering on as one. Anmol, I've never been so proud of our Socceroos. Our defence was amazing. I watched it with my dad. We absorbed and loved the game.
I watched it with my son, sat together on the couch and cheered every moment of it. And by the way, if you're not listening to Simon Hill and Andy Harper, you are missing out. Robert Craddock had this pegged last week. The most dangerous thing you can do is tell an Australian sporting team they have no chance.
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Chapter 3: What are the standout performances from the Socceroos players?
What a weekend of sport. The Knicks and then the soccer like yesterday. Just amazing. Just an amazing weekend.
Yes, I was trying to think of the perfect combination of fans. So St Kilda's supporting Knicks fan with a Socceroos shirt in the drawer was sort of where I landed. What did you think of the Knicks?
Oh, the Knicks were amazing. I mean, Brunson was just incredible. As you probably remember, I'm a vintage collector, and of course I immediately got online and started looking for modern cuts of Brunson. But no, it was an amazing performance by them. I mean, to come back in basically every game, but then for an hour or two later to...
stay there and watch the Socceroos do their thing was just incredible. Just a great day.
Good on you, Carl. Thanks for sharing it with us. Fred's in Caulfield. Welcome, Fred.
G'day, Jared. I don't think I've ever called you for soccer. I was actually hoping Jarvis would call. I was curious to see if you had anything to say about the Socceroos. No, it was just, it was awesome, Jared. Just jumping up at the Ross Town, hanging off the roof, hugging locals, people singing the Walson Matilda. It's the best thing about sport and especially the World Cup.
It just transcends everything. and just brings everyone together. And it was just awesome. The courage as well to play Paddy Beach, a 22-year-old over Matty Ryan, 38, four-world cup captain. And then for him to stand up like that in the game. I mean, you can hear my voice. I haven't stopped shouting. It's been awesome.
That's beautiful, Fred. Good on you. Thanks for sharing it with us. Makes you want to go to Rebel and get your Aaron Cunder shirt by Saturday morning, doesn't it? Susan Mernda. Hello, Sue.
Yes. Hello, Gerard. Well, the weekend started with us Collingwood supporters saying, what on earth are we going to do for entertainment? Yesterday afternoon, early, our grandsons watched the New York Knicks win and were yelling for a New York team. Then we decided to take it easy and see how the Socceroos went. Well, of course, that rounded the afternoon off brilliantly.
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Chapter 4: What sentiments do fans express about the Socceroos' victory?
Now, back to Waitley.
Great set of messages and calls. Our snap judgments are flavoured by the deeds of the Socceroos. Morning, Gerard, in regards to your caller Sue and those magnificent yellow jerseys, I'm channelling my inner Bill Laurie. That's Australian gold, my friend, and don't forget it, great call. Nonetheless, national pride sky high. Darren from Blackburn and Rowan in Perth is missing out on it.
As a West Coast Eagles and San Antonio fan, sports sucks, Gerard. Sports sucks. If you're of Turkish extraction, you'd have the trifecta. Matt's in Maribyrnong. Welcome, Matt. Gerard, good morning. I'm not often able to catch your show. I'm usually working by this time, but I thought, well, work can wait today. I really wanted to give you a call this morning.
Yes.
The comments from the Turkish camp, for me, recalled moments of November 2005 when we were preparing for our final playoff match against Uruguay. And Alvaro Recoba, a Uruguayan striker, said, Uruguay has a divine right to be at the World Cup. And I thought, these comments from the Turkish camp are perfect. This is just what we want. This is going to drive us, galvanize us.
And what we put on the park yesterday silenced those comments emphatically. And recalling that November 2005 shootout, Patrick Beach reminded me of Mark Schwartzer and his performance in the heroics that they both performed on that occasion. And the sign one fan held up in the crowd on that night when we beat Uruguayan penalties, divine right, not tonight. Matt, great memories. Well done.
You've pegged that beautifully. Crash had this last Monday. I can't wait to talk to him at 11. Jeff's in Adelaide. Hello to you, Jeff.
Oh, g'day, Gerard. I agree with you so much, and I'm probably going to forget something, but Popovic played for us, now he's coaching us.
The Socceroos and Matildas are the only two teams that can make all of us cheer for one team. No other sport, only those two teams.
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Chapter 5: What insights does Adam Simpson provide about team performance?
More consistent in and around the contest. Ball in hand, ground ball, aerial. We've got to be stronger. The way that we shape the contest through corridor, um, You know, we want to squeeze the ground in team defence. So there's little wins. And I can't really sit here with KPIs, I guess, and give them KPIs. But just the brand of footy, the passion and spirit that we play with.
I reckon we saw two and a half quarters against Carlton, the way that we played. It looks more like that. We haven't got consistency yet in that. The second half looked a little bit better today. But we make no apologies. We want to... We want it to be a bit more gritty than pretty, the way we play. A bit more grand final day. And that's the style we're trying to coach.
We understand the modern game and we've got to use the ball better. We have no doubt about that. And that's why some personnel are sitting in different positions to enhance that. But until we get the core, essence of the game, right, the contest. We have to build it out from there. We're not consistent enough yet in that area.
This is the debate. What is Dean Solomon doing at Essendon over a lengthy period of time? And if he is the preferred candidate of the president, then it makes him a fascinating study. Yeah, well, I hope they... I'm sure there was, that's just a press conference, I suppose, but you've got to be really clear what you're chasing. Cause there's a lot of things there.
Chapter 6: What are the implications of Dean Solomon's coaching at Essendon?
If you're a player, hang on, is it aerial contest, ground level, gritty to be pretty, grand final day, a team defense, um, our ball movement, like there's a lot of things there. That's, that's everything. So, um, yeah. I'm sure there's some clear focus points on, we are going to do these three things this year and we're going to judge every game on bang, bang, bang.
And until we get that right, we can't go anywhere further. And, um, you know, I'm not, I don't think I was perfect in doing that either, but. When you're in a coach that's just filling in for the rest of the year, sometimes you need direction too on what you're doing.
I know Carlton were talking about, I just heard Tom talk about it the other day, about what's the list management focus in the back half of the year? What do you want to do with Merritt? Are they playing him half back because of a list management decision or is it to win games? So... It's an interesting piece that the bombers are in because normally who's the alpha there right now?
Who's running the show? That would be an interesting conversation. Who's making decisions on list management and on field? We want to see this kid play. Um, we want, this guy's not going to be here next year. Let's not play him or let's play him a different spot. Not saying that's merit, but that in general conversation, um, Um, what, what are we building towards?
Cause there's still 10 weeks to go. So there's the whole club conversation. Then there's the, the, the coaching point about we're chasing these two or three things because our identity is this right now. Let's make it this by the end of the year. Um, I'm assuming he's doing that, Dean.
He's not silly, but to say that we're going to do everything is, is it's hard to do when you have Sydney, let alone, um, if you're at the bottom of the ladder. So if you're the interim coach who's not going to be the guy, so Josh Fraser has set himself as that, who's to say what that ends up being? That's different to being, well, let's study the DNA of the next 13 weeks.
If it turns out that he's the next coach, then this is a really important period because he gets a three-month head start to put it in place. Now, their injuries, again, just make it,
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Chapter 7: How do injuries impact team dynamics and performance?
They make it impractical to do terribly much. So he doesn't want to lean on the injuries. That's for us to look at. They lose Archie Roberts now as well. It's their reality. So good luck building anything over the next 13. I'll absolutely salute if they come out of this period with a clear identity and winning some games. That would be one of the all-time coaching performances.
It feels to me like they're just... They're gripping on and the best thing you could do is just galvanize and unify. Yeah. The audition for me is, uh, and they're doing it. I think they're doing it off. You know, they're doing it by just, um, not letting anyone in other than Essendon. So we are, we're going to galvanize our group, our team.
Um, all the past players, we're going to bring everyone back around and we're not, not the coaching bit, but just the, the past players in the rooms and the, um, connection with everyone within the football club and the unity pace and all those things. I think that's number one priority. So it feels like they're trying to do that, but. Yeah, if this is an audition, what gets you the gig?
It can't just be he's Dean Solomon. What's the audition piece that we're going to judge him on or the selection committee are going to judge him on from the opportunity you've got with the players? I wonder if it's more about the club at the moment than on field. Yeah. It's intriguing about how they're going to judge it because are they going to select the coach in the next four to six weeks?
So he hasn't got 10 weeks. Yeah. I suspect he probably does. What? There's no reason for them to rush. Yeah.
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Chapter 8: What is the significance of Cooper Connolly's century in the ODI?
But I would have thought in the next five weeks there will be something. There'll be a decision in five, six weeks, won't there? No. Okay. I don't think so. Yeah, all right. Well, how long does it take? Well, they haven't even started their – well, they're going to be different.
Yeah.
Don't worry about the idea of – Okay, anyway. They're going to be different. So he's on – if he's part of the mix, then there's got to be some KPIs around internal and the club, which definitely I think there's some clarity around that. And then on field is – listen, mate. Yeah. This time you've got so many injuries, just keep them connected.
Try and play with a bit of spirit and try and, you know, engage the fans as much as you can, because we want to bring what we still need crowds and gives, you know, the kids that's important, but who's telling him that right now, or is he's telling. the club, this is what we need to do. So I think we, we would guess from the outside, he and the president are very close.
So none of this is happening by accident. And so whatever they're doing, they're doing in lockstep for the time being. And then who knows how it pans out once other voices are involved. Sure. But yeah, what, what, what is our purpose at the moment? So he said before the West coast game, he said, it's going to take a few weeks, but then we'll start winning games.
So we watched them on Saturday and they couldn't be further away from winning games. No, and I've been admitted the first half was not them. But there was glimpses the week before against Carlton. There's some, you know, I think the identity is around contest, you know, pressure, tackles, the stuff that's effort related. And I think the fans, that's what we all want to see.
Just give us a bit of spirit and effort. And I think that's the piece that he's chasing. We saw a bit of that against the Blues, but we didn't really see it against... Melbourne, like, I mean, Gorn, you can't stop Gorn. If you don't have a ruckman who can compete with Gorn, but you can try and stop Pickett, can't you? Like, he was doing his own thing in that first half.
That first half was a little bit alarming. And then he got bored. And then, you know, Merritt on the halfback, I can sort of see what they're trying to do. But if you want to be good at contest clearance, pressure, do you put your best player on board? I don't know. These are the type of things that you talk about as a coach and as a team, and that's what you get judged on. So...
I'm assuming that's what we're going to assess Essendon on the next month, the spirit, the energy, the connected pace off-field, and not about ball movement or winning, because I just think that's a little bit unfair. That's what the expectations are. All right, so we debate Essendon with a view towards the future. For FIFA World Cup Meals at Macca's, here's Nathan in the newsroom. The curiosity.
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