Greatest Ever Australian Footballer (Midfielders)
JIMMY ROONEY Born in Dundee, Scotland, Rooney started his career in the UK representing Lochee United, Peterborough and Montrose before emigrating to Melbourne
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JIMMY ROONEY

Born in Dundee, Scotland, Rooney started his career in the UK representing Lochee United, Peterborough and Montrose before emigrating to Melbourne in 1968 and signing for the Essendon Lions and going on to play for Prague, APIA Leichhardt, Marconi and Fitzroy Alexander. Rooney made his debut for the Socceroos in 1971 and appeared in all three of the Socceroos 1974 World Cup games.

Date of Birth: 10 December 1945

Clubs: 1964-1965 Lochee United

1965-1967 Peterborough United 7 Appearances

1967-1968 Montrose FC 13 Appearances

1968-1969 Essendon Lions

1970-1971 Prague

1972-1976 APIA Leichhardt

1977-1978 Club Marconi

1979-1981 Fitzroy Alexander 72 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 57 Appearances

3 Goals

Debut: 1971 vs. Israel (Brisbane)

JOHNNY WARREN

John Warren was born in Sydney in 1943 and began his career at the age of five in Botany, making his senior debut at 16 with Canterbury-Marrickville. In 1963 he joined St George and spent most of his career with the club until his retirement in 1974.

Warren played for Australia from 1965 to 1974, serving as captain from 1967-71, representing 62 times, 44 of them at full international level. He captained Australia in the 1970 World Cup campaign and was a member of the 1974 World Cup Finals squad before switching to coaching. His business career involved media, marketing and clinics relating to the code. He was awarded the MBE in 1973 for services to sport and in 1990, the National Soccer League announced the Warren Medal as its Player of the Year Award.

Date of Birth: 17 May 1943

Clubs: 1959-1962 Canterbury-Marrickville

1963-1964 Budapest

1964 Stockport County

1965-1974 St George-Budapest

Socceroos Stats: 42 Appearances

6 Goals

Debut: 1965 vs. Cambodia (Phnom Penh)

PAUL WADE

Paul was born in England and moved to Australia at age 11. Paul made his name with Brunswick Juventus where he won the NSL title with them in 1985.

He would cement his spot as one of Australian domestic football’s best with South Melbourne, making 212 appearances, winning NSL player of the year in 1988, played for the Olyroos in the same year in their Seoul Olympics campaign and won the NSL in the 1990/1991 season. In that time he made his first of 86 appearances for the Socceroos in 1986. He stayed with South Melbourne until 1995 and finished his career in the NSL with the Canberra Cosmos in the 1997 season.

He also captained the Socceroos for many years with perhaps his most memorable performance coming when he marked none other than Diego Maradona in the 1993 World Cup qualifiers. In 1996, he captained the team to win the Oceania Nations Cup. Paul is an FFA Hall of Champions inductee (inducted in 2000) and has received an Order of Australia (OAM).

Date of Birth: 20 March 1962

Clubs: 1984 Green Gully 28 Appearances

1985-1986 Brunswick Juventus

1987-1995 South Melbourne 212 Appearances

1995 Heidelberg United 6 Appearances

1995-1997 Canberra Cosmos 45 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 84 Appearances

10 Goals

Debut: 1986 vs. Czechoslovakia (Melbourne)

BRETT EMERTON

Growing up in Macquarie Fields, Emerton first jumped on the pitch at Bensley Road Gunners Soccer Club, where he was nicknamed ‘the greyhound’ with his fast skills and ability to outpace the competition. Emerton was aged five. During the following years he played for the Macarthur Rams at representative level and progressed on further as he aged.

Emerton was a product of the Australian Institute of Sport and started his career with Sydney Olympic in the National Soccer League in August 1996. During his stay at the club he impressed widely with his pace and stamina, as much as his play with the ball. After making 94 appearances and scoring 16 goals, Emerton began to be noticed in Europe.

After being linked with several Premiership teams, Emerton eventually joined Blackburn Rovers in July 2003 on a four-year contract, saying, “I’ve always dreamed of playing in the Premiership so to finally achieve it is great.” He turned down offers from larger clubs so that he could play in his preferred position on the wing. He scored on his debut in a 5–1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in August 2003. In his first Premier League season, Emerton played in 37 league games, scored 2 goals, and featured in 40 matches in all competitions. In July 2008, Emerton signed a new four-year contract, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2012.

On 31 January 2009, Emerton’s 2008–09 seasons came to a halt versus Middlesbrough when during a tackle, he damaged his knee. It was revealed on 2 February that he had damaged his cruciate ligament, which meant he would miss the remainder of the season, 6 to 9 months being his expected recovery time.

On 25 August 2011 it was announced that Emerton had signed with two time A-League champions, Sydney FC on a three-year deal after terminating his contract with Blackburn Rovers by mutual consent returning him to his homeland after 11 years abroad. He is the Vice-Captain of Sydney FC. He made his début at Etihad Stadium against A-League giants Melbourne Victory.

Date of Birth: 22 February 1989

Clubs: 1996–2000 Sydney Olympic 94 Appearances

2000–2003 Feyenoord 92 Appearances

2003–2011 Blackburn Rovers 247 Appearances

2011– Sydney FC 19 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 92 Appearances

19 Goals

Debut: 1998

MURRAY BARNES

Murray Barnes played for a number of junior soccer clubs including Northern Tigers and Kissing Point in New South Wales. He also spent a year with the youth team of English club Leeds United. During his senior club career Murray Barnes played for Sydney Hakoah (later known as Sydney City Soccer Club) in the New South Wales State League and in the National Soccer League. He played 225 games for Sydney Hakoah, winning four championships and scoring 60 goals.

He played 51 full international games for the national side scoring six goals. He was the 24th captain of the Socceroos for nine matches between 1980 and 1981 including the World Cup qualifiers against New Zealand, Fiji, Chinese Taipei and Indonesia.

Murray Barnes has received the Football Hall of Fame, Award of Distinction. In June 2008, Football Federation Australia created the Socceroo Club made up of former national team members. Murray Barnes was announced as a founding member. Murray Barnes sadly passed away on the 31st December 2011. Football Federation Australia chief executive Ben Buckley described him as “a fierce competitor and as a proud Australian.”

Date of Birth: 16 January 1954

Clubs Northern Tigers

Kissing Point

Leeds United Youth Team (UK)

Sydney Hakoah

Socceroos stats: 51 appearances

9 Goals

Debut: 1975

JIMMY MACKAY

Born in Scotland, Mackay began his career there with Airdrie before moving to Melbourne to play for Melbourne Croatia. This resulted in a call up to the Socceroos in 1970. Mackay then moved to Sydney to play for Hakoah and appeared in all three of the Socceroos games at the 1974 World Cup. Upon returning from the World Cup, Mackay moved backed to Melbourne to play for South Melbourne Hellas and then South Melbourne.

Date of Birth: 19 December 1943

Clubs: 1964-1965 Airdrie 5 Appearances

1965-1972 Melbourne Croatia

1973-1974 Hakoah Eastern Suburbs 22 Appearances

1975-1976 South Melbourne Hellas

1977 South Melbourne 1 Appearance

Socceroos Stats: 33 Appearances

5 Goals

Debut: 1970 vs. Iran (Tehran)

PAUL OKON

Born in Sydney, NSW, Okon made his debut in the NSL with Marconi before being signed by Club Brugge at the age of 19. Okon established himself as a key player for Brugge and was integral to the club winning the Belgian Cup in 1994/5 and the Belgian League and Cup double in 1995/6 also winning the Belgian Golden Shoe, given to the league’s best footballer.

Okon’s form lead to him being named Oceania Player of the Year and earned him a transfer to Serie A with Lazio. Okon’s three seasons with Lazio were plagued with injury and he eventually moved on to Fiorentina before leaving Italy for England after signing for Middlesbrough in 2000.

In England Okon represented Middlesbrough, Watford and Leeds United before moving back to Italy for a season with Vicenza. Okon’s time with Vicenza was followed by a return to Belgium with K.V. Oostende then by a stint in Cyprus with APOEL before returning to Australia to play for the Newcastle Jets.

Date of Birth: 5 April 1972

Clubs: 1989-1991 Marconi 49 Appearances

1991-1996 Club Brugge 72 Appearances

1996-1999 Lazio 19 Appearances

1999-2000 Fiorentina 11 Appearances

2000-2002 Middlesbrough 28 Appearances

2002 Watford 15 Appearances

2003 Leeds United 15 Appearances

2003-2004 Vicenza 28 Appearances

2004-2005 K.V. Oostende 33 Appearances

2005-2006 APOEL 9 Appearances

2006-2007 Newcastle Jets 17 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 28 Appearances

Debut: 1991 vs. Czechoslovakia (Sydney)

VINCE GRELLA

Born in Dandenong, Melbourne, VIC, Grella moved away from his hometown of Melbourne to Canberra to complete the football program at the AIS, it was in Canberra that Grella would make his senior debut with NSL side Canberra Cosmos before moving back to Melbourne to play for Carlton.

Grella’s form for Carlton was enough to earn a move to Italy where he would spend the next decade of his professional career, initially with Empoli as well as Ternana and bigger clubs Parma and Torino. Grella decided to end his time in Italy by accepting an offer from Blackburn Rovers where he currently plays.

Date of Birth: 5 October 1979

Clubs: 1996-1997 Canberra Cosmos 14 Appearances

1997-1998 Carlton 23 Appearances

1998-2004 Empoli 60 Appearances

1999-2001 Ternana 27 Appearances

2004-2007 Parma 92 Appearances

2007-2008 Torino 28 Appearances

2008- Blackburn Rovers 38 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 46 Appearances

Debut: 2003 vs. England (London)

JOSIP SKOKO

Born in Mount Gambier, Josip Skoko is another member of the “Golden Generation,” seen by many as one of our country’s finest. Having started his career with North Geelong Warriors, Skoko moved to Croatian powerhouses Hajduk Split in 1995. Skoko made his debut for the Socceroos in 1997 against Macedonia and would become a mainstay of the team until his international retirement in 2007.

After over 100 appearances for Split, Skoko decided to move to Belgian side Genk in 1999. He would go on to captain the side and remained there until 2003 when he moved to Turkish side Gençlerbirliği. He was a first team regular there and played a major part in the team’s impressive UEFA Cup run in 2004. In 2005, Skoko moved to the English Premier League with Wigan Athletic, attracting a €1 million transfer fee. His game time in that first season was limited and subsequently moved to Stoke City on loan where he made 9 appearances.

The 2006/2007 season would prove better for Skoko, a season in which he held down a regular place for the club. He would remain with the club until 2008 and made over 45 appearances for the club. Skoko was a member of the 2006 World Cup squad but never played in any of Australia’s games. He announced his retirement in 2007, and left the international scene with 51 caps and 9 goals. Skoko then returned to Hajduk Split in 2008 on a free transfer and went on to make a further 64 appearances for the Croatian club during his second stint. Following his second coming at Split, Skoko finally returned home and played a season with the Melbourne Heart.

Date of Birth: 10 December 1975

Clubs: 1994–1995 North Geelong Warriors 32 Appearances

1995–1999 Hajduk Split 97 Appearances

1999–2003 Genk 100 Appearances

2003–2005 Gençlerbirliği 58 Appearances

2005–2008 Wigan Athletic 45 Appearances

2006 Stoke City (loan) 9 Appearances

2008–2010 Hajduk Split 64 Appearances

2010–2011 Melbourne Heart 22 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 51 Appearances

9 Goals

Debut: 1997 vs. Macedonia

JASON CULINA

Born in Sydney, Jason Culina is, like many in the “Golden Generation,” seen as one our most talented players ever and has represented Australia at every level (U17s, U20s, U23s and seniors). Jason began his senior career under his father, Branko, at Sydney United in the mid 90s.

A brief spell with Sydney Olympic was followed by a move to Europe with Dutch giants Ajax. Jason struggled to break into the team there and moved to FC Twente in search of regular first team football. Culina excelled for Twente and as a result was picked up by Guus Hiddink’s PSV Eindhoven. He made his debut for the Socceroos in 2005 against South Africa.

While at PSV, Culina enjoyed what would prove to be his most successful spell of club football. He took out the Dutch Eredivisie 3 times (2005/2006, 2006/2007 and 2007/2008) and won the Dutch Super Cup in 2008.

He was highly rated by PSV and Socceroos boss Guus Hiddink and as a result featured prominently for both sides and played a major part in Australia’s successful 2006 World Cup campaign. He is seen by many as one of the most versatile players to have played in the national side, however was mostly deployed in a defensive midfield role.

While still at the peak of his powers and only 29, Culina made the decision to return home and play in the A-League. He signed for the new Gold Coast United franchise in 2009. He was not the first Socceroo to return home, but was seen as the first Socceroo to return home while still at his peak. Culina is currently with the Newcastle Jets.

Date of Birth: 5 August 1980

Clubs: 1996–1998 Sydney United 32 appearances

1998–1999 Sydney Olympic 21 appearances

2000–2004 Ajax 3 appearances

2001 Germinal Beerschot (loan) 12 appearances

2002–2003 De Graafschap (loan) 24 appearances

2004–2005 FC Twente 38 appearances

2005–2009 PSV 98 appearances

2009–2011 Gold Coast United 44 appearances

2011 Newcastle Jets

Socceroos Stats: 58 Appearances

1 Goal

Debut: 2005 vs. South Africa

LES SCHEINFLUG

Born in Buckeburg, Germany, Scheinflug moved to Australia with his family in the early 1950’s. He was picked up by Sydney club Prague and played there for the majority of his career, with all his Socceroos caps coming during his time at the club. Scheinflug left Prague to play for Marconi and went on to finish his career at Canterbury-Marrickville later going on to coach the Socceroos.

Date of Birth: 1 October 1938

Clubs: 1957-1968 Prague

1969 Marconi

1971 Canterbury-Marrickville

Socceroos Stats: 6 Appearances

4 Goals

Debut: 1965 vs. North Korea (Phnom Penh)

RAYMOND “RAY” RICHARDS

Born in Croydon, England, Richards immigrated to Brisbane as a teenager appearing for Latrobe Soccer Club and Hollandia before moving south to Sydney and going on to represent Sydney Croatia, Marconi and APIA Leichhardt. Richards debuted for the Socceroos in 1967 and went on to appear in all the Socceroos three games at the 1974 World Cup.

Date of Birth: 18 May 1946

Clubs: 1963-1967 Latrobe Soccer Club

1968 Hollandia

1969 Sydney Croatia

1969-1977 Marconi

1979 APIA Leichhardt 4 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 33 Appearances

6 Goals

Debut: 1967 vs. New Zealand (Saigon)

OSCAR CRINO

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, AIS graduate Crino is considered one of the most talented midfielders of his generation to pull on the green and gold. Having made his name for South Melbourne in the mid 80s, Oscar went on to play for Footscray JUST and Preston Lions. Crino was also a member of the 1988 Olympic squad that went to Seoul.

Date of Birth: 9 August 1962

Clubs: 1983-1985 South Melbourne 76 Appearances

1985-1986 Anorthosis Famagusta

1987-1989 Footscray JUST 53 Appearances

1989-1991 Preston Lions 31 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 39 Appearances

6 Goals

Debut: 1981 vs. Indonesia (Jakarta)

MARK BRESCIANO

Born in Melbourne, Mark Bresciano is, to many, one of Australia’s most technically gifted players. Praised by Australian and Italian press and fans alike as an intelligent and creative player, Marco has had one of Australian football’s best careers. Like many of the “golden generation” Marco is a graduate of the famed AIS program and then went on to make his name in the NSL for Carlton. A move to Italy came about in 1999 for then Serie B club Empoli, accompanied by his long time friend, Vince Grella.

In his third year at the club, Empoli were promoted and Mark played the first of many seasons in Serie A. He played in the Sydney Olympics in 2000 for the Olyroos, again with Vince Grella, before his debut for the Socceroos came in 2001. Mark moved on to Parma in 2002 and helped the club to 5th place and a UEFA cup spot in his first season there. Mark continued scoring for Parma and had established himself as a Socceroos regular.

Perhaps his most memorable moment in the green and gold was his goal against Uruguay in 2005. His goal tied the all important World Cup qualifier at 1-1 (on aggregate) and proved to be vital as the scores stayed locked.

In 2006, Mark was an important member of the Socceroos World Cup team and played in all of Australia’s matches, a tournament where the Socceroos surprised many and reached the second round. After the World Cup he signed for Serie A side Palmero. Mark played in the 2007 Asian Cup for the Socceroos and was also the target of Manchester City, having a seemingly done deal fall through. He went on to play in Australia’s 2010 World Cup campaign and currently plies his trade with Al Nasr in the UAE Pro-League.

Date of Birth: 11 February 1980

Clubs: 1995–1997 Bulleen Lions 9 Appearances

1997–1999 Carlton 28 Appearances

1999–2002 Empoli 80 Appearances

2002–2006 Parma 123 Appearances

2006–2010 Palermo 107 Appearances

2010–2011 Lazio 20 Appearances

2011– Al Nasr 5 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 57 Appearances

11 Goals

Debut: 2001 vs. France

TIM CAHILL

Born in Sydney, NSW, Cahill is one of the most famous Australian footballers of all time. He is plying his trade at Everton FC in the English Premier League. He has accomplished a lot in his career already. He scored the first ever goal for Australia in a World cup scoring twice against Japan in a 3-1 win in Germany at the 2006 world cup. He also scored the first goal by an Australian at an Asian Cup.

He is known as a talented and energetic player who is particularly gifted in aerial contests, despite being quite small in comparison to most footballers. He is the most prolific scorer with his head, in the illustrious English Premier League, scoring 31 goals of his 54 with his head. He is an integral part of the Everton football club, captaining the side in Phil Neville’s absence. He was nominated for the prestigious Ballon d’Or in 2006 and in 2004 was named both Everton’s player of the season and player’s player of the season.

He has scored the most goals by an Australian at world cup finals and has scored more goals than any other player (post-war) against the most decorated club in England, Liverpool FC. Cahill is heavily involved with the Unique Children’s charity and is widely considered a national hero.

Date of Birth: 6 December 1979

Clubs: 1998-2004 Millwall 217 Appearances

2004- Everton 211 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 55 Appearances

24 Goals

Debut: 2004 vs. South Africa (London)

MURRAY BARNES

Murray Barnes played for a number of junior soccer clubs including Northern Tigers and Kissing Point in New South Wales. He also spent a year with the youth team of English club Leeds United. During his senior club career Murray Barnes played for Sydney Hakoah (later known as Sydney City Soccer Club) in the New South Wales State League and in the National Soccer League. He played 225 games for Sydney Hakoah, winning four championships and scoring 60 goals.

He played 51 full international games for the national side scoring six goals. He was the 24th captain of the Socceroos for nine matches between 1980 and 1981 including the World Cup qualifiers against New Zealand, Fiji, Chinese Taipei and Indonesia.

Murray Barnes has received the Football Hall of Fame, Award of Distinction. In June 2008, Football Federation Australia created the Socceroo Club made up of former national team members. Murray Barnes was announced as a founding member.

Murray Barnes sadly passed away on the 31st December 2011. Football Federation Australia chief executive Ben Buckley described him as “a fierce competitor and as a proud Australian.”

Date of Birth: 16 January 1954

Clubs Northern Tigers

Kissing Point

Leeds United Youth Team (UK)

Sydney Hakoah

Socceroos stats: 51 appearances

9 Goals

Debut: 1975

NED ZELIC

Born in Sydney, NSW, Zelic spent three seasons in the NSL with Sydney clubs Olympic and Croatia before being signed by German side Borussia Dortmund. His overseas career began brightly, with Zelic picking up a UEFA Cup runners up medal in 1992/3 and Bundesliga champions in 1994/5.

After three successful seasons at Dortmund, Zelic moved to Queens Park Rangers, Eintract Frankfurt and Auxerre then moved back to Germany with TSV 1860 Munchen, who he would represent over 100 times. After leaving 1860 Munchen Zelic moved to Japan initially with Kyoto Purple Sanga then Urawa Red Diamonds where he won the 2003 J League Cup.

Zelic returned to Europe with Austrian side Wacker Tirol before returning to Australia for the Newcastle Jets in the newly formed A-League. In a bid to make the 2006 World Cup squad Zelic moved back to Europe to join Dutch club Helmond Sport, after missing out on the World Cup squad Zelic moved on to Dinamo Tbilisi where he took home a champions medal in the 2007/8 Georgian League.

Date of Birth: 4 July 1971

Clubs: 1989-1991 Sydney Croatia 36 Appearances

1991-1992 Sydney Olympic 16 Appearances

1992-1995 Borussia Dortmund 72 Appearances

1995 Queens Park Rangers 11 Appearances

1996 Eintract Frankfurt 20 Appearances

1996-1997 AJ Auxerre 18 Appearances

1997-2001 TSV 1860 Munchen 102 Appearances

2002 Kyoto Purple Sanga 1 Appearance

2002-2003 Urawa Red Diamonds 23 Appearances

2004-2005 Wacker Tirol 22 Appearances

2005-2006 Newcastle Jets 21 Appearances

2006 Helmond Sport 7 Appearances

2006-2008 Dinamo Tbilisi 34 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 33 Appearances

3 Goals

Debut: 1991 vs. Czechoslovakia (Sydney)

ROBBIE SLATER

Born in Ormskirk, Lancashire, England, Slater began his career in the NSL with St George Saints before moving to rival side Sydney United. Slater was then transferred to Anderlecht where he struggled to get significant game time leading to him moving to France with RC Lens where he became a regular and went on to appear 121 times collecting a Coupe de la Ligue winners medal in the process.

Slater then returned to his country of birth and was a part of the Blackburn Rovers side that won the Premier League in his only season with the club. Slater also played for West Ham United, Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers before returning to Australia to finish his career with North Sydney club Northern Spirit. Slater was inducted into the Hall of Champions in the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2005

Date of Birth: 22 November 1964

Clubs: 1982-1986 St George 98 Appearances

1987-1989 Sydney United 73 Appearances

1989-1990 Anderlecht 4 Appearances

1990-1994 RC Lens 121 Appearances

1994-1995 Blackburn Rovers 18 Appearances

1995-1996 West Ham United 25 Appearances

1996-1998 Southampton 41 Appearances

1998 Wolverhampton Wanderers 6 Appearances

1998-2001 Northern Spirit 61 Appearances

Socceroos Stats: 28 Appearances

1 Goal

Debut: 1988 vs. Brazil (Melbourne)