The mere mention of Josip Simunic's name causes the Australian football fan angst. It's not just because of his three-card performance at the World Cup in 2006 or because of his fascist salute to the crowd last year, but the fact that he turned his back on his country of birth to represent that of his ancestry.
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His career is on the cusp of ending unceremoniously after he received a 10-match ban for his pro-Nazi salute, and while some Australians will be quietly satisfied with the curtains drawing closed, they should be aware that a far greater player exodus from our shores is just about to occur.
The names Reno Piscipo, Steven Ugarkovic and Milos Degenek might not mean much to Australian football fans today, but in a matter of years they could become a sore point in discussions surrounding the national team. The trio are three of the country's most talented youngsters who have already made the leap abroad. They're among dozens shining in the best youth systems around the world. They have the potential to shine for the Socceroos, but they will likely never wear the green and gold.
For all the professionalism, infrastructure and talent identification that's now part of the game, the player drain of our best youngsters hasn't been stemmed. It's easy to be disappointed seeing defensive midfielder Ugarkovic playing for Croatia's youth team, but it's harder to believe he never appeared in the National Youth League. According to his agent and youth development coach, Andy Bernal, he was deemed persona non grata by A-League clubs after missing out in the filter system of the state and FFA-sanctioned institutes.
"It's no wonder the kid packs up and goes to Croatia if he's been ignored here," Bernal said. "You want to try and identify the best kids, which is a good thing, but for every 20 you identify there might be another 30 that didn't make that year's institutions and what happens to them? If you don't get picked as part of the national talent identification, you don't get selected for the AIS. The system can crush you, there's no second options."
The young stars of the A-League all have similar resumes, years at state institutes of sport, and the best of the bunch graduate from the AIS. Those who miss out on such pathways face a difficult battle to break through and going abroad can be an easier option.
It's the story of Reno Piscipo, perhaps the best Australian youth product since Harry Kewell. The 15-year-old forward was overlooked by FFA and state institutions but now captains the Under-16 team of Inter Milan. To rub more salt in the wounds of those who overlooked him, he is a regular for Gli Azzurri and seen by the Italians as one of the brightest prospects for their national team. His youth coach, Joe De Martino of Genova ISS, says he was never given a chance within the Australian systems.
"No, and this is probably the most disturbing part - boys who come to us at the age of 14 or 15, they've either trialled with the state or in the NTC [National Training Centre], they put themselves on to the radar to be selected and they, for whatever reason, were overlooked," De Martino said.
Blake Ricciuto is one of the many who have looked overseas after failing to break into the youth teams in the A-League. Now at Uruguay giants Penarol, the 21-year-old from Botany in Sydney concedes that if the opportunity to play for the country of his father's birth was to arise, it would be difficult to say no after the chance he was given in Montevideo.
"It's a very tough question. Uruguay, I'd love to play for their national team because the passion is so big here. Also Uruguay and Penarol are giving me a chance to become a professional footballer and I never got looked at to play in the A-League," Ricciuto said. "That said, if the green and gold comes knocking on my door, I could never turn them down."
There's a similar theme across the globe as those who missed out on selection into state programs of the FFA's NTC as teenagers chased their dream abroad. Australian-born Brad Smith at Liverpool has already represented England but didn't progress through the institutes, likewise Ajdin Hrustic at Schalke, who is playing for Bosnia, or Dinamo Zagreb-owned Roko Strika who's inching towards selection for Croatia.
River Plate youth player Gavin De Niese has had no communication from the FFA apart from seeking an international transfer clearance two years ago to finalise his move to the Argentinian powerhouse.
In a matter of weeks he will begin playing in formal youth tournaments once his application for residency is approved. Shortly after, his Irish passport will arrive and it may not be long before the Socceroos find themselves in a three-way tug-of-war for the talented midfielder.
His eyes are focused on playing for Australia but there's no hiding his feeling that his blossoming career has been overlooked by those back home.
"I went overseas to get benefits from the style of other countries and I've been here for so long and I've gotten used to it. But in a way, yeah I do feel that I have been ignored because obviously I'd love to play for Australia," De Niese said.
The FFA's national curriculum has been praised by those in youth development, as has the establishment of the national trianing centres run by member states, but those pathways are not the only route to the top. Players at such a tender age blossom at various ages and many require second chances. If they aren't provided, Simunic could be remembered as a trailblazer.
"You'll never stop the drain of kids wanting to play in Europe but certainly in the A-League, the scouting networks are poor," Bernal said. "A-League clubs are reluctant to look at anyone that is not within an NSWIS, VIS or AIS type of system. If you're not in a system early, then it's a kind of pot-luck [Tom] Rogic-style to have a couple of people who have faith in you."
