The August 24 Edition

Not so long ago, if you talked about soccer as “football”, Australians would divide into two camps: those who’d say of course it’s football, it’s the world game, the beautiful game, the only real game; and those who’d say “football” here means Aussie rules, league or rugby – soccer’s just that … soccer. Today, thanks to a growing interest in the sport – including our national embrace of the Matildas – people are smart enough to work out which code is being referred to by the context of the conversation. But that former divide helps explain why one of our greatest football exports, Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou, is still sceptical about Australia’s relationship with the game – and more particularly, with him. He speaks about this and more in today’s cover story by Vince Rugari, who has also penned a new book on the coach, Angeball. It seems that, all too often, we still only truly appreciate our compatriots when they’ve “made it” overseas. Speaking of which, for stirring evidence of the reverence with which Postecoglou is held by Spurs fans, watch the YouTube video of them serenading him last year with their own version of Robbie Williams’ Angels. It’s an instant mood-lifter. – Editor, Katrina Strickland