Arnie called straight after ‘invaluable’ World Cup qualification

[Hogg]

THE Joeys had only just secured qualification for next year’s Under-17 World Cup in Peru, via a hard fought 3-2 victory over Indonesia … and coach Trevor Morgan’s phone was already ringing.

It’s Socceroos boss Graham Arnold.

“You’re going to win the Asian Cup, aren’t you?!” quips the most highly regarded boss in the land, “Well, that’s what we’re here for,” comes the response from the Joeys mentor.

This exchange speaks volumes.

Morgan explained to foxsports.com.au, “The national team staff at all levels is a bit of a family.”

“I think the most important thing is communication. So we’re constantly speaking about players coming to each other’s camps, watching what’s happening above you or below you, that’s the most important thing because you can have a path or a plan but players develop at different rates.

“So him [Arnold] and his staff were all on the phone straight away, messaging, they’ve been watching the games; they’re very interested in the kids.”

Youth development has been a big talking point in Australian football in recent times, and this qualification, achieved amid a hostile environment and a tricky set of opponents, was ‘vital’ especially considering our unique geographic situation.

“Of course it’s important, we have the isolation as a country so we don’t have what European nations have where they can cross a border on a bus and play a different style of football and a different culture,” Morgan said.

“So qualifying for these major tournaments is invaluable experience for our young players and to qualify, it’s certainly not easy. The Asian teams are very well prepared, they put a lot of money and resources into what they’re doing to try and improve and also it’s on their circumstances and their pitches. It’s a huge challenge for us, it’s not easy but it is vital for us to qualify because the kids need the experience if they’re going to progress to the Socceroos.”

The 23-man squad will take on Japan in a semi-final on Thursday night, after two wins was enough to secure a group stage progression despite a loss to South Korea.

However, this young group is by no means locked in moving forward, with Morgan asserting the importance of a door open policy in the search to uncover as many potential future stars as possible – and the best way of doing so.

“The most important thing while they’re young is that we keep our door open and look at as many kids as possible and the good thing is that we’re constantly in contact with the senior national team staff, the U20 national team staff, so if a kid is doing well someone will know about it,” he said.

“Everything can improve, and as I’ve said before, the most important thing is to look as widely as possible because young kids change so much. We’re looking, in the Joeys age group, to try and do as much collaborative scouting of players using top people where the kids are playing in member federations, states and clubs. Asking constantly who is improving and running what we call elite matches where we get the best 20-25 kids together for a match once a month in each state, and we’re looking to keep making opportunities for kids to step up and the cooperation across the country is vital to that being successful.”