Socceroos players touched down at Melbourne Airport on Monday night after a stunning World Cup campaign that grasped the attention of the nation.
Fans waited at Melbourne Airport to get a real-life glimpse of Jamie Maclaren, Marco Tilio and Thomas Deng, who landed back from Qatar after Australia lost to Argentina in Sunday’s knock-out stage.
The trio agreed that watching the scenes of crowds erupting in support across the country, including at Federation Square, contributed to the momentum that spurred them on during the campaign.
“We united the nation and that’s what we planned to do. That’s the big thing the boss Arnie [coach Arnold Graham] said [to do], and we’re very grateful for that,” Tilio said.
Socceroos supporters Con Cakouris, Georgio, 6, Theo Diamandopoulos, and Athan, 3. Credit:Eddie Jim
Maclaren added: “Even when results didn’t go [our way] with France we got goosebumps because of the effect it’s having over here, being a Melbourne boy, playing the football here.”
Maclaren, who made his World Cup debut in Qatar, said the Socceroos had always anticipated to make it as far as they did, despite being placed in a challenging group against reigning champions France, as well as strong sides Denmark and Tunisia.
“To get on the field was special, and one that I’ll hold forever,” he said.
The Melbourne City striker’s highlights were the matches against Tunisia and Denmark, which he described as important wins where the team stepped up.
“We can hold our heads high and know that it’s been the best finish that Socceroos have ever had at the World Cup, and that’s the standard for [the] younger generation coming through,” he said.
Socceroos fan Theo Dimandopoulos returned from Qatar on the same flight as the players.
He’s been to four World Cups, but this may have been his most memorable trip yet: After the win against Denmark, Dimandopoulos turned around to grab his Australian flag to celebrate – except it had been pinched by none other than Socceroos goalkeeper Mathew Ryan.
Dimandopoulos said the flag was safely returned, but not before the moment was immortalised on Ryan’s Instagram, where he posed with it wrapped around his shoulders.
Despite missing out on the field, Tilio managed to meet his childhood hero Lionel Messi, an experience he described as “unbelievable”.
“I was just so glad to be there in the end, and have that picture. [He’s] the best player in the world,” he said.
There’ll be no break for Tilio, who’s back at training on Tuesday morning.
Tilio said the negative attention over Qatar hosting the event, which has dominated headlines, didn’t affect the team’s play.
“If anything it worked in our favour being there so many times. We knew the climate and the pitches,” he said. “We won six out of eight games in our time over there, so we’re really happy with everything that happened over there.”
As for Deng, he’s off on a break before heading back to Japan, where he plays as a central defender for Japanese club Albirex Niigata.
“A lot of people didn’t expect us to go that far. Even in the end against Argentina, we almost got across the line,” Deng said. “As long as you believe in yourself, you can achieve anything.”
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