Socceroos Here To Stay

Happy Easter everyone! Can I still say that? Or is it considered un-PC nowadays? Either way, religious or not, I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday. On the Socceroos front, FFA boss Ben Buckley has said this week that the title of “Socceroos” will stay, despite the allusion to calling the sport “soccer” and not its rightful name of “football.”

To be honest, I quite like the Socceroos, despite being one of those people that constantly corrects others for calling the sport soccer. I’ve grown up calling the team the Socceroos, and the Footballroos just doesn’t have the same ambience.

I’ve heard an argument that the Socceroos just sounds silly, and to be taken seriously by other nations we need to drop the nickname and just be called the Australian National Team. But then again, heaps of other nations across the world have nicknames such as the Three Lions, the Oranje, The Blue Samurai, The Azzuri, Les Blue, etc, etc.

What do you guys think of the name Socceroos? Do we need to change it? Can you make any suggestions to new nicknames?

And in other news, Pim Verbeek has not written Mark Viduka out of his World Cup plans, despite the fact that the former captain hasn’t played a game for the Green and Gold in nearly two years. Having touted with retirement before the 2007 Asian Cup, Viduka was coated out of that decision to take on Asia, but has since yet to put on the Socceroos jersey (in a competitive match anyway, he might sleep in one for all I know).

Having torrid time with injuries and poor form, Viduka has only featured in a handful of appearances for Newcastle this season. A change in management at St. James Park – all hail the King – is hopefully going to bring in better fortune for Dukes, as Shearer is the similar battering ram centre forward that Viduka is. The 33 year old, who recently rubbished rumours of a return to the A-League, is at a crossroad in his career, as he is on the final year of his contract at Newcastle and will need to find a club for next season – and regular playing time – if he is to seriously challenge for World Cup selection in 2010.

Does Mark Viduka still have something to offer the Socceroos? Or are we better suited to give the new guys like Scotty Mac and Jesus our full vote of confidence?