and this current crop of um socceroos you know you're probably you're you're the captain you're you're quote unquote one of the older heads you know i don't think you're one of the older heads i think you've still got plenty in your mates what's it like what's it like um playing with this younger group having to mentor them there's a lot of talent in there you know everyone can see you know a lot of players playing in top clubs in Europe what's it like compared to you know other groups that you've kind of played for do you feel like this group definitely can do something special you included

yeah 100% I think I've always got belief in this in the team no matter the And that's been all the way through whoever, whichever players we've had.

But of course, we'll say the level that the young players we've got at the moment that they're hitting it domestically already is something that we haven't seen for a very long time to have a crop at once who have kind of all taken such a big step in such a short space of time, which is hugely impressive.

And it's for them to bring that level to the national team is only going to make the team consistently stronger.

It's what we need to have to be competitive at the top end of Asia and, of course, on the world stage where we want to be at our most competitive.

And these players, what I will say, and it's a word I've used over the last probably few months around the World Cup and talking about these guys, is just the fearlessness.

It's probably their...

A

So then you reward yourself with great performances when it counted against Paraguay and also Egypt.

Oh, thanks, mate.

I appreciate that.

And that's definitely, it's always been kind of the person and player that I try to be.

Yeah, of course, I won't lie.

I was a big surprise.

Just because of it, you know, we'd played a couple of friendlies before, performances were decent.

Did you go through any periods where, like, how did you find what works for you to get the best out of yourself, let's say?

W- h- how does that role work a- as, as a leader? Do you, I mean, do you feel that responsibility?

Yeah, definitely.

Um, as one of the more senior players, someone who's been here before a couple of times, um, you know, these, these young guys are...

They're, they're absolutely fearless, and they, you know, they don't need an awful lot from us.

It's just about the small bits of experience and advice that we can give them to help them, you know, not just em- embrace the, the kind of enormity of-

W- how do you reflect, and what's your sort of message for them as you are about to embark on, on one of the, the biggest matches and tournaments of your career?

Yeah.

Those years are, you know, they are some of the best years of y- of your life with, and of, especially as, as a young player.

W- h- how does that role work a- as, as a leader? Do you, I mean, do you feel that responsibility?

Yeah, definitely.

Um, as one of the more senior players, someone who's been here before a couple of times, um, you know, these, these young guys are...

They're, they're absolutely fearless, and they...

You know, they don't need an awful lot from us.

It's just about the small bits of experience and advice that we can give them to help them, you know, not just em- embrace the, the kind of enormity of-

W- how do you reflect, and what's your sort of message for them as you are about to embark on, on one of the, the biggest matches and tournaments of your career?

Yeah.

[crowd chanting]

Yeah.

It's, as I said to you, it's like, it's, it's, it's the broader community.

It's everything.

The football club.

It's one of the few football clubs at this level that is situated so centrally in the city and within, you know, like the district of which it's a part.

I think nowadays because of regulations and stuff with big stadiums, they tend to be, you know, especially in Europe and outside of, a little bit outside of the cities, but this is like such a central part of, of living in St. Pauli, and St. Pauli is kind of like its own world in Hamburg.

The national anthem when you're there, take yourself deep as to what, what it's actually like, mate.

Oh

... you know, what they have, the sacrifice that they have to make to, to give you that chance.

And even that me even getting that opportunity would never have come without them, like, and having the f- fortunately, to have access to resources to be able... 'Cause I was offered a trial by, uh, an extension of, of the Celtic Youth Academy, whose cousin was my coach at Frankston Pines, which was my last kind of club be- uh, that I played senior football for in, in Victoria.

And, um, you know, they said, "Well, I've got this kid here.

He's, he's got something." And they basically said to me, "If you ever..." They knew I had Scottish family, and they said, "If you ever come over to visit family, we'll, we'll throw you in for a week, and you can, like, train with the team and see how you go." Like, it wasn't like an official, you know, scouting report, you know, blah, blah, blah.

They kinda was just...

A- and, and we went over, um, exactly for that.

... whether it was at Celtic Park or away, but what, what's that experience like? Like, that's full-time professional football for a, for a storied club.

Oh.

Um, recently when we played against Bayern Munich, and he is obviouslyProbably the greatest goalkeeper of all time, and, um, World Cup winner, won it all, legend.

And we had some, um, we had a nice conversation after, after our game recently, and he was so down to earth.

And, um, yeah, had time for you.

He's a real, real nice guy.

I-In, in a simple 20-word answer, how does he score as often as he does? Is it, is it innate? Is it hard work? Is it understanding space? Like, what do you see?

It's all of, a combination of all of those things, combined with outrageous technique.

He can score all types of goals, outside the box, headers, left foot, right foot, in the box.

Now, like many of his contemporaries, Jackson had to leave home as a young bloke, travel to the other side of the world and throw, throw himself into the unknown.

They knew I had Scottish family, and they said, "If you ever come over to visit family, we'll throw you in for a week, and you can have trained with the team and see how you go." And, and we went over.

My, like my parents actually didn't even come with me to the, like the training sessions.

At the training session at the end, I was there with my auntie who had, who, Scottish, who lives in Scotland, who drove me to the game.

And I remember after the game, they took me upstairs to, like, the kind of like boardroom at the training ground.

[laughs]

And, um, and they said to me, they were like, "Yeah, there's something there.

We wanna offer you two years, you know, in the, in the youth, in the academy as a professional contract." And I was like, "Right.