Golden Soft Sombrero Moment with Johnny Warren

Four Diegos Profile:               

Former Socceroo World Cup 1974 Star, NSL Coach, SBS TV Commentator and Brazilian Soccer Enthusiast

Green and Gold Honours:      

Socceroo appearances: 62        Goals: 9

Captain of the Socceroos

1974 World Cup finals – Australia’s only appearance

Golden Sombrero Moment No.1: Received an MBE for services to Aussie soccer

Golden Sombrero Moment No.2: Unashamedly bawled his eyes out on SBS Television after the Iranians came from nowhere to qualify for the 1998 World Cup at the Socceroos expense.

Golden Sombrero Moment No.3: For conning every nightclub in Rio into issuing him with a drink card on his annual Brazilian junket... they think he is a Brazilian over there you know.

Golden Sombrero Moment No.4: For the title of his book ‘Sheila’s, Wogs and Poofters’…apparently Archbishop George Pell and the Reverend Fred Nile have banned it.

Four Diegos Verdict:              

A genuine Aussie sports legend whose primary aims in life were to see Aussie soccer reach it’s full potential, watch the Socceroos qualify for the World Cup and convince every footballer in Australia to have only one name just like the Brazilians.

The game achieved most of this but unfortunately Johnny was not here to witness it. He passed away in November 2004 a true legend of the game.

Johnny Warren the Diegos salute you!

Some Golden Soft Sombrero Moments with Johnny Warren

Johnny what's with the name amigo?

Diegos: "Congratulations on the book.

The title - 'Sheila's, Wogs and Poofters' is catchy but a little strange though.

To the Diegos it sounds more like a float in the Lygon Street Mardi Gra.

How did you come up with the name?"

Warren: "Well it's always been the name. People have suggested for a long time that I should do a book. The name was always going to be that because it says a lot in four words about Australia as a country, it's social history, our game and the discrimination against it.

If people are offended by the title they shouldn't be because that's what we were called 50 years ago.

If you were remotely associated with soccer that's what you were called. It's only 'wogball', it's a 'Sheila's' game, 'why don't you play a man's game?', 'only poofters play soccer', and we’ve all heard this stuff said about our game before.

My nickname at school amongst my best mates was 'wog-Warren'. Can you imagine what my enemies called me?

I'm a sixth generation Australian or 'boat person' as I like to call myself and suddenly as I became more and more involved in soccer I was regarded as being on the other side of the fence, the side of the fence that had those people who came to this country in the post immigration boom of World War II. They brought a different culture, ate different foods, spoke a different language and had a great love of football.

I like to say that I'm an Australian by 'accident' and spent most of my life with people who chose to be Australians."

Soft Sombrero Moment March 2002

Johnny on Aussie soccer respect…

Diegos: "You talk about soccer players in your era being treated like second class citizens but clearly the game nowadays is still not respected in this country.

Are we still suffering from the image that soccer is a 'soft' and exclusively ethnic game or does the lack of respect come from our continued failures at World Cup level with the Socceroos?"

Warren: "Australia was very insular post World War II and with all these 'foreigners' coming in with all their 'different ways' among them football, people in this country were scared of it. Over the years as they have gradually accepted the game I think they are more scared of it.

'Sheila's, Wogs and Poofters' applies to a lot of things for example, a couple of weeks ago, in the colour supplement of a major NSW newspaper, there was a horrible photo of Diego Maradona with ear-rings, looking overweight, with the yellow hair and an article on him about his life being in tatters.

My point is that why didn't we have a supplement on this genius who was 'Bradman - like', even above the great players of his time when he was at the height of his career?

To me the angle appears to be 'let's give soccer a good run when it's a negative but when it's a positive let's just keep it down because it's too big for us'.

Having said all that, we can point the fingers at others about how they treat the game but the biggest thing is that that we need to point the finger at ourselves with the way the game has been run.

It's amazing, I've spent four days in Perth promoting the book, and I find myself talking to people with a genuine love and passion for the game. Not a 'David Hill' passion, a bloke who walks in and says he has a passion and walks out again, I'm talking about the real fan.

We need to get this spread through the whole of Australia if we are really going to get this game respected in this country."

Soft Sombrero Moment March 2002

Johnny on Frankie…

Diegos: "In the book you don't shy away from the hard questions especially those that involve the performance of Socceroo coach Frank Farina during the last World Cup qualifying campaign.

You questioned his tactics, research, preparation and his reasons why we lost again.

In your view is Frank Farina the man to take us to the next World Cup and whether he is there or not, what is the single most critical thing that must happen for us to be successful next time?"

Warren: "Well that's a big question. There's nothing in the book that I haven't said publicly on Frank.

When I started playing someone from overseas was always better than the local Aussie. I fought for young players rights. Similarly with coaches, I felt it was time to develop our own and was a big supporter of the appointment of a 'Frank Farina'. I feel we've got to develop our own coaches as we have developed our own players.

Having said that my job is to comment on a situation and I was a little bit insulted by Frank's comment after the game at the press conference in Uruguay, saying that 'we just had a bad day'. Soccer Australia's attitude to that was 'well Frank do you want a four or eight year contract'.

If we are to become a real football country we shouldn't accept that. If that had happened in any other country it wouldn't have been accepted.

We lost 3-0 in a World Cup game, our second biggest defeat in our history and everyone seems to be happy that we lost but went down fighting.

There was no inquest. I question, why did Kewell not play wide on the left when it was obvious against France and Uruguay in Melbourne that we were a different team when he did? That's what I question. I question the research and the preparation and there are heaps of examples in the book.

I do say a lot of nice things about Frank in the book as well. I saw him as an 18-year-old player coming up and I think I was the leader of the charge for his appointment but our coaches have got to grow up a little bit and if you get some criticism you should be able to cop it.

I'm not interested in the individual I'm interested in the national game.

Soccer Australia post Venables and now have continued to let us down. I ask where is our program now? Without a real plan we are doomed for 2006 as well."

Soft Sombrero Moment March 2002

Johnny and the probing Four Diego Heart balm…

Diegos: " Johnny, now its time for ‘The Four Diegos 'Sheila's, Wogs and Poofters' Heart Balm, where we ask you to give us your brief inner most private thoughts on the following topics…

Who was Australia's best ever coach?"

Warren: "For me, Frank Arok."

Diegos: "Who is or was Australia's best ever player?"

Warren: "Well that's hard…

Diegos: "How about you Johnny? Come on Johnny admit it here live on the Diegos….

Warren: "No it's just too hard…"

Diegos: "Where's someone like Harry Kewell sit in this regard?"

Warren: "There's no doubt about Harry but at the same time I'm trying to put it in relative terms.

In my day players had a job during the day and trained at night. It wasn't professional.

We once played Manchester United and they paid for us to get off work at 3.00 pm so that we could go and play them. After being kicked to pieces we were expected to have to turn up to work the next morning.

We didn't have the education system or television to see all the images of the great players and teams around the world. So I have to put things in relative terms.

In that sense it has to be Joe Marston who 50 years ago played in a FA Cup final. That was amazing stuff in those days."

Diegos: "Who is or was Australia's best ever soccer administrator?"

Warren: "…that's a tough one…."

Diegos: "Come on Johnny, there's got to be one doesn't there?'

Warren: "…um…when the breakaway happened in 1957, those people involved in those days led the sport through some ground-breaking times.

We were the first sport to play Sundays and also under lights and attracted world rated stars from overseas to come here and play.

Anyone in that era from 1957 - 63 when we were out of FIFA led us through the most exciting time in soccer in my opinion." 

Diegos: "Who is or was Australia's worst ever Socceroo?"

Warren: "…No way guys. I'm not going to touch that one

Diegos: "What is the best nightclub in Brazil?"

Warren: "No I'm not telling you guys. I'm a grandfather now so I don't go to those places."

Soft Sombrero Moment March 2002

Warren on the World Club Championship 2000…

Diegos: "The World Club Championship has come and gone.

South Melbourne have lived their dream and in doing so have become the talisman for the domestic game in this country.

What's your verdict on the competition, South Melbourne's performance and the effect South's achievement will have on the game in this country?"

Warren: “I think it was a huge success. 

The game is not about Europe and South America, it’s about the world. The benefits to the game in the developing continents of Africa and Asia, Central and North America and Oceania are more important than the interests of a few big clubs, so, in that respect it was good. 

South Melbourne, in relative terms, did everything that could be asked of them.  They played the game in a very good manner, they played the game in the right spirit, and did as well as any team from a part-time soccer nation could do. 

I do think we need to step back and ask 'how can we improve our club football and how can we enable the South Melbourne's to step onto the world stage and go even better?'

That, of course, is the big question and we’re not critical of South Melbourne by any means in saying that. I just think we should look at how to bridge the gap that exists between Australian club football and international competition, which will only become wider and wider if we don’t do something about it."

Diego:  What is your assessment of where Australian soccer stands today?

Warren: "Again, it’s not a criticism. 

I identify with the South Melbourne boys because it was the same when the Australian boys went to play in the very first World Cup in 1974.  It was a situation where you were on an uneven playing field.  You were part time players going in to play against the world’s best. 

Our aim was much the same as South Melbourne's, which was to put on as good a show as possible against tremendous odds.  Now that’s one issue. The other issue is that we have to accept that we are still a long way behind.  Now, that is being brutally frank but it is no reflection on South Melbourne who are our best team.  How do we make it better?

The domestic set up here of a non-professional league; of clubs with their backsides out of their pants; of no international competition for our club teams; of no incentive for private enterprise to come into the game to turn it into professional football. 

I think these are all issues we have to look at because, in the scheme of things, the Europeans are going to get stronger and stronger and the rest are going to get weaker and weaker unless we change things.  Our environment, at the moment, is not one to enable that to happen."

Diegos: " In many ways what South's performance has succeeded in doing is proving that, although there is still a long way to go to match it with the best in the world, our Aussie club teams aren't that far away from being world class.

Could this encourage more NSL clubs to invite big name teams to Australia to play perhaps? - Perth Glory V Liverpool at Subiaco, Northern Spirit V Chelsea at Stadium Australia or South Melbourne V Juventus at the Docklands, would surely attract packed houses?"

Warren: “Why not?  It makes sense.

That’s the type of thing that should happen. We are all aware of the difficulty in bringing in national teams; it’s almost impossible.  We, as a host, can’t get our national team together, so why not bring the attractive club teams from around the world to play our clubs here? Why not have international tournaments involving our leading clubs? Why not embrace Asia more and have a “Super Challenge” or competition here with the leading Asian clubs? 

The television rights with the Gulf countries and with the Asian countries would be lucrative. Forget about the Socceroos, I don’t mean completely, but it’s been shown that it’s almost impossible to get them together.  So why not concentrate on the clubs and get our boys more opportunities to rub shoulders with the best. We are guaranteed to get better if we do so. 

At the moment, we just don’t have any relationship with anyone, whether it be Asia or the Oceanic countries, let alone the big guns. 

It’s a good idea and it should be pursued both at club level and at youth level. The difficulty with national teams, as we’re all aware, and South Melbourne’s appearance in the world club has reinforced this thought, is that we don’t do enough at club level. 

We just don’t play enough games and we do not have enough international competition and those are the sort of things we have just got to do."

Soft Sombrero Moment January 2000

Warren on the Aussie soccer talent drain…

Diegos: "Would FIFA addressing the problem of players leaving our domestic league in droves, help add value to our National league?"

Warren: "It would. There needs to be more from FIFA on that.  It’s amazing, we are so critical of our own game but if you took 120 of the top 'AFLers' or cricketers out of this country, those codes would probably fall on their face. 

It’s an indication of the strength of Australian Soccer that we can still put on a show and be without so many of our top players." 

Soft Sombrero Moment January 2000

Warren on Angie’s tactics…

Diegos: "South Melbourne enjoyed the plaudits from world soccer experts for their discipline, mental toughness and tactical awareness.

A lot of the credit for this must go to their coach Angie Postecoglou who we believe out-coached Vasco Da Gama's Antonio Lopes in the first game of the tournament.

What's your view?"

Warren: “I think that’s fair to say.  I thought, in the first half, they were splendid against Vasco. I mean, that was world-class stuff, wasn’t it? 

The composure, the way they handled the environment, and the way they stifled them.  It really took two great goals to knock them off. 

The last 45 minutes against Manchester United was also a highlight but it comes down to the question of the level that you regularly play at.

If you are playing in our national league the way it is at the moment and compare it to the highest level each week overseas, there is a huge difference, isn’t there? If you put those Vasco players here and give them a job and train them three nights a week and our guys go there and play like professionals, the difference, well, there probably wouldn’t be any."

Soft Sombrero Moment January 2000

Warren on Brazilian footy…

Diegos: “Within the Aussie soccer fraternity you are regarded as the foremost expert on Brazilian soccer.

You do seem to have a special bond with our samba -dancing, Pina Colada sipping, Copacabana beach soccer-playing friends.

Can you describe the special affinity that you have with Brazilian soccer?"

Warren: “I was always fascinated by the fact that Brazil always had the best soccer players and my curiosity got the better of me so I took my nephew to Brazil to find out. My nephew trained and played with Flamengo club, which was good.

My fascination was not just with soccer but also with the cities the lifestyle and the people. The soccer is just a major part of the culture; it’s on the beaches, in the schools and on the streets. This is what has inspired me to make my eighteenth trip to the country.”

Soft Sombrero Moment November 1999

Johnny’s Brazilian nickname…

Diegos: “A quick perusal of the Brazilian squad to play Australia in November unveils such sensual names as Renato, Felipe, Fabio and Mozart.

The Diegos love the one-name thing and in fact, in Aussie parlance, we go by the names of Bonza, Browneye, Chunder and Wedgy.

What 'one name' do your Brazilian friends call you? Is it purely 'Johnny' or just 'Wazza'?"

Warren: “Actually they call me Mr. John.

Soft Sombrero Moment November 1999

Warren on the quality of the Brazilian touring Australia in 1999…

Diegos: “There has been much said about the quality of the Brazilian team in the upcoming series. In fact a recent Herald Sun report in Melbourne ran the story, 'Brazil Blow - Ronaldo's coming, but who are the rest?'

Is it a quality Brazilian squad that is touring?"

Warren: “If you remember back in 88’ Brazil came to the Bicentennial Cup, and the same criticism was made of that team. But players such as Branco, Romario, Muller, and Giovanni are all great players in their own right. Brazil has never intended to use this trip other than to prepare for the Olympic Games.

They haven’t qualified and the Olympic Gold medal is the only trophy that eludes the Brazilian team. If you look at the line up these players are quality players. In the end there is no such thing as a bad Brazilian team.”

Soft Sombrero Moment November 1999

Warren on ‘Ronaldo V Kewell’…

Diegos: “Socceroo coach, Frank Farina has done well to assemble a strong Aussie squad for his debut game as boss. It also looks as though Harry Kewell may at least, play the first game in Sydney.

'Ronaldo V Kewell' is a mouth-watering prospect.

How excited are you about the possibility of some of our Aussies matching it with the aristocrats of world soccer?"

Warren: “Firstly the Brazilians are here in a very serious mode. But lets just set the Brazilians aside for a moment and look at the Australians. Bosnich, Zelic, Okon and Viduka are all Champions, this series will be one of the few times we will see a Socceroo side at full strength.”

Soft Sombrero Moment November 1999