+x+x+x+xIt's the best player eligible to play for Australia, full stop.
So pride, honour, the shirt and the privilege of being picked to represent YOUR country means fuck all does it? (Emphasis on YOUR country.)
What other countries do shouldn't come into it.
Boyle and his ilk are Australian as polar bears.
Has anyone asked the players how they feel? Why do you assume that they are NOT proud Aussies?
Absolutely I agree that honour and pride are the hallmarks of wanting to play for your nation but I don't agree that playing for the Socceroos means playing for the honour of the FFA. Maybe Soutar and Boyle etc etc have been brought up to feel like they are Aussies living in a foreign land? Maybe growing up they where always told they were convicts and didn't belong in England and to go back to where they came from. Maybe mum or dad or whoever was a massive influence in their lives and they grew up wanting to get a Southern Cross tattoo and drink VB?
Point being that you cant tell a stranger who he/she is or what they feel connected to.
Doesn't matter mate. Both my parents were born overseas and I as much as I feel a part of those cultures when I go there I'd never call myself a native of either and/or believe I'm entitled to be called up for their respective countries'.
Of course you can't tell them what they feel connected to but you sure as eggs can tell them they're not entitled to the shirt.
It does make me laugh the blokes on here most fervently against 'plastic' franchises because a closed system is not 'real' football will happily give away the honour of our national shirt to any clown who just might have the smallest skerrick of an association with Australia because they're quite decent.
If thats the way you feel your perfectly entitled to, it's the basic human right of self determination.
What makes one player more Australian than others though? Is there some sort of eligibility test in your eyes as to what is an Aussie? From the below list, who would you allow to represent you (if any)?
1) A person born overseas, migrated to Australia as a child, now a citizen and never represented another country
2) A person born here, with parents from another country who dont speak English and don't really want their child to represent Australia but that player is not realistically good enough to rep for his parents choice.
3) someone born here but spent their whole childhood playing overseas (got into academies from 10 years old) and has never returned to Australia.
I don't just hate plastic franchise's btw I hate all franchises, I don't got to Dominos if I want a pizza or Starbucks if I want a coffee. What you call giving away the honour of the shirt to clowns I call ultimately honouring the national team by wanting to enlist the best possible eligible players.