Bozza's always been a Lucas Neill supporter

* By Josh Massoud in Durban
* From: News Limited newspapers
* June 12, 2010 12:00AM

WHEN Mark Bosnich put Lucas Neill up for the night on a couch in his plush Manchester apartment a decade ago, the star goalie could not imagine his young and confused lodger becoming just the third man to captain Australia at a World Cup.

"Lucas and his dad came up during my second stint at United to see me play and have a chat," Bosnich recalled.

"It was around 2000 and he was struggling to break out of Millwall. It was a frustrating time for Lucas and he was doing it tough.

"I remember I set up the couch for him to sleep on. To think since that night, he's come so far and is now captaining Australia in a World Cup finals is amazing.

"To be honest, I couldn't see him as a captain back then. He was quiet and not someone you'd immediately say was a leader."

The quality, however, is also a hallmark of Neill's two World Cup predeccesors - Peter Wilson (1974) and Mark Viduka (2006). Since retiring, both men now lead reclsuive lives when it comes to making public appearnces.

Wilson's whereabouts are unknown since being tracked down on Mt Kembla near Wollongong five years ago, his beard and hair grown long and unkempt. Viduka returned to Australia late last year and has only done one interview - ironically with Bosnich - and continues to defy advances from A-League sides.

"I never really thought about it like that - that I'm just the third man alive to captain Australia at this tournament," Neill said.

"It's pretty special, isn't it?

"And it's such a big responsibility. I know the onus is on me to be the face of the team and to do all I can to represent it the right way."

When asked to recall the night he spent with Bosnich, a streak of nostalgia flashed across Neill's features.

"That was when I was playing for (First Divison side) Millwall and I'd been there for a while," he said.

"My dad and I travelled to Manchester to see Mark play and we spent the night at his place.

"Back then things were difficult. I spent six years at Millwall and at times I thought my chance would never come. I thought the world might have passed me by.

"It's hard when people sort of stand in your way, but that's what you've got to deal with. There were times when it was difficult to find the motivation, but I'm bigger and better for it now."

Bosnich pinpoints Neill's strenghth as a "willingness to listen and learn".

"I look at him as a sort of younger brother," said the 38-year-old, who arrived in Durban early yesterday for Australia's tournament opener against Germany.

"When he was younger he always wanted to learn something - he always had a million questions."

But while Bosnich has supported Neill's career through the ups and downs, he's confused by the captain's comments that Germany are a "superior team".

"I don't know if Lucas is trying out some reverse psychology, but that's not something I'd say about an opponent," Bosnic said.

"Sure they might have a better team on paper, but to come and out and call them 'superior' is not something I like to hear before such a big game.

"I want to see the Socceroos really back themselves."

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/world-cup-2010/sheree-were-all-behind-our-harry/story-fn5ephkw-1225878640026