You come from a Croatian family. When did they come to Australia, and was football always a part of their life too?
They came in the late 60's, my dad was from Split, a Hajduk fan - so it was natural for me to start playing with Hurstville Zagreb, as it was a Croatian social event for my parents as well. I've got an older brother - he followed my dad's footsteps into plumbing, and I have a younger sister who works in childcare. My brother loves football too - he plays over-35s for Hurstville Zagreb, and he comes to watch my games in Parramatta.
Who were your goalkeeping heroes and influences?
One of my best friends was an Inter fan, so I looked up to Walter Zenga a lot. Also players like Peter Schmeichel, Oliver Kahn - they were on top of their game when I was growing up. In a coaching sense my biggest influence was Tony Pezzano. He was the coach at APIA, but he also did drills with me because there was no specific keeper coach. He saw something in me, and believed that there was potential - he helped me take the next step into the NSL.
Did you have a club you followed as a fan?
My family were Hajduk - so I grew up knowing more about them - but the other one for me was Liverpool. Part of the reason was Craig Johnston, that caught my attention. These days, I still have a soft spot for Liverpool. I'd love to see them go back to the days when they were successful.
Covic was the penalty-save hero when the Wanderers met the Heart earlier this. Re-live the exploits in the video at the top of the page!
MAKING THE GRADE
How did the move to APIA Leichhardt come about?
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I was so comfortable playing for Hurstville with all my mates, training twice a week and having a good time. I almost didn't want to go and trial. I was a bit daunted. I'd never been brought up through an elite system, never played rep football because my dad wasn't the sort of person who pushed me - so all of a sudden to jump into the state league seemed massive. The first year I was with the juniors, but Tony gave me my senior chance; and in the second year, I had the spot to myself.
The next move up - to NSL club Marconi Stallions - came very quickly. Who initiated that?
I had a very successful second year at APIA, winning the goalkeeper of the year award, and Tony (Pezzano) had a name in Sydney as a very successful goalkeeper during his playing days. I had interest from Sydney United and Wollongong too - but Tony took me to Marconi, and introduced me to a few people. Zoran Matic was the coach then - he offered me a contract. It was still semi-pro, I had a job five days a week in imports and exports in the city. It was a bit stressful, travelling from work to training in Fairfield. Within six months, I had to make a decision as to whether to put all my energy behind it. I couldn't do both. It was an easy choice to give football a shot.
Do you remember your debut?
It was against UTS Olympic at the SFS, and I was man of the match - but Nick Carle, who was only 15 then, scored the winner. Brett Emerton played and I had a blinder - but in the last minute, Nick hit the top corner. I remember the pitch was terrible but playing at the SFS was massive for me at the time. It was a dream. There was a wealth of talent at the club. Brad Maloney was the captain and a real leader. There was Vlado Zoric, who was so skilful, and we had a Korean import Kim Pan-Keun, an international defender, in his 30's then, but really classy.
HARD YARDS AS AN AUSSIE ABROAD
At the end of your second season, you moved overseas (to Greece with PAOK) how did that come about?
I had two very good seasons at Marconi - and Peter Kokolis, who'd coached me at APIA, said he could get me to Greece if I was interested. I trialled for a week at PAOK under Arie Haan, who was the coach at the time, and he was happy with what he saw, so he signed me up.
You didn't really establish yourself in Greece. What went wrong?
I probably wasn't ready for it to be honest. Everything happened so quickly at the start of my career and, with hindsight, it wasn't the best first move into Europe. The keeper who was ahead of me had been there for ten years. He had a lot of friends, and I didn't feel welcome to be honest. Arie then got sacked, Dusan Bajevic came in - and that was pretty much it. He put me back in the reserves, and towards the end of the first season, I got loaned out to Kavala. That's where I played most of my football in Greece.
Football in Greece can be a challenging environment. How did you cope?
You hit the nail on the head. The training sessions were very intense. Plus, the way the fans reacted to a loss. Sometimes we couldn't leave the stadium for hours, because the fans were waiting for us! Then, in the second year, the owner had financial problems, and I didn't get paid for five months. As a foreigner, it really tests you. I had to take the club to court. Then, I re-signed with them, just until the end of the season because their regular keeper had an injury, and we won the Greek Cup for the first time in 32 years! It was the lowest of lows to the highest of highs ... and just as quickly the other way again, when they couldn't pay me for a second time. So back to court we went again. In Greece, contracts are just pieces of paper. Thankfully the PFA here - Brendan Schwab especially - helped me, and I won both court cases.
You then had a brief spell at Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia but didn't play a game. What happened there?
Tomislav Butina, the national team keeper, was on the verge of being sold to Bruges, but his move fell through.
After that, realistically, I wasn't going to play, so I packed my bags and came home - that's when Bernie (Mandic) gave me a call to go to trial in Sweden.
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Which is where you moved in 2002 with Hammarby. Is it fair to say that's where you really made your name?
Yes, they were five of the most enjoyable years I've ever had - I loved Stockholm, although on the first day, I wanted to go home, because it was minus 10, and we were training on a gravel field. That feeling lasted for two weeks but in the end, I had to bite the bullet and ask myself if I really wanted it. I'm very grateful that I signed. Their fans were second to none. If I can compare - the fans were like the Wanderers fans now, from a working class area of Stockholm. A great bunch of lads, and I was a regular starter too. I haven't got a bad word to say about Hammarby, especially as I met my wife while I was there.
WORLD CUP DREAM
And then came your international debut v Bahrain in 2006 under Guus Hiddink. Was that a surprise?
A bit. I thought I was playing well enough to warrant a call earlier, but it never came. But for his first training camp in Holland, I got the call from (FFA staffer) Gary Moretti. I remember it as clear as day. I was 30 then, but better late than never. I think I set myself up in that camp. I was on fire. Probably the best two weeks I've trained in my career I think. I was a regular for a few years after that.
All of which led to a spot in the World Cup squad in Germany 2006, as third choice keeper behind Mark Schwarzer and Zeljko Kalac. Was that your proudest moment in football?
Without question. I don't think anything can top going to a World Cup, even though I was third choice, and had buckleys of getting on the field! Just to be in that environment, and to say you are going to a World Cup after you have watched it on TV. The buzz that was around the team and the nation - definitely the highlight of my career. You dream of that stuff. I even got Buffon's jersey after the Italy game.
Any stories from that World Cup you'd like to share?
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Well, after we'd been knocked out by Italy, I was the only one left in the hotel at Ohringen. My wife had returned to Sweden because she was eight months pregnant and the others had gone, so I was on my own. I invited one of my mates (Brett Ritchie) to stay for our last night in Germany. Let me tell you, whatever the other players left behind, he cleaned up! Moorey's shorts, Bresciano's training kit ...Brett took the lot!
What was so special about Hiddink?
He had this thing about him that every single player respected what he said. He was able to get the most out of them without having to yell. He had this aura. Guus was also extremely good tactically. He knew how to read each team individually, and work out a system for us to play against them. He simplified things to such an extent, that you'd just go "wow, why didn't I think that?"
HOMECOMING
You decided to come home in 2007 to Newcastle. Why?
Post-World Cup, Hammarby wanted me to stay on, and there were a few clubs from the Netherlands and elsewhere interested too. But the issue was my visa. I could never get one to go and play in some of these countries, including the UK. It all seemed a bit difficult, and that's when the Jets came in. I had a meeting with Remo Nogarotto, and we thought it could be a good thing for the family, as we had just had our first daughter. Sometimes I think that, at 31, maybe I should have stayed in Europe, but I won my first title with the Jets, so I can't look at it as a negative.
That Jets team was quickly broken up afterwards though . Were you disappointed at how it all unravelled?
Yes. For whatever reason, that team was torn apart. We had some great players who should have stayed, we had a great bond. The year after we won it was very frustrating. There was a huge turnover of players and, if I'm honest with myself about that year, I am disappointed at how I reacted. It was the worst year of my career. My focus was on off-field events when I should have taken it by the scruff of the neck and moved on - but it was a great learning curve. Things don't always goes smoothly.
So back off to Sweden you went with Elfsborg, where you played in the UEFA Cup (now Europa League) - against some big clubs too.
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I'd left Sweden with a good reputation and I got the call from Elfsborg when we were playing in the Asian Champions League in China with the Jets. Within a week, I was on a plane going over there. We had a really good team at Elfsborg and the UEFA Cup ties were great. I remember playing Braga the year after they reached the final of the UEFA Cup. Then we played Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico, which was a huge buzz. The next year we got Napoli - and what a daunting place that is. I've never heard a louder crowd than that.
CAVANI, KOLAROV, RIQUELME ...
In those ties you were beaten by goals from Edinson Cavani and Aleksander Kolarov - two big names in world football. Who is the best you have faced in all your years as a pro?
Cavani was on fire the year we played them, but back when I was at Hammarby, we played Villarreal in 2003, and they had Riquelme. The guy barely moved, but he always had the ball, always had space. He was different class.
NOW ...
You came back home in 2011 to Melbourne Victory - and while the team had a season to forget, you had a blinder, winning the Victory medal.
Yeah - personally it was a fantastic year - but you don't want your keeper winning those type of awards. I enjoyed my year at Victory. The fans took to me, and the club has the best set-up in Australia. It was all fantastic apart from the results. At times it was an unhappy place but not because there was bitching between the players. It was unhappy because it was a big club being unsuccessful. There were reports about Harry (Kewell) splitting the dressing room, but that's bollocks. The guy is class, he's a pro.
You weren't kept on by Ange Postecoglou. Were you disappointed by that?
Surprised and disappointed. Even though they did have two keepers signed up, I thought I had done enough to get another deal. The family was settled in Melbourne, my daughter had started school. But contract extensions were never discussed. Ange clearly had his views, and he stuck to them, so I can't really point the finger at him. It was never personal with me - or about money - because we never actually had those discussions. As it turned out though, it's been a blessing in disguise.
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Which brings us to your homecoming to Western Sydney. Has it gone better than even you could have imagined?
When I first signed up, we had six players and I thought it was going to be a tough year. But the more players signed, the more confident I became. Popa is a fantastic coach who has instilled a huge amount of belief. The more it has gone on, the more we have believed. People have labelled us "second-chance off-cuts" but we've got a good side. If anything, I'm more surprised at what has happened off the park with the number of fans we've got. You could feel from day one it was something special, and I knew there was a market here, but they've been awesome.
You've won only one more international cap since your debut in 2006. Does that frustrate you?
When I was young, I thought I had no chance of even playing NSL, so to go to a World Cup, I can't be too disappointed. But when you get a taste of something, you want more - and, as proud as I am, it's also frustrating. I can't fault Schwarzy, who was my competition, although sometimes when those friendly games against smaller nations came around - and Schwarzy would always make himself available - I'd think "come on man - please!" But I look at him and see his drive and that's why he is still playing EPL at 40, and I respect that about him. I'm 37 now, and I don't want to give anyone a game - as much as I like Jerrad Tyson and respect him, I don't want to give him a run. If anyone takes my spot, they're going to have to earn it. So that's why I respect Schwarzy.
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