Football United vs Soccer City

Episode 60 John Fleming
Welcome everybody to episode 60 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia and around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the great people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
For the second time on this podcast John Fleming is our interviewee in episode 60. The response to John’s interview in episode 5 was fantastic, so I asked John to return to the podcast to further discuss players he played with and coached at the Wollongong Wolves. Once again I send out my sincere thanks to John for giving up his time and reminiscing. Please note in the last 35 minutes of the interview John’s microphone died, so his audio in this last part of the interview is derived from my microphone and the sound quality is not the greatest. I apologise for this microphone malfunction. Regardless please enjoy episode 60.

Episode 59 Phil Brown
Welcome everybody to episode 59 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia and around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the great people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages. Please note if you the listener have any suggestions on people I should interview in the future, then please get in touch with me on the social media pages.
Phil Brown is our interviewee in episode 59. Born in 1961, Phil started his football journey with Figtree Junior Soccer Club in 1967 and finished his career with Wests Figtree Soccer Club in 1997, 31 years worth of games, relationships and seasons at Harry Graham Park, a monumental achievement. But the achievements don’t stop there, Phil was one of the Illawarra Premier League’s best players for over a decade with Figtree and the Illawarra Representative team. And his Club in between 1980 and 1992, won 4 IPL league championships, appeared in 8 IPL grand finals and won 6 of them, won 2 Bampton Cups, won 2 Corrimal Leagues Club Knockouts, won a first division league championship and won a first division grand final and won 2 charity shields.
A very modest man, Phil is a highly regarded player amongst the Illawarra Football community and it was fantastic to hear his recollections about parts of his amazing career and the people he played with and against. It was a huge honour to spend time with Phil, my appreciation and respect go out to him for allowing me into his home to record this podcast. And additionally I must thank Phil’s wife Sharon for setting up this interview, I appreciate the continued support people give this podcast. Finally I would like to thank Phil Carr who allowed me to record him, as he gave his thoughts on Phil Brown the player. Please enjoy episode 59!

Episode 58 Ian Morris
Welcome everybody to episode 58 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, Barcelona, Paris, Richardson and elsewhere around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the great people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
Ian Morris is our interviewee in episode 58. Born in 1972 and growing up in Windang, Ian was initially keen on playing rugby league like his school mates but his parents decided against this and he started playing soccer for Warilla Wanderers Junior Soccer Club in 1979. Ian played at Warilla, where his Mother and Father were involved on the Committee, until the end of the highly successful 1987 season. In addition to playing for Warilla during this period, Ian additionally played school soccer and a couple of years of representative soccer with Illawarra.
From 1988 through to 2013 Ian played senior soccer with distinction in the Illawarra with the University of Wollongong, Wollongong Olympic, Wollongong Wolves, Illawarra Lions, Albion Park, Dapto, Albion Park White Eagles, Kiama (where he was player-coach for a season in 2006) and Gerringong. And through this time Ian has had an amazing array of coaches and developed lifelong friendships, which developed him as a player and as a person.
Ian’s journey was extremely fascinating and an absolute pleasure to record, he is a man who made decisions on where to play based on family, education, vocation and what was right for himself. It was such an honour to spend time recording with Ian, my appreciation and respect go out to him for driving all the way up from his home on the South Coast to record this podcast in Balgownie. And a quick thank you to Ian’s mate Fotho for initially setting up this interview for me, I appreciate the continued support people give this podcast. Please enjoy episode 58!

Episode 57 Pedj Bojic
Welcome everybody to episode 57 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, the UAE, France and elsewhere around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the great people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
Pedj Bojic is our interviewee in episode 57. Born in 1984, Pedj started his junior career with Warilla Wanderers Junior Soccer Club before moving onto the junior football representative scene with Illawarra, Wollongong Wolves and then the NSW Institute of Sport. When Pedj was a 15 year old he spent a month with Ipswich Town in the United Kingdom under the Big Brother Scholarship program. His time here was successful and he was awarded a contract but due to personal circumstances that would change his life, Pedj did not take up this contract. Overcoming many personal challenges over the next few years, Pedj created a successful professional football career here in Australia and in the United Kingdom in addition to representing his country at a FIFA U-17 World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago.
Although my time with Pedj only covered a fraction of his career and the hurdles he faced, I came away admiring his spirit, positivity, honesty and determination when faced with issues of identity and insecurity. His journey has made him into a man who has a deep passion for the game and has the positive energy and willpower via his business to mentor and coach young footballers into well rounded individuals equipped to face the challenges from football and life.
It was an honour to spend an hour with Pedj, my sincere appreciation and respect go out to him for allowing me the time to interview him for this podcast. And my thanks go out to Michael DeGori for setting up this interview for me, I appreciate his support of the podcast. Please enjoy episode 57!

Welcome everybody to episode 56 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, France, the United Kingdom and elsewhere around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the great people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
Micky White is our interviewee in episode 56. Born in the United Kingdom in 1959, Micky grew up with a love of the game, playing it from a young age and watching Nottingham Forest as a supporter at the City Ground. This watching and playing football in the United Kingdom stopped towards the end of 1973 as Micky and his Family came out to Australia. At the start of 1974 Illawarra football pre-season, Micky then began has association with Fairy Meadow when he joined the club as a 14 year old.
Apart from a stint with Bellambi in 1979 after he had been overseas, Micky successfully stayed and played for Fairy Meadow until the end of 1986 and throughout the Illawarra people would vividly remember his career at this club in the local league and in the state league. Micky then went on to play for Bulli, Fernhill, Cawley Vale, Bellambi and Wollongong White Eagles in a very successful career. Additionally Micky has coached at Cawley Vale, Bellambi and Fernhill (seniors and juniors where he coached his kids) plus being involved on the committee side of things at Fairy Meadow and Bellambi. His football career has spanned over four decades and in this time Micky has energetically intertwined himself into the fabric of Illawarra football.
After interviewing Micky, he sees himself as a Fairy Meadow player through and through as he gave 110% in every game and training session for the club. His knowledge of the game is second to none and it was fantastic spending time with someone who has clear recollections of the many people he interacted with during his time in the game.
My sincere appreciation and respect go out to Micky and Linda for allowing me into their home to complete this interview. I learnt a lot and gained further insight into our local football history via Micky’s journey. So thank you Micky, it was an absolute pleasure to have interviewed you. Please enjoy episode 56!

Episode 55 Jeff Allport
Welcome everybody to episode 55 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, Canada, the USA and elsewhere around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
Jeff Allport is our interviewee in episode 55. Born in 1970 Jeff began his football journey in the southern suburbs of Wollongong, firstly with Oak Flats and then with Albion Park.
It was here that his passion for the game started and Jeff loved the game along with cricket in the summer. In his junior career Jeff additionally made the Illawarra Representative team and as time passed he was selected in other representative teams. It was here the Jeff developed his game, lifelong friendships and great memories.
After a successful junior career in club, school and representative teams Jeff then had a wide and varied senior career which finished in the early 2000s. After this point he then took up coaching in the Illawarra.
The clubs, places and people that have been a part of Jeff’s football journey are extremely intriguing and I was fully immersed for the entire episode. The reason that Jeff kept me intrigued was due to his love of the game, which comes through every time he talks about football and it was easy to see in his face. Jeff respects the game, the clubs and the people who are a part of it. Plus he has a drive and curiosity for the game that has never diminished since the 1970s and this is the reason why he is still involved five decades later.
My sincere appreciation go out to Jeff for moving his family schedule around for this interview and allowing me into his house. I learnt a lot and gained further insight into our local football history via Jeff’s journey. So thank you Jeff, it was a delight and pleasure to have interviewed you. Please enjoy episode 55!

Episode 54 Shane McGirr
Welcome everybody to episode 54 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, Paris, the United Kingdom and elsewhere around the World who download this podcast. Additionally I would like to say thank you to the people who contribute, comment and reminisce on the social media pages.
Shane McGirr is our interviewee in episode 54. In 1987 he started his football journey with Figtree JSC, where he played in defence up until 1995. Shane then transitioned into the senior ranks in 1996 where he joined his local club West Figtree. After a couple of seasons with West Figtree, Shane then continued to play with the merged Western Suburbs entity for 4 seasons.
Next in 2002 Shane was identified by former Socceroo Adrian Alston, who was coaching IPL powerhouse Port Kembla SC. He signed with the Zebras and over the next few seasons Shane took his game to the next level as a lethal attacker amongst a quality team and club that achieved enormous success.
Shane additionally played with the Illawarra Representative team, Wollongong Wolves, APIA Leichhardt, a brief stint with Johor FC in Malaysia, Bulli FC and Wests Illawarra before moving with his Family over to Western Australia. He played for many years for a local club in WA before picking up the coaching clipboard to coach his boys.
Shane has an immense amount of humility and is always thanking the coaches and players who he played with over the years. He sees the individual awards he won (e.g. IPL golden boot awards) as a byproduct of his coaches and teammates efforts. The insights he gives into his own career and the people he played with and against are fantastic. He came across to me as a player who had the determination and discipline to improve his game and always be successful in his role for the team.
My sincere thanks go out to Shane for moving around his family timetable for this interview. It was an absolute pleasure and honour to listen to his memories. Please enjoy episode 54!

Episode 53 Bob Young
Welcome everybody to episode 53 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I would like to sincerely thank all the interviewees, listeners and the soccer public of the Illawarra, Australia, Barcelona and around the World who download this podcast. Please note that this interview was conducted with mobile phones, so there are times when the audio drops in and out. I apologise for this audio issue.
Bob Young is our interviewee in episode 53. Born in Scotland, Bob came out to Australia with his Family in 1961 and his Australian football journey began when he joined the Berkeley Hostel U14 and the Berkeley High School U15 football teams. From here he kept playing the game firstly with Oak Flats in the senior mens competition and then with a team named the CRM Rangers who were a football team within an intra-works competition for the company Lysaght.
It was here at Lysaght, which was a steel processing company, where Bob began his four decades long relationship with the Lysaght Club, which was formed by the company and then joined the Illawarra District Soccer Association second division in the mid 1960s. Bob was a founding committee member and he was then part of a club for the next forty odd years.
Mixed amongst his own wonderful journey, this interview is a brief history of Lysaght and it was an honour and pleasure to listen to someone who intimately spent the next four decades riding the highs and lows of a local football club. Lysaght’s core philosophy is family, along with football and Bob’s interview demonstrates why this was the case.
Some of the anecdotes given by Bob are heartfelt and for me it was emotional at times, especially re-listening to the interview while editing. It must be pointed out that this two hour interview was all off the cuff by Bob and although there was more I could have asked him about and more he could have shared, the information and memories he opens up about are fantastic and for that I am truly indebted to him.
My sincere thanks go out to Bob for giving up his time for this interview, it was an absolute pleasure and honour to listen to his memories. Please enjoy episode 53!

Welcome to part 2 of episode 52 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. In part 2, I continue to converse with Ian Cirson about his football life. Sincere thanks to Ian for allowing me to speak with him for over 2 hours down at Judy Masters Oval, I sincerely respect his time. Please enjoy the second part to episode 52.

Welcome everybody to episode 52 of the Football United vs Soccer City podcast. I am sincerely grateful and thankful for every interviewee that has participated and graciously shared their journey. In addition to the podcast, there are the Football United vs Soccer City social media pages, which have been a great source of reminiscing and community interaction. So thank you to the people who continue to send items through and interact on these pages.
Ian Cirson is our interviewee in episode 52. Born in the early 1960s Ian has had an expansive football career as a supporter, player and coach over the past six decades. In our extensive interview it was brilliant to converse with Ian about growing up in the Illawarra as a football supporter and his successful junior and senior football careers. Add in his wide ranging coaching career and this episode contains various experiences across several clubs.
Due to the length of the interview with Ian, I have split this episode into two parts. My sincere thanks go out to Ian for giving up his time for this interview, it was an absolute pleasure and honour to listen to Ian. Please enjoy part 1 of episode 52!