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Frank Farina: We must find a way to increase investment in youth development

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They say you can’t keep a good man down and in the life of Frank Farina, former Socceroo striker and head coach, football is like oxygen - he can’t live without it.

Frank Farina’s Comeback – For the Love of the Game.

They say you can’t keep a good man down and in the life of Frank Farina, former Socceroo striker and head coach, football is like oxygen – he can’t live without it.



Farina first emerged as star quality when he scored the equalising goal for the Young Socceroos against Mexico in their 1-1 all draw at Azteca Stadium in 1983. This all in front of 110,000 fanatical home supporters.

Farina’s career up to 1998 is well chronicled  in his biography, “ My World is Round”, but it was only in 2016 that he completed his last coaching assignment in Fiji.

The scorer of 145 goals in 336 senior matches in Australia and abroad, speaks volumes for his lethal striking.

Recently, Farina joined the First X1 which was assembled by the FFA  as an advisory panel to recommend measures to improve the game .

Also, he is hoping to take up the position of technical director for the Charles Perkins Academy when Macarthur Bulls start in the next A-League season.

Frank Farina is committed to leaving a legacy for Australian football and in this interview with Roger Sleeman, he reveals his enduring passion for our game.

ROGER SLEEMAN

You were part of the class of 1983 which competed so well  in the Mexico World Youth Cup, playing alongside such legends as Rod Brown, Rene Licata, David Lowe, Jim Patikas, Tom McCulloch, Danny Wright and Tony Franken to mention a few.

Apart from Tony Franken and Jim Patikas, most of the squad aren’t involved in the game to any extent.

Why?

FRANK FARINA

It certainly was a great squad and our win against the European champions, Scotland, who boasted some amazing talent in future stars, Paul McStay, Brian McClair, Dave McPherson, Pat Nevin and Eric Black,  was one which will live forever in my mind.

Les Scheinflug and Raoul Blanco seemed like tough coaches at the time as they instilled their discipline on the team. Yet, in hindsight, we learned to see the game in a professional way.

After the players finished their football careers, the professionalism of the game was not so advanced so they had to seek opportunities outside of football.

The passion remained but the chances to remain in the game were limited so many of them pursued business interests with great success.

ROGER SLEEMAN

You were selected in the First X1 by the FFA and apart from discussion about a transfer system, what else has been achieved?

FRANK FARINA

We recently had a long discussion about the women’s game and how it can be used as a catalyst to promote the game in all areas.

However, it’s early days and the main concentration is to identify strengths and weaknesses  and collect facts so we can make informed recommendations to the Board.

ROGER SLEEMAN

Do you communicate with Brisbane Roar, or have they approached you to provide advice and be involved with the club?

FRANK FARINA

Unfortunately, I haven’t and naturally a lot of people have moved on since I was coaching at the club.

Nevertheless, I still watch their progress closely.

ROGER SLEEMAN

Did you have any contact with Robbie Fowler while he was at the Roar?

FRANK FARINA

No, because he had his own people there.

As a coach, you live and die by your decisions and often the staff you select will have a major impact on the final outcome.

It’s a shame he didn’t remain at the club because the team definitely improved under his management.

ROGER SLEEMAN

What is your opinion of Dylan Wentzel-Halls?

FRANK FARINA

He improved out of sight this season as he increased his speed over 10-15 metres .

Also, rather than coming back on his right foot from the left, he is now running at players with pace and taking them on both ways.

If he can keep this improvement up, he will have a great future.

ROGER SLEEMAN

What is the current status of your proposed appointment as  the technical director of the Charles Perkins Academy at the Macarthur Bulls?

FRANK FARINA

With the departure of Football Director, Ken Stead, and when the major backer, Lang Walker left the club, my position became unclear.

With the rise of COVID-19 and the uncertainty surrounding the next A-League season commencement, I’m in limbo.

However, I’m in regular contact with Sam Krslovic and Gino Marra so hopefully something positive will transpire.

ROGER SLEEMAN

In the A-League, there are specialist goalkeeper coaches, but no striker coaches.

Why can’t people like you and Marshall Soper be employed in such roles?

FRANK FARINA

I’ve never seen striker coaches as such but I believe they’re  used in Germany, according to Marshall Soper who was at Kaiserslauten in January.

I certainly agree with the concept because finishing is a speciality but today the game has evolved into a total team structure.

If you’re playing a pressing game, dropping off or playing counter attacking football, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a striker, midfielder or defender, you are asked to occupy multiple roles.

ROGER SLEEMAN

At the moment we have coaches, particularly in technical positions, who have never played the game at a high level.

How can somebody coach at a high level when they haven’t played at a high level?

FRANK FARINA

Regarding this issue, I’ve had a problem with the coaching curriculum over the past ten years because people are obtaining Pro Diplomas who haven’t excelled at a playing level. What’s more they’re actually getting the jobs.

It’s a bit like a surgeon who gains his qualifications without ever operating.

I find the whole thing bizarre and I believe the curriculum in a nutshell is the basis of the problem.

There are different opinions on coaching but if you don’t agree with the curriculum, opportunities are limited.

The game in this country is producing robots and the fact is, they’re aren’t enough successful, former players engaged in key coaching roles.

ROGER SLEEMAN

You were a totally two sided player and during last season, I analysed that only 10% of A-League players were competent on both feet.

How can we change this situation?

FRANK FARINA

I only started using my left side at the age of thirteen because I had a problem with my right ankle and wanted to reduce the weight on my right side.

The coaching of young players at grass roots is critical and often they don’t receive adequate skills training by the time they’re fourteen which is the time tactical awareness needs to be introduced.

Also, you have to ask how much time is spent with the ball by young players, away from training and games.

ROGER SLEEMAN

Many of the games we see in senior football are dominated by the ball being played backwards and across the backline, whereas in your playing days, you looked to play it forward.

How can this be corrected?

FRANK FARINA

Once again it comes back to the curriculum which emphasises possession football.

A team can have 70% of possession while making 20-30 passes back and across the park but they’re not doing anything to hurt their opponents.

In rugby league, 70-80% of possession means a team will win easily, while in our game, 90% of possession doesn’t guarantee a team winning if they don’t get enough into forward areas to maximise scoring chances.

The curriculum drums into coaches’ heads to play the ball out from the back but there’s a right and a wrong time to do it.

For example, if you’re 1-0 down, are you still going to play out from the back?

ROGER SLEEMAN

The FFA Board has members with no football background.

Why aren’t we involving people like Jack Reilly, Danny Moulis, Glen Sterrey, Gary Marocchi and Peter Katholos who have achieved major success in business and football?

FRANK FARINA

The answer is simple.

If they’ve put their hands up, these people are all worthy to sit on the Board.

ROGER SLEEMAN

In a recent interview, you stated lack of money was a major problem in our game, particularly with youth development.

Before the recent 70% culling of staff  at the FFA, there were as many as 105 people engaged as employees and contractors.

Also, there were significant bonuses and a large wages bill paid for the Asian Cup.

Your comment.

FRANK FARINA

If money is going to the wrong areas, you have to correct that.

You only have to see the resources invested in Asian football to see how successful the game can be. Therefore, in Australia we must find a way to increase the investment in youth development and the game will boom.

ROGER SLEEMAN

You were part of a magnificent era which produced so many players who achieved at a high level overseas.

When will these legends of the game be recognised?

FRANK FARINA

I’ve always said ,to know where you’re going, you have to know where you’ve been and that includes experiencing the highs and lows.

Before James Johnson was appointed CEO, the people in charge were the wrong fit for the game.

Also, the Dutch coaches predicted we would see the fruits of their efforts realised in 10-12 years but it hasn’t happened.

The success of the 2006 World Cup squad was the result of the investment in local players from the late 1980’s but at the moment our national team resembles nothing.

Therefore, the game has to provide more involvement and opportunity for former players to return and contribute, so some semblance of the glory days can be restored.

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A Coroner’s Call: Why Football Can No Longer Ignore the Science on CTE

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The recent coronial inquest into the death of Gordon McQueen has once again forced football to confront an uncomfortable truth.

The former Manchester United and Leeds United defender was renowned for his aerial prowess. But decades after his playing career ended, McQueen was diagnosed with dementia. The coroner has now formally linked his condition to repeated heading of a football. This is a landmark acknowledgement that many in the scientific community say has been years in the making.

For Ian Greener, Australia’s HEADSAFE representative and former State Director of Coaching at Football Victoria, the ruling should be a turning point.

“The evidence has been there since 2019,” Greener tells Soccerscene. “But the general public and much of the football community have simply not been told.”

The Research Football Can’t Ignore

Much of the modern understanding of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) in football stems from the work of Professor Willie Stewart at the University of Glasgow. Commissioned by the English FA and PFA, his landmark 2019 FIELD study found former professional footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to develop neurodegenerative disease. For defenders, that risk rose to five times more likely.

Stewart then spent years re-examining his findings through analysing lifestyle, alcohol consumption, social factors and broader health variables across tens of thousands of records.

“He looked at everything,” Greener explains. “Drugs, diet, social background. After years of further research, he came back to the same conclusion — there is no other explanation apart from repeated head impacts.”

CTE differs from concussion. Concussion is visible and immediate. It can be identified through dizziness, nausea and blurred vision. CTE is silent. The damage accumulates over decades and can only be confirmed post-mortem through examination of brain tissue.

Greener explains the science in simple terms: repeated head impacts cause the brain to move within the skull, stretching neurons. This releases tau protein, which clumps together over time and disrupts electrical messaging in the brain. The result can be memory loss, personality change, aggression, anxiety, and in some cases, suicidal behaviour.

“It’s not about frightening people,” he says. “It’s about understanding brain health.”

Not About Banning Heading

HEADSAFE, founded by the family of former Middlesbrough player Bill Gates after his battle with dementia, operates across three fronts: research support, financial assistance for affected families, and coach education.

“We are not about banning heading,” Greener stresses. “Heading is an integral part of football. What we’re saying is: minimise the repeated heading in training. Most of the damage is done there.”

In England, guidelines already exist. Children under 12 are not permitted to practise heading in training. Though monitoring is difficult, In the Premier League, players are advised to limit high-force headers to around 10 per week. In Scotland, players are not permitted to head the ball the day before or after a match.

Australia, however, has no formalised CTE-specific guidelines.

Greener says attempts to engage both Football Victoria and Football Australia have so far gained little traction. Instead, he has taken the message directly to clubs, academies and grassroots coaches through workshops and podcasts.

“We just need a module in coach education,” he says. “If we’ve embraced sports science in nutrition, recovery and match analysis, then we also have to embrace the science on repeated head impacts.”

What concerns Greener most is not just the science, but the time lag between evidence and action. “This was once considered an old person’s disease,” he says. “But the science now shows it begins much earlier. The symptoms might not appear for decades, but the damage can start in youth.” He argues that brain health should sit alongside hydration, nutrition and recovery in every coaching curriculum. “We talk about load management for muscles. Why wouldn’t we talk about load management for the brain?”

A Duty of Care

The urgency is heightened by the rapid growth of the women’s game. Emerging research suggests female players may experience head impacts differently due to chemical and physiological factors.

“It’s about duty of care,” Greener says. “My grandson has just started playing. I want to know that whether I’m there or not, he’s protected.”

McQueen’s case has placed the spotlight firmly back on football’s responsibility. With further inquests pending in the UK, including that of Bill Gates later this year, pressure is unlikely to ease.

Football has adapted before — from concussion substitutes to advanced medical protocols. The next step, Greener argues, is simple:

“Make every header count. Don’t do 30 or 40 for the sake of it. Protect the brain, protect the player, protect the future of the game.”

The Future of Football with Bill Papastergiadis

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One Nil

In our first episode of Unfiltered, our conversation with Bill Papastergiadis quickly cemented why he’s the National Chairman and Managing Partner at Moraine Agnew Lawyers, President of the Greek Community of Melbourne, President of South Melbourne FC, and a board member across several organisations.The episode serves as a lens for examining the deep interconnections between football, community, governance, and the tangled politics beneath Australia’s sporting landscape.

Football and the Ties That Bind

For Australian football stakeholders, the implications are clear. Football’s true power isn’t just what happens in the technical area or at the board table; it’s how sport can unify diverse cultures and channel rivalries into positive outcomes. Papastergiadis reflects on his own journey, where law and leadership blend seamlessly into community-building: “All of the things we work in have an interconnection…my job as a lawyer relates to my work at South Melbourne Hallas.” Clubs are, in this sense, social institutions, able to support not just athletes, but families, grassroots volunteers, and community partners.

Yet, the podcast doesn’t shy away from highlighting how politics shapes the game, for better and worse. “Football brings out the best in us and sometimes not the best in us,” Papastergiadis admits. Behind every bid for a stadium, every negotiation with government or governing bodies, there’s manoeuvring, advocacy, and, at times, division. As he puts it, “People are trying to use whatever skill or relationship they have to get their club where they want it to be. They will describe that as political. Politics is really part of our lives.”

The Fight for Access

It’s in this way that the episode’s most substantial industry analysis emerges. The conversation turns to the national second tier- the newly launched Australian Championship, and the legacy of locking NPL clubs out of the A-League.

“I hope it’s fixed. We will agitate for it to be fixed. Not because for the sake of South Melbourne, but for the sake of every club in this country. They all deserve…to aspire, to dream and to bring out the best in themselves and to progress. You can’t stop that in humanity.”

Papastergiadis credits Football Australia and Football Victoria’s recent efforts to re-introduce competition between historic clubs:

“Every club went another level in terms of player engagement, fan engagement, creating a better experience, match day experience for their supporters. Everything went up because we introduced competition again.” Fan attendance soared by up to 600% in one season, and clubs invested in both players and match-day infrastructure. For commercial operators, administrators, and sponsors, this speaks to a simple truth: when doors open, football’s audience answers.

Community, Identity and Social Cohesion

The episode also asks hard questions about identity and inclusion, both for clubs and communities. Papastergiadis doesn’t downplay the tensions that can arise from tribalism or historical rivalries, yet he champions the need for clubs to embrace their heritage within a multicultural framework. “We’re an Australian club, first and foremost (…) we do have, however, a history and it’s a history that gives meaning and purpose to the club. Let’s not deny that, but let’s make sure that history is conveyed in a way which promotes social cohesion, which doesn’t exclude others.”

He draws a direct line between football, ethnic history, and social progress, arguing that attempts to erase cultural identity or punish clubs for their backgrounds was a regressive move rooted in Australia’s old racism. “The demise of the National Soccer League was racist in its execution and to deny those clubs the opportunity to continue to participate solely because of their historical background, particularly when those clubs are what football was built on.”

 

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Industry Lessons and the Path Ahead

Politics will always be embedded within football’s machinery. But, as Papastergiadis notes, the impacts are not inevitably negative, provided that industry leaders focus on engagement, transparency, grit, and trust-building. His advice for clubs working with councils is clear: “Invite them to your events. Invite them to your club presentations. Invite the counsellors to matches. Organise lunches. Through that process, they will find that doors will open. (…) Trust is built over time.”

If anything, this episode illustrates that the future of Australian football rests on industry’s willingness to marry grit and ambition with cultural sensitivity and openness. “The journey is more important than the outcome. We should encourage people to feel good about the particular journey, that daily journey they’re involved in.”

For listeners, football stakeholders, and policymakers, Papastergiadis’ reflections and stories, some poignant, some political, all rooted in decades of experience, are both a window and a challenge. Open the doors, listen deeply, agitate constructively, and let football’s dreams flourish.

Dive into the full episode for more stories, leadership lessons, and insight on shaping Australian football’s next chapter.

Our episode is now out on Spotify, listen here.

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