The Asian Cup is our continental championship – the second biggest international tournament (for us) after the World Cup. Given our recent success at the World Cup in Qatar (where we finished 11th) you’d think Australian football fans would be champing at the bit for another major tournament.

Well, if they are, the media aren’t playing ball. There is almost nothing out there regarding the Asian showpiece which kicks off in just three days. Can you imagine a media blackout in England, Italy, Germany or Spain, three days out from their continental championships?

I’m sure the interest is there, so why aren’t the media catering for us? In this morning’s three Sydney papers there was just one (very short) article on the Asian Cup – next to multi-page supplements on who might be David Warner’s replacement. There was far more on AFL and NRL despite being in their off-seasons. There was more on Sam Kerr’s knee than there was on the Socceroos.

Of course we all love Sammy but, tragic though her news was, it doesn’t quite rate in comparison with the immediate commencement of the Asian Cup.

So what are the deeper questions here? Has the nation’s interest in the Matildas so surpassed the Socceroos that the possible loss of Sam Kerr for a tournament in six months is more newsworthy than the start of a tournament in three days?

Or is it something more sinister?

I understand that television stations have little interest in promoting an event that will not feature on their programs (even though that would never happen in England, Italy, Germany or Spain… or most other places in the world, for that matter). But why aren’t the papers talking about it? There are millions of Australian football fans. Do the papers not want their business?

Or would they rather just promote the sports in which their editors and owners are personally invested? I know this sounds like the paranoid ravings of a tinfoil hatted maniac, but I have personal knowledge of the lengths that some in the mainstream media will go to stifle any oxygen for football. (I’m sure we all do.)

But is it just the mainstream media?

Do we in the football community also shoot ourselves in the foot when it comes to generating excitement for the Socceroos?

The football community in this country starts with the NT coach. I was a little underwhelmed with the team Arnie selected. Most were obvious picks, but there’s no X Factor… no-one to fire the imagination of fans and get us excited.

Or is there?

Riley McGree is an outstanding attacking midfielder who will figure hugely in our chances. It’s great to see him back in camp after an injury. Connor Metcalfe has also grown into the attacking midfield role, and Jackson Irvine has gone to a new level with age.

That’s all fine, but where are the players to get us up off our seats?

Craig Goodwin and Sammy Silvera are okay, but where are the new Rogics and Mooys? Where are the Garang Kuols, the Daniel Arzanis that so energised previous campaigns? He may be raw but Nestory Irankunda offers far more, going forward, than most of the players picked for Qatar.

The game against Bahrain gave us an insight into what we can expect to see over the next few weeks – a large parked bus with the Socceroos huffing and puffing for 90 minutes while occasionally vulnerable on the counter.

There was no-one among our lot capable of cutting open that sort of low block and, even though we won, it was frustrating to watch. Teams deeper in the tournament will be a lot tougher.

Arnie needs at least two Wild Card players – two devil-may-care inventive types who can run at defences and disrupt them. Arzani’s absence, in particular, is a mystery. He’s playing fantastically well for Victory right now and is not (I think) eligible for the Olyroos. His selection would have been a major story.

Even the mainstream media may have noticed.

Adrian's books can be purchased at any good bookstore or through ebook alchemy. His first sci-fi novel (Asparagus Grass) was published by Hague Publishing in July 2023. The ebook can be purchased here and the paperback can be ordered here or at your local store.