One of Australia's football pioneers talks to Goal.com...
28 Jul 2009
As you would expect from a nation ranked 176th in the world, Cambodia are not one of south-east Asia’s giants, never mind the continent as a whole.
It could have been different, however. The nation was one of the region’s top dogs four decades ago, but the Khmer Rouge period of rule in the mid-1970s not only devastated the country, it also almost wiped football off the map.
The beautiful game in the beautiful country is still recovering, and Scott O’Donnel, the man at the helm of the national team, is doing his bit.
In 2005, after stints elsewhere in the region, he took the Cambodia job, becoming the first Australian to coach a non-Socceroo national team. He left at the end of 2007 after the federation could no longer afford to pay him.
Now he is back and he found time to answer Goal.com’s questions.
How did you end up in Cambodia?
I was offered the job just after I had resigned from my position as head coach at Geylang United, in Singapore, in 2005.
I had some contact with people at the Football Federation of Cambodia (FFC), because I had travelled up there quite often while my wife Margaret and I were adopting our two daughters, Emma and Ellie, back in 1998 and 1999.
When you got the job, what was the target for the team?
I wasn't set any targets for the team but my personal target was to try and bring some respectability back to the team after they had suffered some fairly big losses in the past.
Football in Cambodia obviously suffered because of other events in the country’s recent history, but just how much did this set football back?
It has obviously had a huge impact when it comes to the development of the game here. The lack of a proper youth structure, limited opportunities for kids to play, lack of qualified coaches, the lack of finances, etc. have all contributed.
Are there other reasons why Cambodia has never been a football power?
I believe the national team in the late 1960s was a very good team, one of the strongest teams in SE Asia, but obviously with the events that followed in the country, football was no longer a priority.
What needs to be done to make Cambodia competitive?
I think the priority should be youth development and it is something the FFC is currently working hard at. The second FIFA Goal project will go a long way in helping to provide better training facilities for the players.
The FFC has just conducted an AFC C Certificate Course here and has plans for another one later in the year. Coach education is vitally important as we need the young players to be taught the correct things at a young age.
A strong national league is also vitally important. At present we have a ten-team league and I have to say I have been pleasantly surprised at the improvement in the quality of the league this year. It is much more competitive than in recent years.
Can Cambodia ever become a regional powerhouse?
It is going to be difficult to catch up with the likes of Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, but with proper structures in place, there is no reason why we cannot become more competitive.
What’s the best and worst thing about your job and the country?
The best thing is getting the opportunity to work with boys who are enthusiastic and keen to learn. I don’t want to focus on negatives.
What is your highlight and lowlight as Cambodian coach?
The highlight was probably our 1-0 loss to Turkmenistan at home in the World Cup qualifiers in 2007. I know it sounds strange to say a highlight was losing, but that game was the best I had seen the boys play. Our 'keeper didn’t make a save until 75th minute. I was extremely proud of the boys.
The lowlight was a couple of months later when we were beaten 8-0 by Thailand in the SEA Games. We conceded some very soft goals after our first choice 'keeper was injured, and never recovered.
What kind of players are Cambodian players?
Cambodian players are similar to those in the region: relatively small in stature, quite quick, very attentive and eager to learn and improve.
Is the nation a football-loving one?
They love football here. They are always watching the big European games on TV and if you visit the Olympic Stadium any morning or afternoon, you will see hundreds of kids playing football, bare footed, on concrete outside the stadium.
Why did you leave and then return in 2009?
My contract ended at the end of 2007 and the sponsor who was paying my salary decided not to continue. I moved to AFC, where I was the director of coach education, which I enjoyed very much.
It was a great opportunity professionally, but my family stayed in Cambodia. So for personal reasons I resigned from AFC earlier this year and returned to Cambodia to be with my family.
I did not return to coach the national team again. I was still doing television work in Singapore as well as conducting courses for FIFA, but when the president of FCC, Lt. General Sao Sok ha, called me one day to offer me the job, I accepted.
What is your goal in Cambodia?
My immediate goal is to select the national U-23 squad for the upcoming SEA Games in Laos in December. I have also been asked to start preparing the national U-21 team to compete in the domestic Cambodian Premier League (CPL) next season. It is a project that I am very much looking forward to.
Would you want to coach in Australia? Has this ever been a possibility?
I would be very interested in working back in Australia. The rest of my family are back there and would jump at the chance, but opportunities are limited and it would have to be the right thing for my kids re: schooling etc.
But there are many experienced coaches in Australia who are out of work. Who knows? But with the A-League expanding there may be opportunities in the future.
Would you like to work elsewhere in SE Asia?
My family and I really enjoy SE Asia. We have lived in Malaysia, Singapore and now Cambodia. Obviously it will depend on what is good for my family, but yes, I am keen explore and work in other parts of Asia, not just SE Asia.
John Duerden
Asia Editor
john.duerden@goal.com
It could have been different, however. The nation was one of the region’s top dogs four decades ago, but the Khmer Rouge period of rule in the mid-1970s not only devastated the country, it also almost wiped football off the map.
The beautiful game in the beautiful country is still recovering, and Scott O’Donnel, the man at the helm of the national team, is doing his bit.
In 2005, after stints elsewhere in the region, he took the Cambodia job, becoming the first Australian to coach a non-Socceroo national team. He left at the end of 2007 after the federation could no longer afford to pay him.
Now he is back and he found time to answer Goal.com’s questions.
How did you end up in Cambodia?
I was offered the job just after I had resigned from my position as head coach at Geylang United, in Singapore, in 2005.
I had some contact with people at the Football Federation of Cambodia (FFC), because I had travelled up there quite often while my wife Margaret and I were adopting our two daughters, Emma and Ellie, back in 1998 and 1999.
When you got the job, what was the target for the team?
I wasn't set any targets for the team but my personal target was to try and bring some respectability back to the team after they had suffered some fairly big losses in the past.
Football in Cambodia obviously suffered because of other events in the country’s recent history, but just how much did this set football back?
It has obviously had a huge impact when it comes to the development of the game here. The lack of a proper youth structure, limited opportunities for kids to play, lack of qualified coaches, the lack of finances, etc. have all contributed.
Are there other reasons why Cambodia has never been a football power?
I believe the national team in the late 1960s was a very good team, one of the strongest teams in SE Asia, but obviously with the events that followed in the country, football was no longer a priority.
What needs to be done to make Cambodia competitive?
I think the priority should be youth development and it is something the FFC is currently working hard at. The second FIFA Goal project will go a long way in helping to provide better training facilities for the players.
The FFC has just conducted an AFC C Certificate Course here and has plans for another one later in the year. Coach education is vitally important as we need the young players to be taught the correct things at a young age.
A strong national league is also vitally important. At present we have a ten-team league and I have to say I have been pleasantly surprised at the improvement in the quality of the league this year. It is much more competitive than in recent years.
Can Cambodia ever become a regional powerhouse?
It is going to be difficult to catch up with the likes of Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, but with proper structures in place, there is no reason why we cannot become more competitive.
What’s the best and worst thing about your job and the country?
The best thing is getting the opportunity to work with boys who are enthusiastic and keen to learn. I don’t want to focus on negatives.
What is your highlight and lowlight as Cambodian coach?
The highlight was probably our 1-0 loss to Turkmenistan at home in the World Cup qualifiers in 2007. I know it sounds strange to say a highlight was losing, but that game was the best I had seen the boys play. Our 'keeper didn’t make a save until 75th minute. I was extremely proud of the boys.
The lowlight was a couple of months later when we were beaten 8-0 by Thailand in the SEA Games. We conceded some very soft goals after our first choice 'keeper was injured, and never recovered.
What kind of players are Cambodian players?
Cambodian players are similar to those in the region: relatively small in stature, quite quick, very attentive and eager to learn and improve.
Is the nation a football-loving one?
They love football here. They are always watching the big European games on TV and if you visit the Olympic Stadium any morning or afternoon, you will see hundreds of kids playing football, bare footed, on concrete outside the stadium.
Why did you leave and then return in 2009?
My contract ended at the end of 2007 and the sponsor who was paying my salary decided not to continue. I moved to AFC, where I was the director of coach education, which I enjoyed very much.
It was a great opportunity professionally, but my family stayed in Cambodia. So for personal reasons I resigned from AFC earlier this year and returned to Cambodia to be with my family.
I did not return to coach the national team again. I was still doing television work in Singapore as well as conducting courses for FIFA, but when the president of FCC, Lt. General Sao Sok ha, called me one day to offer me the job, I accepted.
What is your goal in Cambodia?
My immediate goal is to select the national U-23 squad for the upcoming SEA Games in Laos in December. I have also been asked to start preparing the national U-21 team to compete in the domestic Cambodian Premier League (CPL) next season. It is a project that I am very much looking forward to.
Would you want to coach in Australia? Has this ever been a possibility?
I would be very interested in working back in Australia. The rest of my family are back there and would jump at the chance, but opportunities are limited and it would have to be the right thing for my kids re: schooling etc.
But there are many experienced coaches in Australia who are out of work. Who knows? But with the A-League expanding there may be opportunities in the future.
Would you like to work elsewhere in SE Asia?
My family and I really enjoy SE Asia. We have lived in Malaysia, Singapore and now Cambodia. Obviously it will depend on what is good for my family, but yes, I am keen explore and work in other parts of Asia, not just SE Asia.
John Duerden
Asia Editor
john.duerden@goal.com
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