By Ewen McRae
Thomas Deng may be the latest player to pull on the famous Socceroos’ jersey, but for fans of the Western Eagles he will always be one of them.
Deng, 21, made his debut for Australia in last week’s friendly against Kuwait, coming off the bench to help the Socceroos to a 4-0 win.
For fans of the Albion-based Western Eagles, it marked the culmination of a journey that began when a 16-year-old Deng arrived at the club after immigrating from his South Sudan homeland.
Mark Szpakolski was a junior team manager when Deng arrived at the Western Eagles, and he remembers a boy who stood out from the crowd with his willingness to learn and improve his game.
“His attitude was A1, just a very professional attitude from a very young age,” Szpakolski said.
“He was also a very hard working player, and you could see from a skill perspective he could mix it with far more experienced players very early on and do things that others couldn’t.
“He was playing in the reserves team pretty quickly, and then we had some injuries in the seniors and he was by far the standout choice to come up. So he was playing seniors when he was just 16, and just never lost his spot.”
Stories of his prowess are still told around the club, with Deng leaving an indelible mark in his short time there.
“I’ll never forget a goal he scored against Bell Park,” Szpakolski said.
“It was 1-1 with just a couple of minutes left, and he’s taken the ball from the centre, beaten a couple of players and slotted it. His calmness over the ball stood out, and for a young kid he just had something different about him.”
From State League 3, it soon became time for Deng to stretch his wings, and he found a new home at Green Gully in its NPL under 20 squad in 2014.
From there he was noticed by Melbourne Victory talent scouts who signed him to a youth contract in 2015, and he made his A-League debut later that year against cross-town rivals Melbourne City.
Szpakolski said while he was a memorable talent, he didn’t expect Deng to reach the heights of the Socceroos so quickly.
“Who would have known he would play for the Socceroos, but there was certainly something about him,” he said.
“We’re very proud to say that he played juniors, reserves and seniors for our club, and all that hard work has really paid off for him.
“I’ve been involved in the game for a long time, and seen some very talented kids not go on to play a senior game, but with Tommy you can tell he wants it and he’s going to fight for it.”
While it’s been nearly five years since Deng left the Eagles, he hasn’t forgotten where his journey began.
“He still comes back and spends time with our juniors when we ask him,” Szpakolski said.
“He’s here at the drop of a hat and will do a session with us, or talk to the kids, so we’re so excited to be a part of his journey and watch him on the big stage.”
