Paul Wade
Encyclopedia
Paul Wade is a retired Australian football (soccer)
player, who is best known for his long-term role as captain of the Socceroos
, Australia's national football team.
, England, Wade moved to Australia with his parents at age 11. By 1984, he had attained Australian citizenship and represented his adopted country for the first time, playing for Australia's "B" side against Tasmania. That same year, he made his debut in the National Soccer League
with the Green Gully Cavaliers
.
Wade played just one season with Green Gully before joining Brunswick Juventus
the following season and helping them win the 1985 NSL Championship. He played two seasons with Brunswick before joining South Melbourne FC
where he spent eight seasons, winning another NSL title in 1991, the NSL Cup in 1990 and a minor premiership (first overall at the end of the regular season) in 1993. Wade was also named NSL Player of the Year in 1988.
He joined the Canberra Cosmos
in 1995 for what would be his final two seasons, but was unable to help the team from the bottom of the standings in either campaign. He announced his retirement from competitive football in 1997 at the end of the NSL
season.
Wade's club career was spent entirely in Australia, a rarity for players from that country who often go to Europe on the lure of a better quality of football, more passionate fan support and higher salaries. Wade played a total of 345 games in the NSL.
, with 87, had more). In total, Wade played 118 games for Australia between 1986 and 1996. He represented the Socceroos at the 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul, South Korea and in two FIFA World Cup
qualifying campaigns (1990 and 1994).
One of his most famous moments came in 1993, during qualifying for the 1994 World Cup
when Australia faced Argentina
. Faced with the dubious honour of marking star Diego Maradona
, Wade was valiant in helping Australia stay in the two games, although they would eventually lose 2-1 on aggregate goals following a 1-0 defeat in Buenos Aires
.
His final international game was on 1 November 1996 in Canberra against Tahiti
in the 1996 OFC Nations Cup
final, which Australia won.
and SBS
, the latter of which has a strong non anglo demographic and thus makes football a healthy part of its programming lineup. He has also appeared on cable television channels TVN and Fox Sports 1 as a soccer analyst, but currently appears on Sky News.
He also began the Paul Wade Soccer Schools program, which visits primary schools
in various locations around Australia developing the game of football. They have quickly risen to become the leading football development program in the country, aiming to help kids "play like a Socceroo
legend." He coached the Scots College 1st XI football team in 2009.
Paul Wade also recently attended the Cerebral Palsy Football National Championships held between NSW, Queensland and a combined team featuring players from NSW, Victoria and the ACT. This took place at the Sydney Academy of Sport. Paul Wade is known to be a big supporter of disabled sports. Following this appearance, his interest grew and as of 20 July 2007 he has been ratified as Patron of the Cerebral Palsy
Sporting and Recreation Association (CPSARA) of NSW.
In 1995 Wade released his autobiography, Captain Socceroo: The Paul Wade story.
Wade has epilepsy
and often makes appearances at functions dedicated to promoting awareness of the condition.
In 2010 Wade provided commentary for the Age newspaper of Melbourne in the lead up to the 2010 World Cup. He replied to the opening question "Can Australia get through its group?" with "When the draw first came out and people around the world were saying [group D] is the group of death, I think they were saying it because of us."
:
With South Melbourne
: NSL Championship: 1990-1991 NSL Cup: 1989-1990
With Brunswick Juventus
: NSL Championship: 1985
Personal Honours:
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player, who is best known for his long-term role as captain of the Socceroos
Australia national football (soccer) team
The Australia national association football team represents Australia in international association football competitions. Its official nickname is the "Socceroos"...
, Australia's national football team.
Club career
Born in CheshireCheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England, Wade moved to Australia with his parents at age 11. By 1984, he had attained Australian citizenship and represented his adopted country for the first time, playing for Australia's "B" side against Tasmania. That same year, he made his debut in the National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
with the Green Gully Cavaliers
Green Gully Cavaliers
Green Gully Soccer Club is a football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Green Gully is one of the biggest clubs in Melbourne, it participated in the old National Soccer League between 1984-1986....
.
Wade played just one season with Green Gully before joining Brunswick Juventus
Brunswick Juventus
Brunswick Juventus is an Australian association football club from Brunswick, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The club was a participant in the National Soccer League, where they were champions in 1985, and Victorian Premier League, in which they won eight titles...
the following season and helping them win the 1985 NSL Championship. He played two seasons with Brunswick before joining South Melbourne FC
South Melbourne FC
South Melbourne FC is a football club based in South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.Considered the most successful association football club in Australia, they have won four national championships, a string of Victorian State League titles, and represented Oceania in the 2000 FIFA Club World...
where he spent eight seasons, winning another NSL title in 1991, the NSL Cup in 1990 and a minor premiership (first overall at the end of the regular season) in 1993. Wade was also named NSL Player of the Year in 1988.
He joined the Canberra Cosmos
Canberra Cosmos
Canberra Cosmos FC is a defunct Australian association football club based in Canberra in the ACT. It participated in the National Soccer League from the 1995/96 season until the end of the 2000/01 season, after which it folded, primarily due to financial difficulties...
in 1995 for what would be his final two seasons, but was unable to help the team from the bottom of the standings in either campaign. He announced his retirement from competitive football in 1997 at the end of the NSL
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
season.
Wade's club career was spent entirely in Australia, a rarity for players from that country who often go to Europe on the lure of a better quality of football, more passionate fan support and higher salaries. Wade played a total of 345 games in the NSL.
International career
Wade's 84 "A" international appearances for Australia make him the second most capped player in the country's history (only Alex TobinAlex Tobin
Alexander Hugh Tobin is a former Australian football player. Tobin is the second most capped player for the Australia national football team with 87 'A' appearances, including many as captain...
, with 87, had more). In total, Wade played 118 games for Australia between 1986 and 1996. He represented the Socceroos at the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul, South Korea and in two FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
qualifying campaigns (1990 and 1994).
One of his most famous moments came in 1993, during qualifying for the 1994 World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
when Australia faced Argentina
Argentina national football team
The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in association football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association , the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentina's home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti and their head coach is Alejandro...
. Faced with the dubious honour of marking star Diego Maradona
Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona is a retired Argentine football player and widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. Over the course of his professional club career Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys, setting...
, Wade was valiant in helping Australia stay in the two games, although they would eventually lose 2-1 on aggregate goals following a 1-0 defeat in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
.
His final international game was on 1 November 1996 in Canberra against Tahiti
Tahiti national football team
The Tahiti national football team is the national team of French Polynesia and is controlled by the Fédération Tahitienne de Football.They finished second in the OFC Nations Cup in its first three installments, 1973, 1980, and 1996. In 2009 the under 20 team qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in...
in the 1996 OFC Nations Cup
1996 OFC Nations Cup
The 1996 OFC Nations Cup was not held as a cohesive tournament, but consisted of semi-finals and a final played on a two-legged basis, stretched out between November 1995 and November 1996....
final, which Australia won.
After retirement
Wade's experience and popularity as an Australian international allowed for an easy transition to a career as a sports presenter. Wade has worked as a commentator and analyst with both the Nine NetworkNine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and SBS
Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service is a hybrid-funded Australian public broadcasting radio and television network. The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect...
, the latter of which has a strong non anglo demographic and thus makes football a healthy part of its programming lineup. He has also appeared on cable television channels TVN and Fox Sports 1 as a soccer analyst, but currently appears on Sky News.
He also began the Paul Wade Soccer Schools program, which visits primary schools
Primary education
A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
in various locations around Australia developing the game of football. They have quickly risen to become the leading football development program in the country, aiming to help kids "play like a Socceroo
Australia national football (soccer) team
The Australia national association football team represents Australia in international association football competitions. Its official nickname is the "Socceroos"...
legend." He coached the Scots College 1st XI football team in 2009.
Paul Wade also recently attended the Cerebral Palsy Football National Championships held between NSW, Queensland and a combined team featuring players from NSW, Victoria and the ACT. This took place at the Sydney Academy of Sport. Paul Wade is known to be a big supporter of disabled sports. Following this appearance, his interest grew and as of 20 July 2007 he has been ratified as Patron of the Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
Sporting and Recreation Association (CPSARA) of NSW.
In 1995 Wade released his autobiography, Captain Socceroo: The Paul Wade story.
Wade has epilepsy
Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
and often makes appearances at functions dedicated to promoting awareness of the condition.
In 2010 Wade provided commentary for the Age newspaper of Melbourne in the lead up to the 2010 World Cup. He replied to the opening question "Can Australia get through its group?" with "When the draw first came out and people around the world were saying [group D] is the group of death, I think they were saying it because of us."
Honours
With AustraliaAustralia national football (soccer) team
The Australia national association football team represents Australia in international association football competitions. Its official nickname is the "Socceroos"...
:
- OFC Nations CupOFC Nations CupThe OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the Oceania Football Confederation member nations. It was held every two years from 1996 to 2004; before 1996 there were two other tournaments held at irregular intervals, under the name Oceania Nations Cup...
: 19961996 OFC Nations CupThe 1996 OFC Nations Cup was not held as a cohesive tournament, but consisted of semi-finals and a final played on a two-legged basis, stretched out between November 1995 and November 1996....
With South Melbourne
South Melbourne FC
South Melbourne FC is a football club based in South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.Considered the most successful association football club in Australia, they have won four national championships, a string of Victorian State League titles, and represented Oceania in the 2000 FIFA Club World...
: NSL Championship: 1990-1991 NSL Cup: 1989-1990
- Dockerty CupDockerty CupThe Dockerty Cup is a football competition held between clubs in Victoria, Australia. It is named after Harry Dockerty, a former president of the Victorian Soccer Federation. It has been in recess since 1996, except for the year 2004...
: 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993
With Brunswick Juventus
Brunswick Juventus
Brunswick Juventus is an Australian association football club from Brunswick, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The club was a participant in the National Soccer League, where they were champions in 1985, and Victorian Premier League, in which they won eight titles...
: NSL Championship: 1985
Personal Honours:
- Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) Recipient: 1995
- FFA Hall of ChampionsFootball Federation Australia - Football Hall of FameThe Football Federation Australia's Football Hall of Fame was formed in 1996 as the Soccer Hall of Fame to honour outstanding services to association football in Australia....
Inductee - 2000 - NSLNational Soccer LeagueThe National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
Player of the Year: 1988 with South MelbourneSouth Melbourne FCSouth Melbourne FC is a football club based in South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.Considered the most successful association football club in Australia, they have won four national championships, a string of Victorian State League titles, and represented Oceania in the 2000 FIFA Club World...