He’s one of the most gifted players in the country but Nick Carle’s persistent snubbing by Socceroo coaches remains a mystery. Aidan Ormond tracks the Newcastle No.10’s roller-coaster career
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Carle was living the dream from the moment he stepped off the plane. He had six appearances for Troyes in the first two months, with three starts. The Aussie got to play in front of 60,000 against PSG, which featured Ronaldinho and Nigerian ball-wizard Jay Jay Okocha. His first game was against an Auxerre side that had Djibril Cissé up front.
“But the game I really remember was when I started against Bordeaux,” he recalls of a Troyes side that finished seventh in the league. “It was a must-win game in front of 20,000 or so. The crowd was going crazy and for the first few minutes you couldn’t see anything because of all the flares that had been let off. The smoke, flares, the tickertape. It was everything I’d ever dreamed of. And I had a real good game. But, in the 70th minute, my knee went and I was out for the rest of the season.”
What’s more, Melissa, his then girlfriend (now wife) flew in from Australia on that day. She never got to see him perform at the highest level in France.
“A new coach came in the next season [Marseilles poached Perrin] and he brought in his own players,” remembers Carle. “The club spoke to me about dropping down to the second side because they had too many foreigners. And I was the youngest so it was easy for them to do that.”
What followed was a season “to forget” as he puts it. “The young boys were back playing in the second team in my second year. We finished top and the first team finished last. So, it says a lot… the coach was going to stick around so there was no point in me doing the same. I’m very much a confidence player. But injuries are all a part of soccer. He didn’t like me and it didn’t matter what I did, I wasn’t going to get a look-in.”
For Carle, an away match to a Didier Drogba-inspired Guingamp was the final straw. “We were losing 1-0 in a must-win game. With 20 minutes to go, and with two subs already used, the coach picks a defender, not me. That’s when I thought I’ve got to finish in France.”
Wife Melissa recalls that despite the usual issues foreigners face, it was a pleasant adventure. “The language was a barrier and I’d never been to Europe before. But the club was really good and we met some really nice people. We’d go to Paris on our days off. Now, looking back on it, it was a really good experience.”
Despite this frustrating end to his French football experience – and struggling with the cold European winter – Carle is leaving the door open for a return. “I know the French have been perceived as arrogant but it wasn’t true. We met so many lovely people. If the right move came along, I’d definitely go back.”
He returned to Australia on the advice of Olyroo/Socceroo boss Frank Farina. With the Athens Olympics just around the corner, Carle was told being home was best. The player says he knocked back an offer from Brondby after trialing with the Danish powerhouse because he thought he’d be involved in the Athens 2004 campaign. Wrong.
“Mel and I tried to organise our wedding around the assumption that I’d be in the Olympics side. I really put a lot into going to the Olympics. When I came home, it was after I’d spoken to Frank and he said my best chance of making it was coming home rather than not playing regularly over there [in France].”
After missing out on selection, Carle was offered the role of shadow player in the Olympics squad, which he rejected.
“I needed to keep earning money. I had mortgages. I’ve never had a real job and I wasn’t prepared to be a shadow player. There was nothing left for me. Asian leagues were closed and the only option was the NSW winter Super League [the tournament below the Premier League] to keep me fit and generate some income.”
The league decreed that they picked the side he played for and it was pulled out of a hat. Ryde City Gunners was Carle’s new club but what followed was what he describes as the low point of his professional career. Carle says after his French stint two years earlier, it was a harsh “reality check”.
“One day you can be up there, the next at the bottom. So that was my low point. In a professional sense it was something I’d rather forget but having said that, I met some really nice people and the players were unreal,” he says of a club that plays next to the picturesque Lane Cove river.
Like most Aussie-based players, the period between the end of the NSL in 2004 and the start of the Hyundai A-League in 2005 meant state league football or a shot overseas. Carle played for Marconi in the NSW Premier League, as well as starring in a rather bizarre match against a touring Libyan national team, won 1-0 by NSW (Gadaffi’s playboy son didn’t play).
Fast forward to 2006, and Carle couldn’t be happier at Newcastle. He loves the outdoors lifestyle and can often be found fishing off his boat. Carle is particularly impressed by the club’s new acquisition, Socceroo legend Paul Okon, a man Carle describes as “the signing of the entire league”.
“With Nick T on board, everyone knows he likes quick attacking football and the fans will respond to it,” enthuses Nick. “I’ve extended my contract. For me to go back overseas it would have to be something big. I’m enjoying life here, my wife is about to have our first baby. Family is very important to me, by that I mean my wife Melissa and our child.
“If the right move came along, I’m not ruling out anything, particularly Asia. For me, it’s hard to get to Europe because I don’t have an EU passport and I’m not a regular in the national team. That’s why Asia is a good avenue for me. But right now I’m concentrating on Newcastle and that only. I’ve got potentially five years there, which I’m rapt about.”
Carle played a lot of indoor football when he was a kid. He reckons it’s great in helping players improve ball control because you play in confined spaces. “One of my goals for the end of my career is to play for Australia at an indoor World Cup,” he says with a big smile.
Let’s just hope it’s not the only time he gets to represent his country.
“But the game I really remember was when I started against Bordeaux,” he recalls of a Troyes side that finished seventh in the league. “It was a must-win game in front of 20,000 or so. The crowd was going crazy and for the first few minutes you couldn’t see anything because of all the flares that had been let off. The smoke, flares, the tickertape. It was everything I’d ever dreamed of. And I had a real good game. But, in the 70th minute, my knee went and I was out for the rest of the season.”
What’s more, Melissa, his then girlfriend (now wife) flew in from Australia on that day. She never got to see him perform at the highest level in France.
“A new coach came in the next season [Marseilles poached Perrin] and he brought in his own players,” remembers Carle. “The club spoke to me about dropping down to the second side because they had too many foreigners. And I was the youngest so it was easy for them to do that.”
What followed was a season “to forget” as he puts it. “The young boys were back playing in the second team in my second year. We finished top and the first team finished last. So, it says a lot… the coach was going to stick around so there was no point in me doing the same. I’m very much a confidence player. But injuries are all a part of soccer. He didn’t like me and it didn’t matter what I did, I wasn’t going to get a look-in.”
For Carle, an away match to a Didier Drogba-inspired Guingamp was the final straw. “We were losing 1-0 in a must-win game. With 20 minutes to go, and with two subs already used, the coach picks a defender, not me. That’s when I thought I’ve got to finish in France.”
Wife Melissa recalls that despite the usual issues foreigners face, it was a pleasant adventure. “The language was a barrier and I’d never been to Europe before. But the club was really good and we met some really nice people. We’d go to Paris on our days off. Now, looking back on it, it was a really good experience.”
Despite this frustrating end to his French football experience – and struggling with the cold European winter – Carle is leaving the door open for a return. “I know the French have been perceived as arrogant but it wasn’t true. We met so many lovely people. If the right move came along, I’d definitely go back.”
He returned to Australia on the advice of Olyroo/Socceroo boss Frank Farina. With the Athens Olympics just around the corner, Carle was told being home was best. The player says he knocked back an offer from Brondby after trialing with the Danish powerhouse because he thought he’d be involved in the Athens 2004 campaign. Wrong.
“Mel and I tried to organise our wedding around the assumption that I’d be in the Olympics side. I really put a lot into going to the Olympics. When I came home, it was after I’d spoken to Frank and he said my best chance of making it was coming home rather than not playing regularly over there [in France].”
After missing out on selection, Carle was offered the role of shadow player in the Olympics squad, which he rejected.
“I needed to keep earning money. I had mortgages. I’ve never had a real job and I wasn’t prepared to be a shadow player. There was nothing left for me. Asian leagues were closed and the only option was the NSW winter Super League [the tournament below the Premier League] to keep me fit and generate some income.”
The league decreed that they picked the side he played for and it was pulled out of a hat. Ryde City Gunners was Carle’s new club but what followed was what he describes as the low point of his professional career. Carle says after his French stint two years earlier, it was a harsh “reality check”.
“One day you can be up there, the next at the bottom. So that was my low point. In a professional sense it was something I’d rather forget but having said that, I met some really nice people and the players were unreal,” he says of a club that plays next to the picturesque Lane Cove river.
Like most Aussie-based players, the period between the end of the NSL in 2004 and the start of the Hyundai A-League in 2005 meant state league football or a shot overseas. Carle played for Marconi in the NSW Premier League, as well as starring in a rather bizarre match against a touring Libyan national team, won 1-0 by NSW (Gadaffi’s playboy son didn’t play).
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| Carle has all the skills including Jedi mind tricks |
Fast forward to 2006, and Carle couldn’t be happier at Newcastle. He loves the outdoors lifestyle and can often be found fishing off his boat. Carle is particularly impressed by the club’s new acquisition, Socceroo legend Paul Okon, a man Carle describes as “the signing of the entire league”.
“With Nick T on board, everyone knows he likes quick attacking football and the fans will respond to it,” enthuses Nick. “I’ve extended my contract. For me to go back overseas it would have to be something big. I’m enjoying life here, my wife is about to have our first baby. Family is very important to me, by that I mean my wife Melissa and our child.
“If the right move came along, I’m not ruling out anything, particularly Asia. For me, it’s hard to get to Europe because I don’t have an EU passport and I’m not a regular in the national team. That’s why Asia is a good avenue for me. But right now I’m concentrating on Newcastle and that only. I’ve got potentially five years there, which I’m rapt about.”
Carle played a lot of indoor football when he was a kid. He reckons it’s great in helping players improve ball control because you play in confined spaces. “One of my goals for the end of my career is to play for Australia at an indoor World Cup,” he says with a big smile.
Let’s just hope it’s not the only time he gets to represent his country.
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| Nick Carle looks to use his "good-for-stepping-onto-buses" right foot. |
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