EXCLUSIVE GLORY MEMBER’S ULTIMATE XI – THE DEFENDER VOTE
As we celebrate our 20th commemorative year, Perth Glory FC is calling on all members to vote for their Glorious Ultimate XI.
Following last month’s Goalkeeper vote we call on Perth Glory Members to vote for one of the below for your Ultimate XI – The Defender using your unique password emailed to you via our Membership department.
NOMINEES
SCOTT MILLER
Few, if any, players in Glory’s history have been as adored by the supporters as the man universally known as ‘Scotty’.Born in Fremantle, he began his career with Spearwood Dalmatinac before going on to enjoy successful spells with
Perth Italia and the Perth Kangaroos, while also trying his luck overseas at Singapore club, Sembawang Rangers.
The tenacious left-back had already tasted life in the NSL with Morwell Falcons when Glory entered the competition and lured him home in 1996.
Over the next ten years, he chalked up 227 appearances for the club, featured in three of Glory’s four NSL Grand Final appearances and won two caps for the Socceroos.
Miller scored 17 goals for the club, including a memorable last-gasp winner against Melbourne Knights in December 1996.
JOSH RISDON
Still only 24, Risdon has effectively made the right-back slot his own for the past six seasons after debuting midway through the 2010-11 campaign at the age of 18.
He currently holds the club record for A-League appearances having moved past fellow-right-back Jamie Coyne earlier this season, while at international level, he made his bow for the Socceroos in November 2015 and has won a further two caps to date.
His work-rate, pace and tough tackling have long made him a firm favourite with the nib Stadium faithful and he has won a clutch of club honours including Most Glorious Player, Best Clubman and Young Player of the Year.
The man from Bunbury was also named in the PFA Team of the Season last year and was a key part of the Glory side that reached the 2012 Grand Final.
NIKOLAI TOPOR-STANLEY
Known to his teammates as ‘Gandhi’ or ‘Hyphen’, Topor-Stanley made a huge impression during his debut season with the club, claiming the Most Glorious Player, Players’ Player and Young Player of the Year awards in 2008.
Equally comfortable slotting in at centre-back or left-back, the AIS graduate had made his A-League debut for Sydney FC but left the Sky Blues after just one season to join Glory.
He went on to make 37 appearances for the club, managing to enhance his reputation as one of the country’s most promising young defenders despite playing in what was generally a struggling side.
Topor-Stanley moved on to the Jets at the end of the 2008-09 season, joined Western Sydney in 2012 and is currently playing for Hatta Club in the UAE.
His international highlights, meanwhile, included representing the Olyroos at the 2008 Beijing Games and winning four senior caps.
DAVID TARKA
A player whose career transcended the NSL and A-League eras, Tarka joined the club in 2001 having risen to prominence with Cockburn City and then going on to skipper the AIS.
A rangy, ball-playing centre-back, he played a key role in driving the club to its first NSL title in 2003 and after injury and illness scuppered a subsequent spell in England with Nottingham Forest, he returned to Glory in 2005.
His first A-League season was unfortunately ruined by a hamstring injury, but having returned to full fitness in 2006, his impressive performances earned him a share of the MGP award that year along with Simon Colosimo.
More injury woes sadly followed, however and Tarka was released by the club in 2009 having made a total of 78 combined NSL and A-League appearances.
MICHAEL THWAITE
A cultured central defender who could also operate effectively as a holding midfielder, Thwaite was an almost ever-present for Glory over the course of three-and-a-half seasons.
Having claimed the MGP award and represented the A-League All Stars in 2014, he succeeded his close friend Jacob Burns as club skipper at the start of the 2014-15 campaign and went on to start all 27 of Glory’s games that year.
He combined most effectively at the heart of the defence with his former Gold Coast teammate, Dino Djulbic, although he also worked well with several others, including Steve Pantelidis.
In total, he made 85 appearances in purple, scoring two goals and celebrating both of them with a series of questionable dance moves.
The proud Far North Queenslander also won 13 caps for the Socceroos and spent last season playing in the Chinese Super League with Liaoning Whowin.
JAMIE HARNWELL
Rightly acknowledged as a genuine Glory legend, Harnwell spent 13 years with the club and was another player whose career transcended the NSL and A-League eras.
He debuted in 1998 and went on to feature in each of Glory’s four NSL Grand Final appearances, heading home a spectacular opener in the 2003 triumph over Olympic Sharks at Subiaco Oval.
While primarily employed as a centre-back, Harnwell could also operate extremely effectively as a centre-forward, a fact illustrated by his status as the club’s third-highest all-time goalscorer behind Bobby Despotovski and Damian Mori.
The former Sorrento man finally hung up his boots in 2011, by which time had set a new club record of 256 appearances which has remained unthreatened ever since.
Bizarrely, he never won the Most Glorious Player award, but was voted Members’ Player of the Year in 2008.
MATT HORSLEY
Right-back Horsley had actually skippered Wollongong Wolves against Glory in the infamous ‘unlosable’ Grand Final of 2000 when he missed a penalty in the shoot-out. But all was soon forgiven once he joined the club in 2001.
Remarkably, he duly managed to feature in four consecutive Grand Finals as he added a further two appearances with Glory to the two he had made with Wollongong and only injury prevented him from making that five in 2004.
Having battled his way back from a knee reconstruction, Horsley eventually retired for family reasons in 2005 at the age of 33.
Another defender who was also deployed in midfield on occasion, he made over 350 appearances in national competition, 79 of which were for Glory and was capped once by the Socceroos in 2000.
ROBBIE TRAJKOVSKI
Trajkovski was already a well-established NSL full-back/wing-back when Bernd Stange lured him to Glory in 1998, having racked up over 80 appearances for the likes of Brunswick, Carlton and Sydney United.
He was to feature prominently during the 1999-2000 season, scoring from the spot in the second leg of the major semi-final win over Wollongong and then repeating the feat against the same opponents in the dramatic shoot-out that ultimately decided the Grand Final in the Wolves’ favour.
A model of consistency throughout his three seasons in the west, Trajkovski made a total of 73 appearances for the club before opting to sign for Northern Spirit in 2001.
At international level, meanwhile, one of his three appearances for the Socceroos came in a 16-0 win over the Cook Islands in 1998.
SHAUN MURPHY
Classy defender Murphy was brought in by then-Glory boss Mich D’Avray to skipper the side for the 2003-04 season and duly led the club to a second successive NSL title.
Early in his career, he had risen to prominence as part of the hugely-successful Perth Italia side, subsequently securing a move to English club Notts County.
He went on to enjoy a lengthy spell in England, moving from County to West Brom and later completing a switch to Sheffield United for whom he made over 150 appearances.
Murphy’s return to Perth then saw him emerge as a cornerstone of the Glory defence that conceded only 22 goals in 24 regular-season games on the way to the 2004 Grand Final.
He also enjoyed great success on the international scene, representing the Olyroos at the 1992 Games in Barcelona and scoring the winner for the Socceroos in their famous victory over Brazil at the 2001 Confederations Cup.
ANDY TODD
A centre-back who oozed composure from every pore, Andy Todd brought a real touch of class to the Glory defence between 2009 and 2011.
And although not the biggest of defenders, he also possessed a level of physicality honed by a career spent playing in his native England for the likes of Middlesbrough, Bolton, Charlton, Blackburn and Derby.
He played a pivotal role in driving Glory to their maiden A-League finals appearance during his first season with the club and was duly rewarded with the Most Glorious Player, Players’ Player and Members’ Player of the Year awards.
Injuries unfortunately hindered Todd the following year and he was to hang up his boots at the end of it, but although his time at the heart of the Glory defence was comparatively brief, his impact was a very significant one.
