Ange loves being Down Under the spotlight
Postecoglou: Aussies love successful teams even if they don’t like football
ANGE POSTECOGLOU has revealed his silverware success at Celtic has gone down a storm with Australia’s sporting nuts.
The Parkhead manager’s collection of the Premier Sports Cup just six months into his reign was warmly received Down Under.
Australia loves sporting winners with the nation currently in raptures as their cricket team hammer England in the Ashes.
And, although some of those delighted with the Postecoglou’s victory don’t even know him, he reckons they’d feel elated anyway at the winning efforts of one of their own abroad.
He said: “This club is very well known globally and there has always been a strong connection in Australia. That’s irrespective of me.
“The fact I am here and Tommy Rogic has been for a while now, the reaction doesn’t surprise me.
“For me, that is one of the joys to see the impact it has on people I know and don’t know back home. Some of them don’t even love football, they just love to see Australians do well and take great pride in it.”
Postecoglou also allowed himself to take an evening to breathe in the triumph. The manager stated in the immediate aftermath of the victory that he was going to sit back with a Scotch and savour the success.
Postecoglou kept that promise to himself and said: “Yeah, I got a glass in. It was a nice quiet evening with my wife. It was nice.
“You do take a couple of hours to reflect on winning the cup. I know how hard everyone has worked for it and trophies aren’t easy things to come by.
“You take that time to reflect but it’s more about what it does for other people. I take joy from watching other people celebrate and feeling like you have contributed to it.”
Postecoglou could see deep feelings of emotion pour out amongst his squad after Hampden. He could feel the sheer joy and understand what it meant to those within the club. The gaffer made sure the troops were able to squeeze as much enjoyment as possible out of the trophy triumph and didn’t attempt to rein them in.
However, at the same time, he knows success must follow success at Celtic and was crystal clear that their work heads had to be right back on in plenty of time for Paisley.
Postecoglou said: “Absolutely. We hope that winning on Sunday whets the appetite and now we go again starting with St Mirren.
“Players have been good in that respect. I told them after the game they needed to enjoy it and that they should do their own reflections. Embrace their achievement.
“There was a lot of emotion involved at the end of the game. This club has a long history of being successful but for a lot of that time they’ve been the dominant team.
“At the beginning of this season, I don’t think anyone saw what we were putting together as being dominant.
“We worked hard, went through a lot of challenges and obstacles, even during the final. But whatever was thrown at them, they found a way to get through it all.
“If you take their own personal journeys from the last five months and then combine it with the team’s, there is no doubt it was a special day.
“But come Tuesday, it was always about the next task and that is the next league game.
“You have to switch focus and get back to what we have been doing all along. We also have to understand what has brought us the success so far.
“It’s been a collective effort and we will need that again to regroup and keep going.”