The second in the four part article about the Australian players that have graced Selhurst Park over the years which has been sent in to us from our friends at Licence to Roam. Go and check out their website for more articles and they can also be contacted on Twitter.
Terry Venables’ second managerial term at Crystal Palace was largely unsuccessful and only lasted 225 days. Venables, himself an Aussie, managed to lure three of his fellow countrymen to the club during his short stay in 1998. They were Nicky Rizzo, Craig Foster and Craig Moore.
Nicky Rizzo
Tricky midfielder Nicky Rizzo was the first to arrive at the Eagles under Venables as a teenager. He joined the club from English giants Liverpool, where he spent two years and was an unused substitute 6 times for the senior side. He was enticed to join Palace by Venables in 1998. After retiring, Rizzo subsequently described the decision to leave Liverpool as “ludicrous”, and stated that he should’ve stayed, as he was playing and training with the likes of Steve McManaman and Michael Owen at one of the of the world’s strongest clubs.
Rizzo, however, enjoyed a solid stint at Selhurst Park, which lasted roughly two years, with his most endearing moment being a cracking long range goal he scored in a 5-1 home win against Norwich in 1998. Throughout his time with Palace, Rizzo notched up 58 appearances and delivered 6 goals, and notably whilst at the club, he received his one and only cap for the Socceroos.
The year 2000 was when Rizzo left the club to join Serie B side Ternana, where he linked up with friend and then Socceroo Vince Grella. Rizzo’s time in Italy was marred by injury, which led to him eventually returning to England in 2003 with Mk Dons. He also featured for Grimsby Town and Chesterfield on loan deals.
Rizzo then made the decision to return home in 2007, to play with A-League outfit Perth Glory, where he stayed for 2 years before joining fellow A-League side Central Coast Mariners. Rizzo finished his playing career at NSW Premier League side APIA Leichhardt Tigers, and now currently runs his own football academy for talented youngsters, aptly named the Nick Rizzo International Football School.
Craig Foster
The second Aussie acquisition under Venables was midfielder Craig Foster, who signed from Portsmouth on a free. He was considered by the majority of Crystal Palace fans as a pretty average signing that flattered to deceive. Despite receiving his fair share of criticism, Foster still managed to captain the club and don the Palace colours over 50 times, scoring three goals in the process.
Controversy surrounded his departure from Palace in 2000, with Foster not being granted a work permit to continue playing in England, as he hadn’t featured in enough games for Australia. This led to him returning back to Australia to play with the Northern Spirit in the NSL. “Fozza” stayed at the club until his retirement in 2003. Along the way he also picked up 29 Socceroos caps and nine goals.
Post retirement Craig Foster is a regular soccer analyst on Australian free to air station SBS, where he has been involved in plenty of heated arguments and discussions. Most famously, he was once engaged in an on-air war of words with then Australian youth coach Ange Postecoglou, which lasted over ten minutes. Foster is never afraid of a verbal stoush, having also been involved in a twitter battle with ex Socceroo and former EPL winner with Blackburn, Robbie Slater.
Craig Moore
Craig Moore was the final signing from the land down under by Venables in 1998, joining on loan from Scottish giants Rangers. Definitely the most impressive of the 3 Aussies, Moore made a name for himself at Palace as a tough defender who was very comfortable on the ball. Unfortunately, after only playing 24 matches and netting 3 goals for Palace, Moore was forced to return to Rangers, with Palace failing to fork out the necessary transfer payments to keep him.
During his time at the Ibrox, he won 12 trophies including 5 Scottish Premierships and amassed over 100 appearances for the club. He then briefly moved to Germany in 2005 and played 13 times for Borussia Mönchengladbach, before heading to EPL giants Newcastle United, signing a 2 year deal. Whilst at Newcastle, he featured 31 times in a decent spell at the club, before heading back to Oz in 2007 to be the marquee signing for A-League side Queensland Roar (now Brisbane Roar). Moore was named captain of the club and was sent off on his debut, but overall was a success, winning player of the year twice.
Strangely enough, he then left the Roar after a falling out with coach Ange Postecoglou, which saw him move to Greek side Kavala in 2010. Moore’s spell at the club only lasted a couple of months, with reports suggesting he was booted from the club after an off-field incident. Moore refuted these claims, saying he was heading home to freshen up his body for the upcoming World Cup in South Africa.
Internationally, Moore played 52 times and was involved in 2 World Cups (2006 and 2010), and scored in the 2006 edition against Croatia from the penalty spot. The end of the 2010 World Cup also marked the retirement of Moore, bringing an end to a long and successful career.
Shock waves were sent through the football world in 2008 when Moore was diagnosed with Testicular cancer, whilst still playing for the Roar. Thankfully, Moore made a full recovery and continued his career. Post retirement Moore now works as an elite player mentor with the Football Federation of Australia, but will no doubt be remembered as one of Australia’s greatest ever players.
In Part 3, we will be featuring none other than former captain Tony Popovic, as well as a couple of other forgotten Aussies.
