How a rare chat with Ange turned Broxham into a legend
By Roy Ward
Leigh Broxham would have said yes to whatever then Melbourne Victory manager Ange Postecoglou asked of him, as long as it meant he would get back on the field.
Throughout the course of his 18-year career at the A-League Men’s club, which will end after the season, Broxham has faced almost a yearly battle to prove himself to his coaches, and he has played under 10 of them since his debut in 2006 under Ernie Merrick.
Melbourne Victory great Leigh Broxham prepares for what could be his last Victory game at AAMI Park on Sunday.Credit: Eddie Jim
But the Postecoglou era at Victory in 2012-13, cut short by the Socceroos poaching him, was a time when the midfield was stacked with talent, leaving Broxham struggling to catch the eye of the now Tottenham Hotspur boss.
Postecoglou didn’t have too many chats with his Victory charges as he worked through rebuilding the roster to fit his style of play.
Then Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou with Leigh Broxham. Credit: Getty Images
But when injuries decimated his defensive ranks, Postecoglou asked Broxham if he had ever played centre-back – and if that question didn’t change the course of his career, it certainly extended it.
Broxham, known universally as “Broxy�, could play his last game at AAMI Park on Sunday when the Victory host second-placed Wellington Phoenix in the first leg of a two-leg semi-final series, a battle for a place in the grand final.
If the Victory and fourth-placed Sydney FC, who are taking on premiers Central Coast Mariners in the other semi, advance to the decider, then Broxham would get a fairytale farewell in a home grand final. But that looks unlikely after the Mariners won the first leg 2-1 in Sydney on Friday night, putting them in a strong position.
In the tribute video last month celebrating Broxham’s career and achievements, Postecoglou enjoyed the chance to relive the conversation.
“We only had a brief time together, but I know that I’m probably the most influential manager you’ve had in terms of getting to where you are because when I tapped you on the shoulder at Gosch’s Paddock and said, ‘Have you ever played centre-back?’ I don’t think you believed what I was saying,� Postecoglou recalled. “But I think it added a few years to your career.�
Postecoglou’s stint with the Victory ended barely 18 months into the role when he was poached to take over from Holger Osieck as Socceroos boss, a move that set up his ascension to Japan, Glasgow Celtic and now the English Premier League.
Looking back, Broxham didn’t realise the significance of the moment. Now 36, he is the A-League Men’s record-holder with 386 games played, as well as Victory’s (with 460 games in all competitions).
He has won four championships and three premierships with Victory, and in 2008 he became Socceroo No.514 in a match against Singapore.
“At the time I was really limited playing minutes, so ask me to play anywhere and I would have done it. Can you do it? I would have said yes,� Broxham told this masthead as he sat on the steps between the club’s first home at Olympic Park and their current home AAMI Park.
“We had some great midfielders there at the time, so it was really hard to break in, so to have a different opportunity to play wherever it was and gain his trust … I would have taken it and then if an opportunity opened up in midfield, then I would have tried to get a spot.
“We didn’t speak a lot that year, it was a rare conversation, and it was just something that I never gave any thought about whether it would give me another 100 games in my career or not.�
Broxham was small for a central defensive role at 170 centimetres but had better ball skills than most defenders which fit Postecoglou’s plan. Broxham also had drive, having worked his way from being the club’s assistant kit man in 2005 to an established player.
He stood tall in games against Italian great Alessandro Del Piero and former English striker Emile Heskey, and moved between defensive and midfield roles for the rest of his career.
“It probably came at the right time,� Broxham said of his defensive move.
Broxham (right) with Victory captain Carl Valeri after winning the 2018 grand final.Credit: Getty Images
“If you asked me to do that when I was 18 or 19, I probably wasn’t ready and didn’t understand the game properly but, at that point, I understood the game more and could play a few different roles better.�
Since announcing his retirement late last month, Broxham has experienced a rollercoaster of emotions – from an overwhelming AAMI Park game to end the regular season before a late appearance in last Sunday’s elimination final against Melbourne City, where he was introduced in the final minutes of extra time to take a penalty.
“The send-off I had in the last league game, it was so good, it was all too much in the end,� Broxham said. “Maybe everyone thought I would play forever? Now all the appreciation I’m getting, I didn’t imagine this is how it would be.�
After keeper Paul Izzo made a string of saves in the shootout, Broxham’s penalty could have been the winner, but it was saved before Izzo saved the next penalty to lock in the win.
“The years have taught me that that’s football – it’s never perfect for anybody, and it’s rare you get a fairytale end like that. It would have been lovely,� Broxham said.
“Did I lose some sleep over it for a few nights? Of course I did. You lose sleep when you care about your performance. That was my job and I haven’t been able to help the team, on the pitch, as much this season, but Paul came up big and, bottom line, we won.
“If anything, what I lose sleep about most is that it would have been a beautiful moment for everyone who’s shown me so much appreciation and everyone in the stadium.�
Victory captain Roderick Miranda said Broxham was the epitome of Melbourne.
“He is the perfect translation of what being loyal to a club, to a city, means,� Miranda said.
“It is really difficult to find a player like this. He could have chances to move overseas, maybe receive more money, but he stayed loyal, kept fighting and I learned that some years he wasn’t a starting 11 player, but he would finish the season playing.�
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