Melbourne City defender Curtis Good has walked Garang Kuol’s path, moving from the Isuzu UTE A-League to Premier League giant Newcastle United. He caught up with KEEPUP pundit and columnist Robbie Cornthwaite to reflect on his experiences.
“I was shell shocked. In the car park, you see all the cars and then you see all these players you’ve been watching on TV. Really, really shell shocked.”
This is how Melbourne City defender Curtis Good remembers feeling after signing for Newcastle United, in July 2012, aged 19. He was just 25 games into his professional career when he penned a six-year deal with the Premier League giant.
When Good’s previous club announced last month that they’d secured the services of Australia’s brightest talent, Garang Kuol, on a five-year deal, it took the 29-year old back to the North East of England.
“I remember Alan Pardew was doing one-on-one drills with me to see if he liked me. It was very intense but very exciting,” Good reflected.
“At the very least, he’ll gain experience at a Premier League club, whether that happens soon or later. “
Sooner is how 18-year old Kuol likes to do things. He scored his first professional goal against APIA Leichhardt just seven minutes after coming on in the Australia Cup less than a year ago. His first Isuzu UTE A-League goal followed just four months later in the Mariners’ 5-0 win over Wellington.
“It’s good to be thrown into the deep end at that age. Getting that experience will help him move forward in his career,” Good told KEEPUP.
“He’ll be given every opportunity, but there are a lot fewer of them. The people you’re up against are also the best players from around the world and Europe. The competition is a lot more difficult, but the rewards are a lot greater.”
In season 2022-23, you can listen to Robbie weekly on his new KEEPUP podcast – The Players Pod, with Robbie Cornthwaite. He chats to Chris Ikonomidis and and Craig Goodwin for the debut episode. Listen below or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
On loan back to Central Coast until January, it’s then expected Kuol will land somewhere else in Europe temporarily. During his stay in England, Good spent time at Bradford City and at Dundee United in Scotland, something he sees now as invaluable.
“Any chance to go on loan, do it. Getting senior experience over there in Europe always pays dividends
“If you can go out on loan and perform well, it opens up doors for you to break into the first team or elsewhere in Europe.
“A lot of the boys I started out with in the reserves are now internationals and playing in the Premier League with other teams, so the opportunities are there.”
An opportunity to play in the Premier League is something Good never achieved during an injury-plagued six seasons in the UK. He suffered a hip injury in his Socceroos debut, a friendly against Ecuador in March 2014, which cruelly cost him a place in Ange Postoglou’s squad for the World Cup in Brazil. Eleven months after he originally sustained the injury he underwent surgery in the US but never reached his full potential at the club. He made four appearances in various cup competitions, but he would eventually return to Melbourne City in 2018.
“If you miss the boat with that many people in those squads, they’re like, “Thank you, on to the next.
“The biggest thing is to hit the ground running when you get there and make a good impression early. He has the talent, but they judge you as a person as well. Do you listen and learn?”
“(For me), no regrets; I just wish I hadn’t rushed back (from injury).”
Good has missed the opening two rounds of the Isuzu UTE A-Leagueseason after bursting a blood vessel in his shin after taking a knock at training. He returned to full training this week, hoping to reclaim his place at the heart of City’s defence. Since his return to Australia, he’s become a key figure in the club’s transformation, finally living up to its billing as one of the powerhouses of the A-League, on and off the park.
He’s played 86 games in that time in all competitions and returned to the national team fold last year, partnering Harry Souttar in defence in the Socceroos’ 5-1 win over Taiwan. But his name has barely been mentioned since missing the squad for Australia’s vital World Cup qualifier against Japan earlier this year.
“It’s wishful thinking. I would love to be involved, but it is what it is at the moment,” he said.
Just shy of thirty, the World Cup in Qatar could be his last chance to wear the green and gold at the biggest sporting event on the planet.
“I wouldn’t say it’s playing on my mind. Hopefully I get a look in.”
It has been a rapid rise for the Egyptian-born striker and despite never starting a professional game, he’s on the verge of being named in Graham Arnold’s Socceroos squad after an eye-catching cameo in Australia’s 2-0 win over New Zealand back in September.
“It’s good to be thrown into the deep end at that age. Getting that experience will help him move forward in his career,” Good told KEEPUP.
“He’ll be given every opportunity, but there are a lot fewer of them. The people you’re up against are also the best players from around the world and Europe. The competition is a lot more difficult, but the rewards are a lot greater.”
On loan back to Central Coast until January, it’s then expected Kuol will land somewhere else in Europe temporarily. During his stay in England, Good spent time at Bradford City and at Dundee United in Scotland, something he sees now as invaluable.
“Any chance to go on loan, do it. Getting senior experience over there in Europe always pays dividends
“If you can go out on loan and perform well, it opens up doors for you to break into the first team or elsewhere in Europe.
“A lot of the boys I started out with in the reserves are now internationals and playing in the Premier League with other teams, so the opportunities are there.”
An opportunity to play in the Premier League is something Good never achieved during an injury-plagued six seasons in the UK. He suffered a hip injury in his Socceroos debut, a friendly against Ecuador in March 2014, which cruelly cost him a place in Ange Postoglou’s squad for the World Cup in Brazil. Eleven months after he originally sustained the injury he underwent surgery in the US but never reached his full potential at the club. He made four appearances in various cup competitions, but he would eventually return to Melbourne City in 2018.
“If you miss the boat with that many people in those squads, they’re like, “Thank you, on to the next.
“The biggest thing is to hit the ground running when you get there and make a good impression early. He has the talent, but they judge you as a person as well. Do you listen and learn?”
“(For me), no regrets; I just wish I hadn’t rushed back (from injury).”
Good has missed the opening two rounds of the Isuzu UTE A-Leagueseason after bursting a blood vessel in his shin after taking a knock at training. He returned to full training this week, hoping to reclaim his place at the heart of City’s defence. Since his return to Australia, he’s become a key figure in the club’s transformation, finally living up to its billing as one of the powerhouses of the A-League, on and off the park.
He’s played 86 games in that time in all competitions and returned to the national team fold last year, partnering Harry Souttar in defence in the Socceroos’ 5-1 win over Taiwan. But his name has barely been mentioned since missing the squad for Australia’s vital World Cup qualifier against Japan earlier this year.
“It’s wishful thinking. I would love to be involved, but it is what it is at the moment,” he said.
Just shy of thirty, the World Cup in Qatar could be his last chance to wear the green and gold at the biggest sporting event on the planet.
“I wouldn’t say it’s playing on my mind. Hopefully I get a look in.”
