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sporttoday
I want to coach the senior side -
Ray 'Zazu' Farrugia
National
Under 21 coach, Ray 'Zazu' Farrugia, practically always names his
formation well before the match. He believes that this is good for
the team and the players themselves. Meanwhile, Mr Farrugia told
RAY ABDILLA that he believes that Malta can do well in football
but first they have to start believing in themselves.
"I am certain that I am good enough to coach the Malta senior
side. I was brought up as a player in a professional environment
in Australia and learned the trade under some big names in the sport.
I think that the first thing one has to do is to instill confidence
in our team, in place of the usual excuses of ‘we're too small'
or ‘we can't make it.'
Ray "Zazu" Farrugia believes in commitment and the respect
from the players towards him.
Farrugia normally announces his line-up days before a match, but
unfortunately he was troublesome recently when, for his match against
Sweden, he could not name the team beforehand. Some players who
were not 100 per cent fit, including Mark Anthony Bonnici, Carlo
Mamo, Anatole Debono, Aaron Xuereb, Matthew Galea and Michael Galea.
The affable coach normally tells the players beforehand who would
play or not. "Yes, I like to tell them before to prepare themselves
better for the match, being less nervous. I also like players who
are born bad losers. I do not like players who have already lost
the game before a ball was even kicked, " Mr Farrugia said.
He also said that he did not like the comments made by Antoine Zahra
after Denmark's 5-0 routing of Malta. Zahra said the Under 21 Malta
coach should not say that we can never play against big sides. He
must know that if we prepare ourselves better, we can obtain good
results.
Other small countries such as the Faroe Islands, are getting good
results, so why can't we? Yes, we know that there are many nations
which, in football terms, are more experienced than us both technically
and individually. They play in better leagues and prepare themselves
professionally. In terms of the latter, we can do likewise while
our local league could be improved. But first we must sit down and
say which problems we can eliminate. The Malta Football Association
and the clubs are not opponents, to the contrary, they should work
together for the good of the game.
All the players love the coach and there is nothing but admiration
for the man's style. He is the arch-motivator who can hold a dressing
room spellbound with his flowing rhetoric while plundering the kind
of extra effort that teams never believed possible.
His faith in the players he trusts is unbelievable. He very much
believes in players such as Massimo Grima and Michael Mifsud, as
he sees them as the players of the future. He also likes the former
a lot because he hates losing matches. Nothing seems to faze Farrugia.
The results he obtained are there for the taking.
More than that, he built himself in the Under 21's a seat of power,
just as he had done in Australia. The Under 21's may seem a small
fish compared to the senior side, but like co-national Pippo, he
can go a step forward and do a good job.
Mr Farrugia will not be satisfied until he has taken the senior
side to another level, but will he get his chance?
Well, that is something the Malta Football Association alone has
to decide but things are moving into the right direction. The former
Floriana striker has the unique ability to read players' psyches.
He is also like a father to them. He even goes running after them
in Paceville to see if they are drinking.
Asked if he would stay in Malta if the job were not offered to him,
he said that if that happens he does not know what he would do.
He might go abroad again. In Australia he was always very popular,
he was one of the best but like others even he made some mistakes.
"Unfortunately in Malta the perception is that, if you are
Maltese, then you're no good. When I was in down under, the Prime
Minister honoured me for the good I did for the game. "Zazu"
believes that there quite a few good footballers around. Players
like Michael Mifsud, Jeffrey Chetcuti, and Malcolm Licari are a
joy to watch and they could easily make the grade somewhere else.
Regarding his first love, Floriana, he said that although that they
are the first side he joined and that he loved playing for them
in the glory days, today he does not support them. Today he feels
himself to be a supporter of Maltese football as a whole.
But he did say he is grateful to Naxxar Lions, namely Michael Zammit
Tabona who gave him his chance to play and coach when he returned
from Australia.
Like many other kids, Ray started playing football while attending
primary school. He started playing with Floriana in the Under 10's
and improved considerably when he grew up to make the Floriana Under
18 team managed then by the famous Lolly Debattista.
Ray Farrugia's debut for the Floriana senior side came, ironically,
under Lolly Debattista. The Under 21 Malta coach was just 16 years
old and in 1973 he played against Hibernians.
Although not a regular, "Zazu" formed a part of the excellent
Floriana side, which still holds the record of 42 unbeaten matches
- a side which included the likes of Louis Arpa and Willie Vassallo.
In 1976 he won the FA Trophy and a year later the Championship with
Floriana. In all, "Zazu" won 11 trophies with Floriana.
He also very vividly remembers the big game Floriana played in the
1977 European Cup, when they drew 1-1 with Greek crack side Panathinaikos.
But he then left for Australia. This was in August of 1978 and he
did not go there specifically to play football, but to earn a better
living. "Initially I went there hopefully to stay for a couple
of years but eventually I stayed there for 12."
He joined Melita Eagles, where he played both in the State and National
league. There he remained for five years as a professional and then
after as a semi-professional.
"The 12 years I stayed in Australia were undoubtedly the best
time of my life. Everyone respected me, even the former Prime Minister
himself, Bob Hawke, who rewarded me with the title: "Malta's
Best Achiever", an honour won by boxer Jeff Fenech, who was
four times world champion, John Aquilina, Member of Parliament,
Darren Gauci, world renowned jockey, and Barry Yorke, a Professor
of Maltese History at the University of Canberra," the Malta
Under 21 coach said.
He said that the Australians moved him and it was magnificent for
him to see the Melita Eagles being transformed into a great side.
He also said that he learned the game the hard way in Australia.
They are very serious at what they do and no wonder they have some
smashing players now.
"I learned a lot under Raul Blanco, who was with Melita Eagles
at the time. Blanco had learned the trade under Cesar Luis Menotti,
who won the World Cup with Argentina. Players from every part of
the world visit Australia and so one learns different techniques,
that is why I believe that with the right conditions I could do
the job as a national team coach, "Zazu" said.
The former Floriana striker, who also played for Malta several times,
returned to Malta at the age of 33. He thought that he would join
his first love, Floriana, but this did not materialise and after
receiving a phone call from Naxxar President Michael Zammit Tabona,
he started working in one of his hotels as a manager and eventually
joined the Lions as a player-coach.
He stayed there for eight years until MFA official Norman Darmanin
Demajo asked him if he was interested in coaching the Under 21 side.
He agreed and the rest was finalised.
Ray Farrugia believes that this Under 21 side, who have not only
done well but have performed beyond expectations, could improve
and there are players that can already move on to the senior squad.
He praised everyone and cited how much his players respect him,
even though he trains them so hard that they end up going to sleep
after a couple of sessions.
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