Thwaite tells The World Game:
:: About his trip to Transylvania to see Count Dracula's Castle;
:: What it was like to be a Socceroos player on that special night in 2005;
:: How he stuck up for himself to Guus Hiddink - and the important lesson Hiddink taught him;
:: Why Kenny Lowe is fun to play for;
:: How Andy Keogh soon learned his lesson under the WA sun;
:: That one person's musical tastes CAN include Eminem and Michael Jackson.
TWG: You played club football in Romania a decade ago. Did you visit Count Dracula's Castle while you were there?
MT: Yeah, I did actually. I took my then girlfriend and now wife - Chantelle - to Transylvania. It was a bit creepy, but very exciting at the same time. It was a great experience. The castle is way up on top of a hill and it's a long walk from the side of the road below. It was during the day and it's a bit of a tourist precinct, so it wasn't scary, but I reckon if you went there at night you'd be freaked out.
TWG: You were in the Socceroo squad for the famous game against Uruguay in Sydney in 2006. You didn't play on the night, but you were still part of the group. What was that night like for you?
MT: It was pretty surreal, actually, running on to the pitch after Johnny (Aloisi) scored the winning penalty. I guess it was just the culmination of everything I'd done to get there, just thinking about all of the junior clubs I'd played for and everyone who was watching. My family, my dad, who was always my coach as a youngster, and my wife were there as well. It was great, a real Australian experience. Unfortunately, I didn't get to play, Guus Hiddink chose more experienced players, but it was a hell of an experience to be involved in that team.
TWG: Hiddink is a very interesting character. Can you give us an insider's view of him, from a player's perspective?
MT: He gave me my debut against Jamaica, which was quite surprising at the time because of all of the experienced defenders in the squad. When I was younger I was more aggressive and a bit short-tempered, which is totally opposite to what I'm like now after going through a few experiences, but I remember one time Tony Popovic made an error at training and I was next to him and he (Hiddink) kind of blamed me and I snapped at him straight away and said 'look, this is what happened'. 'Popa' and everyone else around us knew what had happened, but the boys were a bit shocked that a young guy was speaking against the coach. I thought I probably wouldn't play after that, but he gave me my debut. There was one important lesson I learned from Guus that sticks in my mind for other young defenders. A lot of young defenders go to ground in the 18-yard box, but he taught me to always stay on my feet. You might slide in and get that one-time block, but then you might have a player like Archie Thompson, for instance, who goes straight past you. He told me to always stay on my feet in the 18-yard box and that's been forever present in my mind.
TWG: Perth coach Kenny Lowe uses a lot of British terminology and slang at his media conferences. Last week he described Danny Vukovic's performance in a game as "absolutely top gravy". Do you guys always understand what he's on about?
MT: (Laughs). Yeah, I think 'Muscy' (Melbourne Victory coach Kevin Muscat) has had a bit of go at Kenny this week about him saying Carl Valeri had the speedos on, getting Mitch Nichols sent off. I really enjoy his approach. He's unorthodox and I think that works well for the team and it's good to see those characters in the game. I don't like cliche coaches, because anyone can just do it by the book, regulation. It's good to see someone do it a bit differently, because that's very similar to myself.
TWG: Is there anyone in the Perth side who talks more during games than Scott Jamieson?
MT: Ah, probably Dino Djulbic, I think. He's never quiet and that's probably why he and I work so well together, because he's a very good communicator and that's very important in any central defensive partnership.
TWG: You've got a Kramar at Glory now. Any chance of a Costanza or maybe even a Seinfeld joining up?
MT: Yeah, it is an unusual name. We actually thought he was Spanish when he arrived, but we've got a lot of Serbian and Croatian and Bosnian teammates and they were all talking in their lingo while Denis was around, and he said in their native language 'look, I understand exactly what you're saying', because they were talking about him. It was quite a funny start to his career here, because, as I said, we all thought he was Spanish but he was actually Slovenian.
TWG: How much factor 50 sun-cream do you reckon Andy Keogh goes through in a week over there - particularly since he likes the beach as well?
MT: I'm up there with him. Sometimes I think my main sponsor should be Zinc, instead of Nike. He's well and truly aware of the damage the sun can do, because I think when he first came here he didn't realise the UV rays could be as strong as they are and he rocked up for one training session as red as a lobster. Ever since then he's piled on the sun-cream.
TWG: Football has taken you to great locations and provided you with great opportunities, but if you weren't a good footballer what do you think you'd be doing for a living?
MT: Well I've actually finished a degree in sports science. Early on while I was playing I did three years of PE teaching, so I was probably going to continue doing that before I became a professional at Marconi. While I was playing I transferred to sports science and I completed that degree, so probably post-football I'd like to combine the two - sports science and football - and do some high-performance coaching.
TWG: If the Glory was to go all the way and win the championship, how do you think you might celebrate?
MT: Well, it would definitely involve celebrating with a drink. I've given up alcohol for the whole season, so I'm looking forward to having one of the local beers - Little Creatures. It's a pale ale. I haven't drank all season, so if I did win I'd have to celebrate with one of those.
TWG: If you're in control, what's playing on the music tape when the players are working out in the gym?
MT: It's probably a mix between Michael Jackson and Eminem. They're on opposite scales of the universe, but they're my two favourite artists.
TWG: Your middle name is Errol. Is that a throwback to Errol Flynn, the Australian actor, or were your parents big Australian Crawl fans? The song Errol was a hit for that band in the early 1980s - not long before you were born.
MT: (Laughs). My dad's middle name is Errol and my pop's middle name is Errol as well. Perhaps fortunately, my wife and I have had two girls, but even then my dad was suggesting 'Errolina' as a middle name for one of them. I reckon if I had a son I probably wouldn't use it, even though there is a lot of history to it in the family, because it's quite embarrassing!
