Maclaren thanks Edwards for A-League chance

Jamie Maclaren marked his exit from Perth Glory by singling out the club's former coach Alistair Edwards for praise.

Jamie Maclaren

Jamie Maclaren scored nine times for Perth Glory last season after a strong finish to the campaign (AAP) Source: AAP

Edwards was sacked by the club midway through 2013-2014 and replaced by Kenny Lowe.

Perth released Maclaren from the final year of his contract on Monday and the player told The World Game he expects to know who he will be playing for next season before the end of next week.
Glory had repeatedly denied the 21-year-old striker's request for a release, despite releasing other players who were contracted into next season. The matter had entered the early stages of the independent arbitration process before the club finally relented.

Asked if he wished to say anything on his way out of the club, Maclaren replied: "I want to thank the boys in the dressing-room. They're a great bunch of guys and we stuck together through the tough times and were successful on the field.

"I also want to thank the Perth fans, who stood by us all year and have always been very generous in their support of me.

"And, finally, I'd like to thank Alistair Edwards for bringing me to Perth Glory from Blackburn Rovers and showing faith in me.

"He cared for me a lot in the time he was coach. I really appreciated how good he was to me as a person and how good he was for my football."

Maclaren and his manager, Paddy Dominguez, have wasted no time in entering serious negotiations with clubs interested in securing the Australian under-23 international's signature for next season.

"I spent all day on the phone on Tuesday," Maclaren said. "I was talking to family members and best mates after the decision by the club to release me became known, and I also spoke to managers (coaches) from several A-League clubs.

"I'm expecting to speak to the managers of a couple more A-League clubs today.

"I'm listening to offers from both overseas and A-League clubs and looking to make a decision in the coming week. There's no time for waiting - teams are getting into pre-season now.

"Once you get offers on paper, then you know if a club is really serious about you.

"I'm keen to go somewhere as soon as possible and get into the thick of it. I've been doing training by myself and I'm getting sick of that. I want to get back into a team environment and running with the boys again - wherever I end up."

Maclaren said it felt like a huge weight had come off his shoulders, now that he was a free agent.

"It's been really bugging me for about two months now," he said. "I went away on holidays for a week in the middle of it all and tried to enjoy myself, but all I could do was think about this drama and not being able to sort out my future.

"There have definitely been some lost opportunities overseas since all of this started. There have been clubs that haven't been able to wait. It's disappointing, but what do you do? That's football.

"Now it's about finding the club that will be the best for my development."

But while Maclaren is keen to make his mark overseas eventually, there are circumstances that appear likely to convince him to remain in the A-League for at least another season.

After sitting on the bench behind Irish striker Andy Keogh for most of last season at Glory he is well aware of the importance of getting regular starting-team football at his age.

Plus, there are important qualifying matches for next year's Olympic Games ahead for the under-23s and if he were to join an overseas club he would be likely to find it difficult to get a release to play in such matches because it is not a FIFA tournament.

"Wherever I go, I have to do everything I can to earn a regular starting spot," Maclaren said.

"It's definitely a positive when you have some coaches speaking to you and giving a positive opinion about your football. It has given me confidence that some coaches are saying they want me. I can see they value me, but I fully realise you still have to go and earn your spot."

Maclaren was born and raised in Melbourne and there has been speculation that because he is from there he will most likely end up back there with one of the city's two A-League clubs - City or Victory.

Certainly, City is likely to be very keen to gain his services. The club recently signed attacker Corey Gameiro from Sydney FC, but since then former Socceroo striker Josh Kennedy has announced his retirement after playing the second half of last season with City.

Maclaren is an out-and-out striker, but Gameiro can play at the front of the attack or a bit wider and deeper. Gameiro is also in Australia's under-23 squad and a Maclaren-Gameiro attacking partnership could be a winner for a club on the rise like City.

But Maclaren said he had always been prepared to travel for his football and that he would go wherever he thought the best opportunity to improve as a player was being presented.

"I've been away from Melbourne for six years now," he said. "I don't have to go to Melbourne to play - I could go anywhere. Football's a game where you have to travel and overseas opportunities are always tempting, so it's about identifying the best opportunity.

"If that's in Melbourne, then it's in Melbourne. If it's somewhere else in the A-League, or overseas, then that's where I'll go."


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6 min read
Published 1 July 2015 3:02pm
Updated 1 July 2015 6:42pm
By Greg Prichard
Source: SBS

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