OAKLAND, CA — Socceroos World Cup goal scorer Connor Metcalfe says Brisbane Roar will be “probably kicking themselves” that they cashed in on Lucas Herrington’s sell-on clause.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported recently that the A-League club had accepted a proposal from Colorado Rapids for $530, 000 to sell their sell-on clause, which was reportedly 20 per cent of any future sale.
Since then, the 18-year-old has made his World Cup debut and been linked with a move to Barcelona.
When asked about that on Sunday in Oakland, Metcalfe looked surprised and added: “yeah, they’ll probably be kicking themselves!”
Not that the speculation has, or will, impact the unflappable defender.
“It’s pretty wild, to be honest,” Metcalfe said, speaking of his teammate. “Nothing really fazes him. He never looks nervous.
FEATURE: Why nothing fazes Lucas Herrington, the 18-year-old Aussie World Cup defender linked with Barcelona
RUMOURS: Herrington to Barcelona?
“I’m not nervous when he has the ball or something like that; sometimes if a young player is playing, I think sometimes a lot of the other boys can be nervous, they’re going to make a rash decision, but he never (does). He’s calm on the ball. I think the boys he’s playing next to really help him on the field and also help him develop his game.
“I think he’s dealing with all the hype and all the press really well. He’s very level headed, He’s a very nice guy and I think that will help him a lot in his next stage.”
Herrington really is taking everything in his stride.
“I’ve loved it so far,” he said.
“Obviously the icing on the cake the other day with the debut.
“That was the best moment of my life, so I thoroughly enjoyed that, loved every minute and, looking forward to what’s next.”
No matter which way he was asked about his composure, or coolness, or confidence, Herrington found a way to try and politely explain how he is handling the hype.
“Obviously I knew how important that game was, not just for us but for the whole country,” he explained.
“So obviously I knew the pressure that was in that game and I knew there was pressure on all of us. So I was looking forward to it; obviously I’d dreamed of that moment since I was a kid and I just really wanted to embrace it, enjoy it.
“I know that it’s not going to come around every day. So I really tried to stay in the moment and just stay calm and hopefully I did that.”
Does he EVER feel anxious or stressed?
“I just love playing football, so to me it was just a game of football with a lot of meaning, a lot of passion and I just tried to show that and put my best foot forward.
“I love playing for the country and that was probably my favourite game I’ve ever played, so I just really enjoyed it.”
It is impossible to ignore the transfer talk.
“I’m at the World Cup, so I’m just trying to stay present,” Herrington answered when asked about the Barcelona links.
“Really enjoy this moment.
“It’s my first one, hopefully first of many; it doesn’t come around very often, it comes around every four years. So I’m really just trying to enjoy every moment here.
“Work hard and we’ll see what comes after it but I’m just fully focused on the World Cup and the team at the moment.”
He added: “Both me and my agent are fully focused on the World Cup and I’m just here to do a job for the country and that’s all I’m focused on at the moment.”
Since leaving the A-League, which he only played in for 12 months, Herrington has built quite the CV.
He’s played against Lionel Messi, Thomas Muller, Son Heung-Min and before playing in front of capacity crowds at the World Cup had faced crowds of 76,000 and 80,000 for Colorado against Inter Miami as well as at the Rose Bowl against Mexico.
“It has happened quick,” he admitted. “I definitely wasn’t picturing this when I left Australia six months ago.
“Obviously in every kid’s mind you want it to happen this quickly and you want it to happen like this, but it is a hard thing to do and I’m just grateful to be given the opportunity to be here and just represent the country that I’ve loved living in, love being from and I’ve been supporting the Socceroos at World Cups for the past couple World Cups, so it’s really special to be here.”
On playing in the States, he explained: “It helps a lot. Just like anything if you practise something a lot, it’s going to become more natural and you’re going to be less nervous.
“So I think playing in front of seventy five thousand back in Denver and playing at the Rose Bowl in front of eighty thousand helps a lot… I’ve been there before so it’s just just another game to work hard, do my thing, and just enjoy it.”
The scale of Herrington’s rise has been summed up by the pre-season A-League video of Ruben Zadkvovich hailing him as the best defender in the country before he’d even kicked a ball.
“It took me a bit by surprise, I was sort of just standing there listening,” he quipped.
“It was really nice to hear as a young player, obviously before I made my debut, so that was just giving me the confidence just to keep working hard, waiting for my opportunity, and I’ll always be grateful to Ruben – he gave me my first shot in the A-League at a young age, so to be fair to him, I probably wouldn’t be here if he didn’t believe me back then.
“He’s always going to be the coach that handed me my professional debut and I’ll always be grateful for that.”
In that time, Herrington says he has come a long way in that short time, trusted by his coaches to grow while being unleashed on the park.
“It comes with age; probably my first ten or so games at the Roar when I was seventeen I was still making heaps of mistakes, still getting my positioning right and just obviously lacking that experience.”
The World Cup has turbocharged that development, especially “mentally”.
Life has moved quickly for Herrington.
This video on Football360’s socials unsurprisingly was a hit, with vision of a 14-year-old Herrington enjoying the scenes from Qatar at a live site in Brisbane.
“Yeah, it’s a really cool moment obviously,” he said smiling.
“I’ve been supporting the Socceroos at World Cups for as long as I can remember. So to be here is special.
“My mates back home are all so supportive. They’ve all loved watching me and watching the team do well in the World Cup. Just like another one of those moments that I pinch myself and just try and make everyone from where I’m back from just proud and give them someone to look at that they can do it as well.
“I just want see more and more players have those type of stories where they’re supporting the World Cup and then they’re there the next one. It’s just so special. That’s what the World Cup’s about. So, you know, it’s really special and I’ve loved it.”
After listening to the youngster speak with the composure that he plays with, there’s one answer that explains why and how he’s handling himself so immaculately with the watching world’s eyes on him.
When complimented for his demeanour, he replied, simply: “Thank you. My mum will be happy to hear that.
“They’re massive, they’ve shaped and grown me and raised me into the person they want me to be.
“So they’ve been massive. My parents have always taught me to be humble, respectful, and just give back when I can.
“I love seeing the fans showing up at the trainings, games and I try to take my time with them when I can. So it’s so special to me as a fan as well, the team to be in this position in this position.
“I try and give back and just give back when I can but I really enjoy those moments.”
He added: “It’s important to give back. We’re all so lucky to be in this position, so whenever we can I think it’s really important just to, give back and remember how lucky we are.”
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