As 16,000 Kiwis were stunned at Go Media Stadium recently, there was one man who wasn’t shocked: the architect, Mark Milligan – the A League’s youngest manager leading the competition’s youngest team.
Since taking over the in the off-season, Milligan has shown faith and patience in his youthful Newcastle Jets team, home to some players who only started primary school in 2014.
Milligan once again stewarded his ‘Box Office Jets’, who were forced to show a different side in Auckland: grit, composure, resolve.
When 18 year-old Max Cooper was sent from the field in the 21st minute, it seemed certain that the host’s would make easy work of the 2-1 deficit.
What followed was a baptism of fire.
The pimply-faced Jets cleared the ball a whopping 63 times throughout the next 70 minutes and, after defending like dogs, found a third goal against the run of play.
Making the feat all the more remarkable is that seven of Newcastle’s starting XI were 23 years of age or under, with their two foreign players – Mizunuma and Shaughnessy – watching on from the bench as Milligan commanded from the touchline.
At 40 years of age, Milligan is the A-League’s youngest manager and, incredibly, has already carved his name into Newcastle history.
In October, he led the Jets to victory in the Australia Cup final – just months after landing his first major manager role. As such, he will taste Asian Champions League football next season.
“This journey is a long way from ending,” he told reporters.
Time will tell how far the Jets will go under Milligan, who represents a new generation of managers coming through the pipeline. Many of them, like himself, are millenials.
Friend and fellow Socceroo, Mile Jedinak, 41, was Ange Postecoglou’s assistant when Tottenham won the Europa League.
Luke Wilkshire, 44, recently led the Wollongong Wolves through the inaugural Australian Championship, having also accrued coaching experience with the Socceroos under Graham Arnold.
For all his setbacks, Harry Kewell, 47, continues to toil away at managing and is currently at the helm of Hanoi FC.
Not only has he won A League silverware, but Patrick Kisnorbo, 44, made history when he became the first Aussie to lead a top division French club.
The A League community was shocked when Arthur Diles, 43, was forced to step up as Melbourne Victory’s interim manager, only to take them to a Championship showdown in which they narrowly fell short.
Arthur Papas, 45, leads J-League side Cerezo Osaka and has done a respectable job of securing mid-table in perhaps Asia’s toughest league.
Mark Milligan. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)
Mile Sterjovski, 46, led Macarthur to their second Australia Cup trophy last season and is currently fighting on two fronts: an A League campaign on home soil, while inching towards Asian Champions League 2 abroad.
Quirky character Adam Griffiths, 46, has completely turned Perth Glory around this season, injecting life and competitiveness into a squad that was devoid of belief before he took charge.
A League fans love keeping a watchful eye on young players rising through the ranks – as they should.
But as the league gets younger, so too is the technical area which is filled with ambitious professionals at the start of what will hopefully be a long managerial career.
Milligan is just one of them.
Harryhttps://https://ift.tt/sqMCuAj the players, young Aussie managers are finally on the rise
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