Tony Vidmar
Encyclopedia
Anthony "Tony" Vidmar is an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n former professional football (soccer) player of Slovenian origin. He was a member of the Australian national team, competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...

 in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...

 for his native country, and is currently Australia's third highest capped player. His brother Aurelio Vidmar
Aurelio Vidmar
Aurelio Vidmar is an Australian football player and former captain of the Australian national team. He is currently not tied to any A-league club...

 was also an Australian football player.

Club career

His biggest impact in club football came whilst at Scottish side Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...

, for whom he played over 150 games and won the Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...

 twice, the Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...

 twice and the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

 3 times. His goal against Italian side Parma in a UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

 qualifying round tie in 1999 cemented him a place in Rangers folklore. He left the club in 2002 and joined Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...

 on a free transfer.

He then joined Welsh side Cardiff City
Cardiff City F.C.
Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...

 on a free transfer in 2003, with manager Lennie Lawrence
Lennie Lawrence
Robin Michael Lawrence, commonly known as Lennie Lawrence, is a British football manager who is assistant manager of Crystal Palace. He has managed a number of English clubs and one Welsh club in a coaching career spanning over 30 years...

 being quick to sign him after missing out the previous year following his release from Rangers. Vidmar quickly became a fans favourite at Cardiff and made 73 appearances for the club before leaving in 2005 to re-sign for Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 side NAC Breda
NAC Breda
NAC Breda , simply often known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Dutch Eredivisie and are known by the fierce and fanatic support of...

, the club he had left to join Rangers.

International career

Highly criticised as one of the main weak points in the Australian defence under Frank Farina
Frank Farina
Frank Farina OAM is a retired Australian football player. He most currently coaches the Papua New Guinea national football team....

's tenure, Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink is a Dutch football manager and former player. He was the most recently manager of the Turkish national football team. He is considered to be one of the best managers of his generation and was the best-paid coach in international football in 2009...

's appointment sparked a tremendous improvement in his performance, culminating in an impressive performance in the second leg of the World Cup qualifying tie against Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...

. Vidmar notably volunteered to take his team mate Mark Bresciano
Mark Bresciano
Mark "Marco" Bresciano is an Australian football player who is currently playing for UAE Pro-League side Al Nasr SC as a midfielder. He represented Australia at all youth levels, including appearances at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship and 2000 Olympic Games...

's kick in the penalty shootout (after the latter had been substituted through injury). This was successfully converted, giving Australia a 3-1 lead, and they subsequently won 4-2 on penalties.

On 9 May 2006 Vidmar announced he was withdrawing himself from World Cup team selection for medical reasons, specifically an irregular heart rhythm. Doctors discovered this irregularity was due to a blood clot in his left coronary artery. Following an operation in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, Vidmar was given the all-clear to resume his professional football career. Vidmar announced his international retirement after the friendly fixture against Paraguay
Paraguay national football team
The Paraguay national football team is controlled by the Paraguayan Football Association and represents Paraguay in men's international football competitions. The team has reached the second round of the World Cup on four occasions . The 2010 trip also featured their first appearance in the...

 on 7 October 2006, at which Australia drew 1-1.

Retirement

On 14 February 2008 Vidmar announced his retirement and an end to his decorated playing career after the 2008 A-League Grand Final
A-League Grand Final 2008
The 2008 A-League Grand Final took place at Sydney Football Stadium in Sydney, Australia on 24 February 2008. It was the first A-League Grand Final played at a neutral home ground, due to Bluetongue Stadium being deemed by the FFA to not have a sufficient capacity to hold the centrepiece of the...

. The former Socceroo defender said he wanted to end speculation about his future and thought the domestic decider was the best way to end his career.
"There has been a lot of speculation on what I was going to do, whether to continue on or to end my career. I made up my mind about three weeks ago and thought that it was probably the right time to finish and that was well before we clinched our Grand Final berth."
"My aim at the start of the season was to help qualify the team for the AFC Champions League and to top that now would be very difficult."


Vidmar said there had been a lot of influential players on his career, which began at Adelaide City in 1989:
"There are a lot of people that I'd like to thank – when I first started in the National Soccer League my first coach Zoran Matic was a huge influence for my career and every other coach that I've had since has influenced me in some way."
"I'd like to thank everyone at the Mariners – everyone in the office to the coaching staff and my team-mates, after what happened with my medical condition it was a gamble that they took to bring me here and I'd like to thank them for giving me the opportunity to finish my career in Australia, it would definitely be nice to finish it off with a Championship."


The Mariners went on to lose the Grand Final.

Club

Club Season National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...

Finals Oceania
OFC
OFC may refer to:* Corporate Office Properties Trust * Oceania Football Confederation* Offshore Financial Centre* Online Film Critics Society* Open fiber control* Open Financial Connectivity* Optical fiber cable* Optical Fiber Conference...

Other1 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
  Adelaide City
Adelaide City
Adelaide City is a football club in Adelaide, South Australia. They are also known as The Zebras. They played in the National Soccer League for 27 Seasons but withdrew just prior to the 2003/2004 season. They now play in the South Australian Super League. City won the inaugural Super League...

1989 10 1 10 1
1989-90 26 4 26 4
1990-91 23 3 3 0 26 3
1991-92 20 1 4 0 24 1
1992-93 4 1 4 1
Club subtotal 83107000009010
Club Season Belgian Pro League Belgian Cup
Belgian Cup
The Belgian Cup is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Belgian Football Association. The first cup was held in 1911-12. The most successful cup club is Club Brugge KV with 10 titles followed by RSC Anderlecht and R Standard de Liège...

Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  Germinal Beerschot 1992-93 9 1 9 1
Club Season National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...

Finals Oceania
OFC
OFC may refer to:* Corporate Office Properties Trust * Oceania Football Confederation* Offshore Financial Centre* Online Film Critics Society* Open fiber control* Open Financial Connectivity* Optical fiber cable* Optical Fiber Conference...

Other Total
  Adelaide City
Adelaide City
Adelaide City is a football club in Adelaide, South Australia. They are also known as The Zebras. They played in the National Soccer League for 27 Seasons but withdrew just prior to the 2003/2004 season. They now play in the South Australian Super League. City won the inaugural Super League...

1993-94 22 3 4 1 26 4
1994-95 22 1 2 0 24 1
Club subtotal 12714131000014015
Club Season Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....

Dutch Cup Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  NAC Breda
NAC Breda
NAC Breda , simply often known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Dutch Eredivisie and are known by the fierce and fanatic support of...

1995-96 30 2 30 2
1996-97 31 2 31 1
Club subtotal 614000000614
Club Season Scottish Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...

Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...

1997-98 12 0 2 0 14 0
1998-99 28 1 1 1 4 0 33 2
1999-2000 27 6 1 1 5 0 33 7
2000-01 15 1 1 0 3 0 19 1
2001-02 22 1 4 0 5 0 3 0 34 1
Club subtotal 1049721903013311
Club Season FA Premier League FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...

2002-03 12 0 1 0 2 0 15 0
Club Season Football League First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....

FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...

Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  Cardiff City
Cardiff City F.C.
Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...

2003-04
2003–04 Football League First Division
-League Table:-First leg:-----Second leg:*Aggregate score 4-4. Crystal Palace win 5-4 on penalties.----*West Ham United win 2-1 on aggregate.-Final:...

45 1 1 0 2 0 48 1
2004-05 28 1 1 0 4 0 33 1
Club subtotal 732200060812
Club Season Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....

Dutch Cup Europe
UEFA
The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer....

Other Total
  NAC Breda
NAC Breda
NAC Breda , simply often known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Dutch Eredivisie and are known by the fierce and fanatic support of...

2005-06 21 0 21 0
Club subtotal 824000000824
Club Season A-League
A-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...

Finals Asia
AFC Champions League
The AFC Champions League is the premier Asian club football competition hosted annually by Asian Football Confederation . The tournament is contested among the top thirty-two clubs from the top 10 Asian leagues, two of which must qualify through the playoffs...

Other Total
  Central Coast Mariners 2006-07 15 0 2 0 17 0
2007-08 15 0 3 0 3 0 21 0
Club subtotal 300300050480
Total 4373426319016049839


1 Includes English League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...

, Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...

, A-League Pre-Season Challenge Cup
A-League Pre-Season Challenge Cup
The A-League Pre-Season Challenge Cup competition was an annual tournament held for all Hyundai A-League clubs in July and August in the lead up to the start of the A-League season. The competition featured a group stage and a knockout stage...


International

|-
|1991||2||0
|-
|1992||5||0
|-
|1993||6||0
|-
|1994||6||0
|-
|1995||4||1
|-
|1996||1||0
|-
|1997||13||0
|-
|1998||0||0
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||3||0
|-
|2001||13||1
|-
|2002||0||0
|-
|2003||3||0
|-
|2004||10||1
|-
|2005||9||0
|-
|2006||1||0
|-
!Total||76||3
|}

International goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 18 June 1995 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 
1-0 2-1 Friendly
2 9 April 2001 BCU International Stadium
BCU International Stadium
BCU International Stadium is an Australian stadium located in the coastal city of Coffs Harbour, New South Wales....

, Coffs Harbour, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 
16-0 22-0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (OFC)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the Oceanian zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification....

3 12 October 2004 Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 
3-0 6-0 2004 OFC Nations Cup
2004 OFC Nations Cup
The 2004 OFC Nations Cup doubled as the qualification tournament to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, except the two-legged final ....


Honours

With Australia
Australia national football (soccer) team
The Australia national association football team represents Australia in international association football competitions. Its official nickname is the "Socceroos"...

:
  • FIFA Confederations Cup
    FIFA Confederations Cup
    The FIFA Confederations Cup is an association football tournament for national teams, currently held every four years by FIFA. It is contested by the winners of each of the six FIFA confederation championships , along with the FIFA World Cup winner and the host nation, to bring the number of teams...

    : 1997
    1997 FIFA Confederations Cup
    -Group B:---------------------Knockout stage:-Semi-finals:-----Third place play-off:-Final:-Awards:-Top scorers:7 goals Romário5 goals Vladimír Šmicer4 goals Ronaldo-References:...

     (Runners-up)
  • OFC Nations Cup
    OFC Nations Cup
    The OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the Oceania Football Confederation member nations. It was held every two years from 1996 to 2004; before 1996 there were two other tournaments held at irregular intervals, under the name Oceania Nations Cup...

    : 2004
    2004 OFC Nations Cup
    The 2004 OFC Nations Cup doubled as the qualification tournament to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, except the two-legged final ....


With Central Coast Mariners: A-League Premiership: 2007-08
A-League 2007-08
The A-League 2007-08 season was the third season of the Australian A-League football competition, won by the Newcastle Jets. Football Federation Australia hoped to build on the success of the previous two seasons and on the interest generated by and playing in the 2007 AFC Champions League, and...


With Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...

:
SPL Championship
Scottish football champions
The Scottish football champions are the winners of the highest league in Scottish football, namely the Scottish Football League from 1890 until 1998 and the Scottish Premier League thereafter....

: 1998-99, 1999–2000 Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

: 1998-99, 1999–2000, 2001–02 Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...

: 1998-99, 2001–02
With Adelaide City
Adelaide City
Adelaide City is a football club in Adelaide, South Australia. They are also known as The Zebras. They played in the National Soccer League for 27 Seasons but withdrew just prior to the 2003/2004 season. They now play in the South Australian Super League. City won the inaugural Super League...

:
NSL Championship: 1991-92, 1993–1994

External links

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