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Today's Birthday March 9: Australian soccer player Lucas Neill (1978-).
Lucas Neill has been captain of the Soccerroos since 2006 but was recently dropped from the squad, casting doubt over his World Cup future.
Born on March 9, 1978 in Sydney and brought up on the city's northern beaches, Neill began his career in the National Soccer League, playing for the Australian Institute of Sport team.
Neill headed overseas after being signed by English club Millwall Lions, playing his debut in 1996.
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He made more than 170 appearances over the following five years and impressed fans with his versatility, playing in attacking and defensive positions.
Neill made his debut for the Australian soccer team, the Socceroos, against Saudi Arabia in 1996 and played in the Australian under-23 team at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
Neill was signed by the English Premier League club Blackburn Rovers in 2000. In more than 150 Premier League appearances for the club, he cemented his reputation as one of the competition's best fullbacks.
He was one of the Socceroo's best players in the 2006 World Cup.
Although the team lost to Italy in the second round, Australia's first World Cup effort in 32 years was considered a success.
Neill debuted as Australia's captain on October 7, 2006 in a friendly against Paraguay, starting a long reign as the head of the team.
Despite being an Australian favourite, Neill has had a turbulent career in club football.
He has had stints at West Ham United (2007-2009), Everton (2009), Turkish giant Galatasaray (2010-2011) and Al Jazira (2011-2012).
In February 2013 he signed with Sydney FC as a guest player.
After months without a club, Neall signed with English club Watford in February 2014.
But the signing was not enough to keep Neall in the Socceroos squad, with coach Ange Postecoglou dumping him ahead of a friendly against Ecuador.
