Vince Lia

It makes him a fitting addition to the Greater Shepparton Sports Hall of Fame Honour Roll, an honour the humbled Lia wasn’t expecting.

“It’s not something that I thought would happen,” Lia said.

“You don't start playing the game for accolades like this, but when I got the phone call, I was pretty humbled by it all.

“The more I think about it, the more it's starting to sink in, and it’s something I can kind of show my kids and the family as well.”

Lia followed his father Mimmo’s footsteps in playing for the Ibises, playing well below his age bracket when he took up the sport around the age of eight.

The Tatura days were a family affair for the Lia clan.

“My Dad was heavily involved in Tatura Soccer Club when I was little, so I used to be there religiously, even before I was playing and getting in the way,” Lia said.

“It wasn't long before I put the boots on myself, when under-12s back then was the youngest age group for soccer.

“I feel like I would have been seven or eight — there wasn’t a hell of a lot of players floating about at that time.

“I got involved in the game because of (Mimmo), and Herbie Mathers was around at the time — his two sons were playing for the senior team, and he was a bit of a mentor for me when I was growing up.

“My uncles played, some family friends; Sunday was a family day at the soccer always.”

Playing for local representative teams swiftly translated into an opportunity to represent Victoria at the National Championships, graduating to National Soccer League duties with South Melbourne.

His first international jumper with Australia’s youth squad followed, culminating in captaining the Young Socceroos at the under-20 World Cup in the Netherlands in 2005.

It’s an honour that stands out to Lia.

“That’s pretty special, representing your country at any age,” he said.

“It’s an honour and a goal when you start to play the game professionally.

“Captaining the under-20’s will always be something I’m proud of.”

Lia was plucked from the NSL after three seasons and kickstarted an illustrious A-League career with Melbourne Victory’s inaugural squad, playing 24 games from 2005 to 2007, although missing out on the famous title.

However, more opportunities beckoned with the fledgling Wellington Phoenix, where he became a great of the New Zealand-based club with 197 appearances from 2007 to 2017, sitting second on the all-time games tally.

Lia’s return to Australia saw silverware with Adelaide United in back-to-back FFA Cup triumphs, before signing off on his A-League career with Perth Glory in 2020.

At 40 years of age, Lia still runs out for the Essendon Royals in Melbourne, and when it was all said and done, pride was the word that sprung to mind when Lia reflected on his professional career.

“Obviously, careers don’t last and not many people get a career as long as I had,” he said.

“I think the average A-League contract is two years, so I guess being able to play the game that I love for so long was something I’m proud of and really fortunate to do.

“It doesn’t last forever, but I’ve managed to do it straight out of school all the way until I was basically retirement age.

“I love the game and want to be around; I don’t necessarily miss the full-time aspect of playing football, but I think being able to just still run around at whatever level is enough for me at the moment.”