Alex + Marcus Schroen

Football is recently had a coffee with siblings Alex and Marcus Schroen and we have to admit to being unsure where the interview would go, but came away from our coffee with an appreciation of the importance of family in whatever you decide to pursue in life. 

Alex and Marcus have had a long relationship with football. They started at the ages of 9 and 7 respectively and you could almost consider them veterans, if it weren’t for the fact they are only in their twenties.

Alex stepped into the world of football after going to watch Marcus at training in Bentleigh. After attending a few sessions, it was only natural that Alex wanted to play. This would become the beginnings of a 15+ year football journey they have enjoyed side-by-side.

Curiously, this would mark the only time the two brothers played at the same club, with both moving onto new clubs after just the sole season at the Kingston Heath-based club.

While having never faced off against each other, the Schroens always embarked on extra training, committing to private academies to develop their skills until their dedication to the sport followed them into adulthood. 

For Marcus, the pursuit of football as a profession began at an early age.

“I always wanted to be a footballer growing up and wanted to take it to the next level when I was 14 or 15 years of age,” he explained.

“Around that age I really started to set goals and worked out a plan to being a pro footballer.

“I just loved it as a kid and that’s what I always wanted to be. You see the pros on TV and then when you go and watch a game, it’s just super exciting. When you realise that’s what you want to do you, work out a way to do it and how to get there.”

Alex, the older of the two brothers, has had repeated offers to ply his trade in the NPL but insists that unlike Marcus, he’s approached football as a serious hobby.

“I enjoy keeping fit and just trying to take it as far as I can but not necessarily a career path. Marcus, took it on board to make it his career and that’s where we split,” Alex clarifies.

The role of parents in the growth of these young footballers is crucial. Marcus acknowledges that their mother and father have always supported them both on and off the pitch.

“You can’t really do it without your parents support, they drive you here and there, getting all the equipment, paying for academies, their support and encouragement is pretty important, especially when you are younger.”

"Mum and Dad always said to us – if you want to take football all the way that’s fine.  We’ll do everything we can to get you there but you guys need to do the hard work,” Alex recounts.

How important is your family unit?

Alex/Marcus: “It’s very important. Family is always there regardless. When you go through tough times and good times, family will always be there at the end of the day. Your family is the rock. Family and health are the two most important things. They are there from day one and they will be there in the end – the people you rely upon the most and care about the deepest.”

Injuries will often play a big role in the formative lives of a young footballer, something that was brought home to the duo (quite literally) a few weeks ago.

Both brothers were recently in the casualty ward of the parents’ Mentone home after a horror weekend, where injuries came to the Schroen household as a double act.

‘Our injuries happened on the Saturday and we were sitting on the couch on Sunday next to each other and dad was just giving it to us!” Alex cries.

Football is: Was this a strange experience?

Marcus: "Injuries are just a part of football and something you deal with. I’ve had to deal with injury in the past and unfortunately it’s something Alex will have to deal with now. Hopefully, because I’ve been their and done that I can help him a long a bit.”

Football is: When you do spend time out injured, what shapes your mindset?

Alex: “My mindset now is relative to what happened last August with the osteitis pubis I had to stop two thirds through the season and I was battling the injury quite a while.  Over time it got progressively worse and in late August I pulled the pin and had my MIR scan.  From late August until February ‘17 I’d been working to get back in shape and then I did my knee.  The MIR results came back and mentally it’s just thrown me out.”

“I’ve been generally upset, a bit angry annoyed. It’s just the luck of the draw. No one asked for this to happen. But then I just thought –  you know what I’ll just get through the surgery, I’ll take whatever time I need, I can go back to work, focus on my job and just enjoy the rest of the year.”

“I’ll still be involved with the club. It gives me a chance to focus on a few other things that I sort of sacrificed in the years I’ve been playing, I can spend more time on other hobbies or with friends.”

“There’s been a lot of times we’ve had to sacrifice friends for soccer, especially on weekends. But they understand as well. In terms of mindset, it’s really thrown me around a bit but I’ll get over it and stop sooking (laughs)!”  

Football is: Outside of football what do you do?

Alex: ‘I tried to be a pilot in the Australian Defence Force but was unsuccessful. I’m a qualified electrician, I’ve been qualified for two and half years, being a sparky was my next choice.’

Football is: Alex, what is it about travel that you love? How does it make you feel when you arrive in a new destination?

“Travel is for experience, culture and adventure. Your only concern with travelling is what you’re going to see for the day. Emma (my girlfriend) and I didn’t have enough time in each city of town to see everything we wanted.”

"If I had my way I’d be travelling right now I love it."

Marcus has made no illusions about his desire to become a professional footballer, however, his current role as a semi-professional player for South Melbourne means he must find other work.

Outside of football, Marcus graduated from a degree in Business and Sports Management in 2016 and currently finding time to coach and work in retail while plying his trade at the famed South Melbourne Hellas.

Marcus: “I love working with people outside of football I love travelling, obviously I spent three years in Holland. One of my best mates is a massive traveller. He’s been backpacking through Europe, Asia, parts of the Middle East and that’s kind of rubbed off on to me. I’ve been backpacking a to Europe, New Zealand and recently South America.”

“I travel when I get the chance. I love to see the world. Even here in Victoria, I’ll go up to the Great Ocean Road for some camping and hiking. Travel opens your eyes to see how lucky we are in Melbourne. For me, it’s the best city in the world. How lucky we are to be in a place like this! It makes you appreciate what we’ve got here but also to see other cultures and the other way people live as well.”

One could be forgiven for thinking there was a fair bit of competition between the two brothers; a notion they quickly – almost too quickly – shot down.

“No!" they both shouted when I questioned if there’s any strong sense of sibling rivalry.

“Competitive means being in competition with Marcus, but Marcus excelled at football better than I did because he did all the hard yards and to his credit it has gotten him somewhere,” Alex admits.

"We are closer now than we used to be back when we were 17 or 18 years old. We used to share a room - messy and clean. I don’t know if I need to say anymore (laughs)!’

Marcus adds: “We are closer now because we have our freedom and don’t see each other as much.”

Football is: Tell me the thing you’ve learned most from each other?

Marcus: “Even though I was younger, we were at each other’s throats a little bit. As we got older we matured a bit more and learned to get on a bit better. Spending more time apart means you begin to appreciate each other more and more. I knew he had my back no matter what. When it came down to it, I’ve learned to do the same for people I care about in my life. No matter what situation, to have their back and always be their in their time of need.”

Alex: “Marcus taught me that even though life can put you on your knees literally, you can still keep doing it. Even though he has had two serious injuries, he still keeps going at it. It’s not fair. It’s almost like I wish it happened to me. Marcus, who is trying to make it his career and does all the right things outside of it. Sometimes it’s not fair that the injuries happened to him and not me.

"He taught me to keep going even if you get knocked down."

Football is: Last question;

Gents, complete this sentence Football is…

Alex, …like having another family

Marcus, …incredible