Giuseppe Tamborini recounts the 1966 Australia tour

One of these was Perth, where Daniele De Rossi's side are set to return on 31 May for a friendly match against AC Milan, which has already stirred up considerable interest with the locals.

Among the original party – which the Australian media welcomed with the slogan “The Romans are coming” – was a young player by the name of Giuseppe Tamborini, who scored in the 1-1 draw against an Australia XI and another in the 3-0 win over South Australia.

Archivio Storico AS Roma / Biancone-Risi collection

Tamborini was a midfielder with an eye for goal who racked up 104 appearances and eight goals for the Giallorossi between 1964 and 1967 and was fondly remembered by the fans.

We sat down with him to chat about his recollections of that inaugural AS Roma journey Down Under 58 years ago...

What do you remember about the tour?

“I still have a wonderful memory of that long trip to Australia. We went with the whole team. It was a really interesting time. We often travelled abroad at the end of the season to bring in some extra money for the club. We visited quite a few cities: Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and others. All completely new places to us of course.”

Did they explain to you why the club chose to go to Australia?

“The aim of our trip was to popularise football in those parts of the world. At the time it was just starting to take off there and was still some way behind Europe. Over the years, we've seen quite a few Australia players come over to play here – some very good ones too – but it wasn't on the same level in my day. In fact, we won virtually all the matches that were organised. But... can I say something?”

Of course.

“It was an incredibly long journey. Really, really long. Nearly 50 days. We played the first match at the end of May and the last one – our eighth – at the start of July. And when we returned to Rome, it was almost time to start pre-season training for the next year. We were given two days completely off because we really needed it!”

AS Roma / Angelo Onofri collection

What do you remember about the matches you played in Australia?

“It's been a fair few years but I remember the goals I scored quite clearly. For both I made a run from deep, although they were quite different. I liked causing problems for defenders who weren't expecting for me to turn up in that area of the pitch. I also got the impression the referees weren't always that pleasant, but it's all in the past now.”

The Roma coach during that tour was Guido Masetti, who replaced Oronzo Pugliese just for that brief period.

“That's right. The coach had to undergo an operation so Guido took the reins for that trip. He's always been a Roma legend, everyone knows that. During that tour he conferred with the team a lot and often discussed tactical decisions with the captain Giacomo Losi.”

What kind of captain was Giacomo Losi, especially in circumstances like that?

“Fantastic. Giacomino was always fantastic with me and everyone. If I got to spend three years at Roma, I owe it partly to him because he recommended the club should sign me. He was someone that everyone looked up to and no one ever challenged him. It was nothing but a privilege to spend so much time with him and a great opportunity for me to learn. I was only 23 at the time.”

Archivio Storico AS Roma/DuFoto