Mark Romano Birighitti (born 17 April 1991) is an Australian professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who plays as a
goalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...
for
Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish ...
side
Dundee United
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
.
Born in Perth, Birighitti played youth football at the
Australian Institute of Sport
The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...
before making his professional debut for
Adelaide United
Adelaide United Football Club is a professional Association Football, soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under North American professional sports league organization#Systems ar ...
. In 2012, he moved to
Newcastle Jets
Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from The Australia ...
and spent time on loan to Italian club
Varese
Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559.
It is the c ...
in 2015. In 2016, Birighitti left Newcastle to again move to Europe, firstly with
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
and then
NAC Breda
NAC Breda (), often simply 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 Eerste Divi ...
. He returned to the
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
in 2018 with
Melbourne City before moving to
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Ma ...
a year later. He then signed for Dundee United in 2022.
Birighitti has played once for the
Australian national team, at the
2013 EAFF East Asian Cup
The 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup was the 5th edition of this regional competition, the football championship of East Asia. Two preliminary competitions were held during 2012. Mongolia were suspended from the EAFF and could not compete in any EAFF co ...
. He has also represented Australia's youth teams on many occasions, including at the
2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup
The 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 18th FIFA U-20 World Cup. Colombia hosted the tournament between 29 July and 20 August 2011, with matches being played in eight cities. The tournament was won by Brazil who claimed their fifth title.
At a FIFA ...
and winning the
2010 AFF U-19 Youth Championship
The 2010 AFF U-19 Youth Championship was held from 24 to 30 July 2010, hosted by Vietnam. Only four teams will be participating, two teams from member associations of the AFF along with associate member Australia, and an invitee team from the Ea ...
.
Club career
Adelaide United
Birighitti started his career at the
AIS AIS may refer to:
Medicine
* Abbreviated Injury Scale, an anatomical-based coding system to classify and describe the severity of injuries
* Acute ischemic stroke, the thromboembolic type of stroke
* Androgen insensitivity syndrome, an intersex ...
before moving to
Adelaide United
Adelaide United Football Club is a professional Association Football, soccer club based in Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. The club participates in the A-League Men under North American professional sports league organization#Systems ar ...
in 2008. He made his first team debut against
Queensland Roar
Brisbane Roar Football Club is an Australian professional association football, soccer club based in Brisbane, Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland and has won the domestic title on three occasions, as well as holding the longest unbeaten record ...
on 17 October 2008 helping Adelaide to a 1–0 win.
Aurelio Vidmar
Aurelio Vidmar ( ; born 3 February 1967) is an Australian association football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Thai League 1 club Bangkok United.
He is a former captain of the Australia national team and former coach ...
praised the young goalkeeper after the match saying "I think Birighitti played well he's got a really good future, he had big shoes to fill and I think he did an outstanding job tonight."
His second successive
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
start came against
Perth Glory
Perth Glory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Perth, Western Australia. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues.
Founded in 19 ...
at
Hindmarsh Stadium
Hindmarsh Stadium (currently known as Coopers Stadium due to sponsorship from Adelaide-based company Coopers Brewery) is a multi-purpose stadium in Hindmarsh, an inner western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is the home of the Austral ...
after Adelaide's number one goalkeeper, 28-year-old
Eugene Galekovic
Eugen Josip Galekovic ( ; hr, Eugen Josip Galeković, ; born 12 June 1981) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is the current goalkeeper coach for Adelaide United.
Biography
Club career
Galekovic's j ...
, was injured during the
Asian Champions League
The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...
match against
FC Bunyodkor
Football Club Bunyodkor ( uz, Bunyodkor futbol klubi) is an Uzbekistan, Uzbek professional association football, football club based in Tashkent that competes in the Uzbekistan Super League.
Bunyodkor, a relatively unknown club at the time, made ...
. Despite conceding the match's first goal at the near post, Birighitti played his part in the 2–1 win taking Adelaide to the top of the league table.
With Galekovic again ruled out with injury Birighitti started the second leg of the
2008 AFC Champions League Final
The 2008 AFC Champions League Final was a two-legged football tie to determine the 2008 champions of Asian club football. Gamba Osaka defeated Adelaide United 5-0 on aggregate to take the title. The first leg took place on 5 November 2008 at 19:00 ...
against
Gamba Osaka
is a Japanese professional football club based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The club's name ''Gamba'' comes from the Japanese , meaning "to do your best" or "to st ...
on 12 November 2008; Adelaide lost the match 2–0. He injured his ankle after falling awkwardly in a training session on 17 December 2008 ruling him out of the remaining
A-League 2008-09
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
season.
Newcastle Jets
On 17 January 2012 it was announced he had signed a two-year contract with
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
club
Newcastle Jets
Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from The Australia ...
starting post the
2012 AFC Champions League
The 2012 AFC Champions League was the 31st edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 10th under the current AFC Champions League title.
Ulsan Hyundai from South Korea wo ...
group stage.
He quickly became the first choice goalkeeper for the Newcastle Jets, edging out
Ben Kennedy and
Jack Duncan. In late 2013 he signed a contract extension with the Jets until the end of the 2015–16 season.
On 24 March 2014, Birighitti flew to Germany to discuss a possible transfer to
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
club
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, th ...
. After failing to secure a contract with Bayer Leverkusen he then came back to the Jets for the 2014–15 season.
In October 2015, Birighitti was involved in an on-field collision with
Sydney FC
Sydney Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier men's competition, A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The club was fo ...
striker
Shane Smeltz
Shane Edward Smeltz (born 29 September 1981) is a New Zealand Australian footballer. He plays as a striker for Guiseley AFC in the Northern Premier League, the 7th tier of English football.
Smeltz had spent much of his early career playing i ...
. Birightitti suffered multiple broken teeth and required facial surgery after the incident. He returned to action within weeks, missing only one
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
game.
Loan to Varese
On 27 January 2015, Birighitti joined
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...
club
Varese
Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559.
It is the c ...
on a six-month loan deal. He made his league debut for Varese in a 1–0 away loss to
Vicenza
Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan.
Vicenza is a th ...
on 25 April 2015.
Swansea City
On 18 July 2016, Birighitti joined
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
side
Swansea City
Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...
on a two-year deal. After the
2016–17 season, Birighitti went on trial at Dutch side
Willem II, following a lack of opportunities at Swansea.
NAC Breda
On 1 September 2017, Birighitti joined
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is c ...
side
NAC Breda
NAC Breda (), often simply 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 Eerste Divi ...
on a two-year deal.
Melbourne City
On 11 September 2018, Birighitti joined Australian
A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
side
Melbourne City on a three-year deal. He again found himself as second-choice goalkeeper behind Eugene Galekovic - the same situation to his time at Adelaide United. After a year in which he didn't play at all, Birighitti negotiated a mutual release from the remainder of his contract.
Central Coast Mariners
In August 2019, Birighitti joined
Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Ma ...
on a one-year contract.
Dundee United
On 21 July 2022, it was announced that Birighitti had signed a two-year contract with
Dundee United
Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...
, subject to international clearance. He made his first competitive start for his new club in their opening
Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish ...
match against
Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...
which resulted in a 1–1 draw.
Birighitti made his
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
debut in a 1–0 win against
AZ Alkmaar
Alkmaar Zaanstreek (), better known as AZ Alkmaar or simply AZ (), is a Dutch professional football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan district. The club plays in the Eredivisie, the highest professional football league in the Netherlands, and ho ...
, however, the second leg of the tie ended in a 7–0 Dundee United loss, knocking them out the competition.
International career
Birighitti was selected to represent the
Australian under-20 squad at the
2010 AFC U-19 Championship
The 2010 AFC U-19 Championship was the 36th edition of the tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation.
Qualification for the tournament started in October 2009 with the finals tournament being hosted in October 2010.
The AFC reco ...
.
He made his debut for the senior
Australian side in their final match of the
2013 EAFF East Asian Cup
The 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup was the 5th edition of this regional competition, the football championship of East Asia. Two preliminary competitions were held during 2012. Mongolia were suspended from the EAFF and could not compete in any EAFF co ...
against
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, a 4–3 loss.
Career statistics
Honours
Australia U20
*
AFF U-19 Youth Championship
The AFF U-19 Youth Championship is an annual international football competition contested by the national teams of the members of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) and occasionally invited nations from the rest of Asia. The tournament was pre ...
:
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
;Individual
*
A-League All Star:
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
*
PFA A-League Team of the Season:
2015–16,
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
,
2021–22
*
A-League Goalkeeper of the Year:
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
,
2021–22
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Birighitti, Mark
1991 births
Living people
Soccer players from Perth, Western Australia
Australian people of Italian descent
Australian men's soccer players
Men's association football goalkeepers
Australian Institute of Sport soccer players
Newcastle Jets FC players
Adelaide United FC players
SSD Varese Calcio players
Swansea City A.F.C. players
NAC Breda players
Melbourne City FC players
Central Coast Mariners FC players
Dundee United F.C. players
Victorian Premier League players
A-League Men players
Serie B players
Australia men's youth international soccer players
Australia men's under-20 international soccer players
Australia men's international soccer players
Australian expatriate men's soccer players
Australian expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Australian expatriate sportspeople in Wales
Australian expatriate sportspeople in Scotland
Expatriate men's footballers in Italy
Expatriate men's footballers in Wales
Expatriate men's footballers in Scotland
Scottish Professional Football League players