International Career
Bingley has represented Australia at all youth levels, beginning in 1987 when he was selected in the under-16 squad to contest the FIFA U-16 World Championship in Canada. Despite not making an appearance during the tournament, where Australia managed to top their group and reach the quarter-finals, the following year he represented Australia in the schoolboy team. Three years later Bingley was selected in Australia's under-20 squad for the 1991 FIFA World Youth Championship in Portugal. Australia topped their group and eventually finished fourth, losing to the hosts in the semi-finals.
In June 1993, Bingley made his senior national team debut during Italian club team AC Milan's tour of Australia. Bingley played a total of 135 minutes in the 0-2 and 0-1 losses. Later in the year, he secured his third international (and first A-class) cap, playing the second half of Australia's 0-1 loss to South Korea in Seoul in the lead-up to Australia's final 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification play-off with Argentina. It took until late 1995 for Bingley to become a more regular player in the Australian team though, and he played two matches against New Zealand in the 1996 Oceania Nations Cup, followed by two friendly matches against Japan in February 1996. In the second of the Japan matches, played at Lakeside Oval in Melbourne, Bingley scored his first ever international goal just seven minutes after replacing captain Paul Wade, to seal a 3-0 victory for Australia. After playing in the second leg of the 1996 ONC, Bingley added a further two goals to his international tally in two consecutive matches against New Zealand and South Korea in January 1997. A match against Norway provided Bingley's 11th international cap, and he played a further two matches during Australia's 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification attempt. Scoring once in Australia's 5-0 victory over Tahiti, Bingley was recalled to the squad again in October for a friendly, and added his 5th international goal as Australia defeated Tunisia 3-0. His final two matches for Australia came in the 1997 Intercontinental Cup for Nations, coming on as a substitute in both the 0-0 draw against Brazil in the group stages and Australia's 6-0 loss in the tournament final, also against Brazil.
Read more about this topic: Matthew Bingley
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