Former Nottingham Forest striker Jason Cummings says his “Cumdog” nickname has been given a new twist following his move to Australia.
The 27-year-old joined Central Coast Mariners in January and quickly made an impact, scoring 10 goals in 21 A-League appearances. That form has seen him called up to the Australia national side for the first time.
Previously capped by Scotland, Cummings has dual citizenship due to his Australian-born mother. He is aiming to book himself a seat on the plane to Qatar for this year’s World Cup.
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The forward, who had a two-year spell with the Reds from 2017 - the majority of which was spent out on loan - had given himself the moniker “Cumdog” while he was at former club Hibernian, as he was filmed jokingly grappling with wrestling star Grado. But that changed after heading Down Under.
Asked about his nickname in a live Q&A video during the Socceroos camp, he said: "I got that nickname as a wrestling nickname. I wrestled some guy called Grado. He's a wrestler in Scotland.
"When I was at Hibs he came in and started giving it the big one, so I chucked on the Spandex, I put 'Cumdog' on my chest and I battered him. Gave him the Mick Foley socko.
"The rest is history, so everyone has called me Cumdog since then. But now that I'm in Australia, everyone is calling me the Cumdingle. So the Cumdog or the Cumdingle, not a problem."
Cummings is more remembered for his antics off the pitch than what he managed on it during his time at the City Ground. However, he is determined to show a serious side and make the most of his call-up.
“Arnie (Socceroos manager Graham Arnold) and I have had a few chats,” he told the Daily Record. “Said just do the same as you do for the Mariners, and enjoy it.
“I can’t change my character! Had a few good managers, few bad ones over the years. Some managers like who I am, my character and style. I’ve heard that my whole career, you know. Especially in Scotland - it’s not as bad over here, in Scotland it’s 10 times worse for that.
“I think a lot of people in Scotland forgot me as a player. I’m more remembered about my personality and things, from interviews or whatever.
“My main focus, really, was to come to Australia and do the talking on the pitch. I’ve come over here and started again, a clean slate, I’ve reinvented myself in Australia and the A-League, and I’ve been rewarded with this call-up.
“To be fair, when you do the talking on the pitch, you can do the talking off the pitch as well. That’s just me. I’ve always been like that, I’ve never changed.”
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