They earn just as much money as most of Australia's top domestic footballers and are stopped on the street in parts of Europe, America and Asia for autographs, but in their home country they are hardly recognised.

Meet the stars of the Volleyroos.

High-flyers: Volleyroos Paul Carroll, Tom Edgar and Aidan Zingel. Credit:Jon Reid

''The boys call me Boxy,'' says Tom Edgar, a 212-centimetre opposite spiker and the only foreigner in his Korean team, who is reportedly paid half a million dollars a year. ''In 2006 we were out for dinner and one of the older guys said I had hands the size of pizza boxes. It's evolved into Boxy and that's what I'm known as in volleyball circles.''

Edgar was 15 when he took up volleyball, the sport which has taken him to superstar status.