The cardinal rule is don't bet against Pope Pell Papal contender? ... Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney / Pic: Britta Campion Source: The Daily Telegraph HE gave Australia its first saint - Mary MacKillop - and now Pope Benedict XVI's resignation has opened the door for the first Australian to become the global leader of 1.2 billion Catholics. While Cardinal George Pell is considered a $41 outsider, observers said yesterday he was "not without a chance" to replace the 85-year-old Pontiff, who is stepping down because of ill health. "If it were to happen it would be an extraordinary tribute to the church in Australia," commentator Professor Des Cahill said yesterday. Lightning bolt strikes The Vatican World Youth Day 2008 ambassador Ron Delezio reflected the mood of many grass-roots Catholics when he said it would be a great day for Australia if Cardinal Pell became pope: "The good thing about George is that he is a fit man and he stays on the line of the Catholic church. Pope Benedict greets a young fan in Australia five years ago / Pic: Stephen Promnitz He is the equal of any of the cardinals over there (in Rome). But critics of the 71-year-old Archbishop of Sydney, including former NSW premier and World Youth Day organiser Kristina Keneally, believe Cardinal Pell has little chance of becoming pontiff: "Australians will remember Benedict's papacy fondly for Saint Mary MacKillop but he failed to deal with the sex abuse scandal. George Pell's response here has been directly out of the Vatican's play book. He will struggle to present a credible case to be part of the solution. Cardinal Pell, who will travel to Rome to take part in the election of the new pope, yesterday said Pope Benedict's resignation had surprised him but he expected to return to Sydney after the vote. "I was shocked by the timing (of the resignation)," Cardinal Pell said. He'd always acknowledged this was a possibility. It is the decision of a humble man, an honest man, who wants the best for the church. Cardinal Pell said it was a "misconception" that Benedict did not do enough to deal with the sex abuse scandal in the church: "Publicly he said he was sorry and he met with victims. He wasn't pushing anything under the carpet. A senior church member says Australian Catholics will be surprised to learn Pope Benedict XVI is resigning. We will have to see who the new pope is. Every pope represents a change. Whether it will be seen as a new era is a question we can't answer. American commentator Father Robert Sirico nominated Cardinal Marc Ouellet from Canada, and Cardinal Angelo Scola, the Archbishop of Milan, as leading contenders - "or even Cardinal George Pell from Australia." There is also speculation the next pope could be African - with Cardinal Peter Turkson from Ghana and Cardinal Francis Arinze of Nigeria receiving support. Prime Minister Julia Gillard told parliament yesterday the announcement marked a historic moment: "Many Australians saw Pope Benedict during his visit here for the Church's World Youth Day in 2008 and I am sure many members remember the scenes and the crowds on that visit. Thousands of others travelled to Rome in 2010 to see him declare Mother Mary MacKillop as our nation's first saint; that was a time of jubilation across the nation. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, who studied to be a priest in the 1980s, said he understood the Pope's reasoning in deciding to resign. "I suspect part of this Pope's decision is he was close to his predecessor and did see the impact of a visibly declining Pope on the functioning of the church," Mr Abbott said.Tim Fischer, Australia's first ambassador to the Holy See and a former deputy prime minister, said the resignation was not unexpected. "In 2010, in the middle of my posting, the Pope said 'yes' he could resign and in certain circumstances it would be his duty to resign," Mr Fischer told The Daily Telegraph.