Kiwi Football

pukekohespur · « **on:** April 20, 2007, 06:47:00 AM »

Just in case there any truely tagic individuals out there... if anyone has any questions about football in New Zealand feel free to ask. i could witter on for hours if encouraged.

SpursLad · « **Reply #1 on:** April 20, 2007, 09:43:55 PM »

What are attendances like there? Is the game improving domestically and internationally?

pukekohespur · « **Reply #2 on:** April 20, 2007, 11:38:53 PM »

Internationally new Zealand is a joke. We have two players in the Premier league .Nelson at Blackburn and Elliot at Fulham. A handful in the lower leagues and a smattering across Europe. The problem is getting them home fro Internationals. i mean the prospect of flying home for a game against Malaysia is hardly appealing.
As a rssult New Zealand and Australia have a home ground in England. Loftus Roard or Craven Cottage i forget which. So we tend to tour a bit. Just got back from South America where we manged to get stomped on by Costa Rica and Venezuala. Last year even Blackburn beat us. Look out for game against Wales coming up soon though.
Very small crowds under 10,000 in fact for home intenationals. But again New Zealand versus Soloman Islands, would you go?
On the club scene we have one team playing in the Australian A league. As I want to get 30 essages up though that story can wait until after I get back from my son's under 19 game against Ellerslie.

DC76 · « **Reply #3 on:** April 21, 2007, 01:12:20 AM »

Gee, where does that sound familiar from? Oh yeah, Canada's in the exact same pickle

I like to see football succeed everywhere. What would you say to the prospect of the OFC merging with the AFC wholesale and having the Oceania area as a sub-confederation (they have those in the AFC)? It would push the best teams in the OFC region enough that they would get attention.

(Of course, this from the guy that thinks Canada should join UEFA because we seem to have far stronger historical and footballing ties to Europe than to the United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. :p)

pukekohespur · « **Reply #4 on:** April 21, 2007, 03:53:15 AM »

Look we would play anyone who is prepared to give us as game. Now that Aussie has joined the Asian Football confederation the competition in Oceania is pretty minimal.
We used to get lots of touring sides [Even Spurs back in the 80's] England played here with an almost full strength team etc. but that has all dried up and we are left to tour eastern Europe and wait for the world cup qualifiers.

pukekohespur · « **Reply #5 on:** April 21, 2007, 03:58:22 AM »

On the domestic scene.
A team from New Zealand plays in the Australian A league and has done for a number of years.
I was originally called the Kingz and the first couple of season were Ok . Finished mid table crowds around 6-7,000. Sometimes more. Good atmosphere. Then it all turned to custard the football was shocking, crowds stayed away and the team finished bottom of the league fro 3 years.
The whole league was shut down for a season and revamped and the Kingz were renamed the Knights and were even worse. Couldn't score, no crowds, elderly ex Grimsby players and a transit lounge approach to tream selection meant that they were a joke in a damn good league. The Aussie teams went from strngth to strength, big crowds. The final had 50,000 plus spectators.
Knights declared bankrupt but given a series of lifelines an have now movec to Wellington renamed as the Phoenix and promise to actuallt play some local players. Time will tell.

DC76 · « **Reply #6 on:** April 21, 2007, 07:06:32 AM »

Quote from: pukekohespur;4567

Look we would play anyone who is prepared to give us as game. Now that Aussie has joined the Asian Football confederation the competition in Oceania is pretty minimal.
We used to get lots of touring sides [Even Spurs back in the 80's] England played here with an almost full strength team etc. but that has all dried up and we are left to tour eastern Europe and wait for the world cup qualifiers.

There would be other benefits as well from joining the AFC - not only would you end up playing at least one decent Asian nation in every qualifying event (World Cup, Asian Cup - they'd have to whether they wanted to or not) but with those matches come more points for your FIFA ranking.

But I agree, you should get more games, coz if nobody plays against you, your football begins to stagnate and your rankings drop. Going by recent OFC performances, New Zealand would be one of the nations to benefit the most from the move. Sure, it'll be hard at first. But with more matches and more points come more opportunities to build

I've heard of the NZ Knights. A Canadian guy named Alen Marcina used to play for them. Straight outta Vancouver. He's now playing for the Puerto Rico Islanders in the USL1.

pukekohespur · « **Reply #7 on:** April 21, 2007, 11:44:18 AM »

Yeah marcina was a useful player. Pretty nippy.
Internationally New Zealnad has got to try and merge into a bigger confederation. Oceanaia do not have an automatic place in the World Cup so we go through the play offs only to come against the 5th placed South American team in a play off

pukekohespur · « **Reply #8 on:** April 21, 2007, 12:01:28 PM »

Actually as i said above Spurs did play down here in the 70's . i went to see them at the Basin Reserve in Wellington, but just like the first time i saw the Clash play i was a bit overawed. They easily beat the Wellington Invitation teamunder flood lights and i got caught trying to jump the fence to get in. Hey i was 13

pukekohespur · « **Reply #9 on:** June 04, 2007, 12:37:06 AM »

Not that anyone is interested but my son's team Papakura City U19 whipped Central 10- 0 yesterday. Scored some brill goals including ione where the centre forward outjumped the keeper to head home from a corner.
This is the only time that i can be heard shouting "c'mon you Blues"

DC76 · « **Reply #10 on:** June 04, 2007, 01:41:27 AM »

10-buzz, huh? Nice one

pukekohespur · « **Reply #11 on:** July 22, 2007, 10:54:57 PM »

Just for your info because i know you all care. The new New Zealand professional team, the Wellington Phoenix, palying in the Australian A league beat Sydney 3- 0 in a pre season game yesterday. Sydney were the team Dwight Yorke played for and who Robbie Fowler just turned down.
The A league is apparently ranked as the 14th league in the world. Dion't ask me by whom i just read it somewhere.

In other Kiwi news my sons team Papakura City under 19's inflicted Birkdales first defeat of the season. in a 3-2 thriller. Three yellow cards to Birkdale, one of their subs was red carded from the dugout. The refeere had to go into their changing sheds at half time to order them back onto the field. Our winner was a controversial penalty. Three of the goals were wonderful headers. As a game it had it all.

Dimitar B. · « **Reply #12 on:** July 22, 2007, 11:38:41 PM »

Nice one.

Your son, any chance of him moving to Europe?

Will he be a 1st teamer in a year or two?

DC76 · « **Reply #13 on:** July 23, 2007, 03:15:37 AM »

It'd be kinda cool if your son ended up in Europe, even if it were for a lower-level League team.

pukekohespur · « **Reply #14 on:** July 23, 2007, 05:34:53 AM »

Yeah I'lld love it. Best chance for most Kiwis though is to get a schol to an American College and try Europe from there. That's what Ryan Nelson and Simon Elliot did [kind of]. One of the young boys out here though has just had Aston Villa sniffing around [according to rumour]. Mind you he trained a couple of times with my son's team last year and he was damned impressive. Keegan got past him once smiled and said 'May as well go home now, that's as good as it's going to get for me"