Flying Kiwis – December 3
Joe Bell – Viking FK (Norwegian Eliteserien)
There have been some sweaty moments for Viking FK down the home stretch of this title challenge but when it came to the final round, needing simply to win to claim the club’s first Norwegian championship since 1991, it was never in doubt. Viking hosted Vålerenga (the team they lost to in week one, seems like so long ago now) and were instantly in the ascendancy before Edvin Austbø scored ten minutes in and Martin Ove Roseth made it 2-0 after 15. Captain Zlatko Tripic, the only guy in the squad more valuable to what they do than Joe Bell, converted a penalty deep into first half stoppage time and then even when they conceded a screamer early in the second to make it 3-1, Viking hit back straight away through Kristoffer Haugen (54’) and Kristoffer Askildsen (72’) late made sure of it.
Thus Viking won 5-1 and were able to cruise to the finish line, soaking up the atmosphere as their fans rejoiced in the stands. Bodø/Glimt won 5-0 against Fredrikstad at the same time but that was only going to matter if Viking dropped points and from the moment that Austbø put them ahead (with a wonderful solo goal) that just didn’t seem anything to worry about. Now that’s how you close out a title race. Bodø/Glimt had won four of the past five championships and pushed them all the way to the brink, Viking had to be perfect and that they were, winning their last seven fixtures in a row. Absolutely magic. Last season, B/G lifted the trophy with 62 points, this year they were second with 70 points thanks to the flawless run-in from Viking.
Joe Bell has had a massive role in this Eliteserien title, playing nearly every minute along the way and missing only one game due to yellow card accumulation suspension. He scored three goals and supplied four assists (plus some more in the other comps). He captained the team whenever Zlatko Tripic was unavailable. He’s got a well-established reputation as one of the very best midfielders in Norway, famed for his ability to read the play and pick up loose balls, same as we’ve seen so often for the All Whites (he ranked second in the Eliteserien for tackles won this year)... but he didn’t have much to do in this game. Just held his position, kept the ball moving, and towards the end he got himself one last booking for good measure when he very emphatically broke up a counter attack...
It goes without saying that this championship has been a massive deal in Norway. Nobody predicted it. Viking had clearly been building something, growing with each of the last few campaigns, but they hadn’t won the title for 34 years and in that time they’d experienced relegation and almost went broke. To get back to the summit like this is legendary... and you could argue the turnaround began when one of the assistant coaches sent a direct message to a kiwi midfielder that had impressed him when New Zealand beat Norway at the U20 World Cup in 2019. Remember Joe Bell turned them down initially too. He wanted to finish his last USA college season with Virginia as they chased a national championship. Virginia lost the NCAA final on penalties that year and that’s when VFK returned to get his signature on the dotted line. The rest is history (apart from a couple years spent in Denmark). Give the man the keys to the city and a lifetime supply of kiwifruit.
Viking also ended up signing Gianni Stensness who was in that same NZ U20s squad and scored a spectacular goal in the Norway game. Stensness has since flipped back to Australian eligibility but it’s pretty obvious what sold them on him. GS has had a couple serious knee injuries while he’s been there however he’s fit at the moment and set up the first goal in this match.
Joe Bell was shortlisted for Eliteserien Player of the Season. He had Zlatko Tripic (Viking), Patrick Berg (Bodø/Glimt), Henrik Falchener (Viking), and Odin Bjørtuft (Bodø/Glimt) for company there with Patrick Berg getting the top honours. As they say, it’s an honour merely to be nominated. And if you’re getting POTY recognition then you’re probably going to be in Team of the Year conversations too...
TV2.no: “Always alert, always calm. Joe Bell's ability to dictate tempo in matches has been crucial to Viking this season. The partnership with Askildsen has worked brilliantly and Bell has probably never been better than this year.”
And let us not overlook the other reward for winning this title. Sure there’s a trophy... but there’s also admittance to the playoff round of the Champions League with guaranteed Europa League entry even if they fail. That means a single two-legged tie for a spot in the UCL League Phase – Bodø/Glimt won 6-2 against Sturm Graz of Austria in the equivalent round this year. The seeding is done by UEFA Club Coefficients and while Viking have dipped their toes into some European competition in the last few years, it probably won’t be enough to get them a favourable draw. Huge opportunity for Joe Bell to match Wynton Rufer, Marko Stamenic, Chris Killen, Kim Wright, and Danny Hay in playing Men’s Champions League... but it’s going to be tough. Again, even if they lose they’ll still get Europa League. Keep that in mind if you’re wondering whether Bellinho might cash in on this success with a transfer – where else is he going to get the chance to potentially play Champions League as an established club hero? This brother is going nowhere any time soon and nor should he.
Up Next: Party on, excellent
Ben Old - AS Saint-Étienne (French Ligue 2)
It’s been a tricky season for Ben Old. He scored a goal and got an assist starting for ASSE in the opening game of their Ligue 2 season... but then very quickly found himself on the loan block as his team decided they’d prioritise more proven players in his position while they battled to be promoted straight back to the top flight. A loan never eventuated so Oldy’s hung around playing here and there off the bench. 11 league appearances this season, totalling 211 minutes. He even played a game for the reserves during October. Perhaps he might have gotten a chance in the Coupe de France third round when they won 3-1 against Quetigny... except Old was away with the All Whites when that game happened.
Ah but he was ready and available for the fourth round, where ASSE were pitted against eighth tier (yes, EIGHTH tier) club Ecotay Moingt and just look what he did...
Four goals for Ben Old in an 11-1 victory. The look on that poor semi-pro goalkeeper’s face after a couple of them was like his soul had escaped his body. No celebrations from the Saint-Étienne lads who understood what a mismatch this was but for Ben Old, who’s barely been able to stretch his legs over the last few months, it’s great to see him having such an impact. Whether he’s able to springboard into a bigger role in Ligue 2 from this remains to be seen. He’s kept his name in the conversation with this rampaging effort though.
Although this obviously isn’t on the same level as Chris Wood in the English Premier League or Callum McCowatt in the Danish Superliga, this does put Ben Old on par with those lads as kiwi footballers to have scored professional hat-tricks within the past 12 months. Neither of them pocketed a fourth like Oldy did.
None of these goals were difficult finishes (however a couple of them did flex some quick feet to get to his shots) and neither was the goal he tapped in for New Zealand against Colombia recently... in what definitely was not a favourable match-up. Old has struggled with adding tangible goals and assists to his performances dating back to his Wellington Phoenix days so with luck this brewing tendency to get himself into good areas at good times might break the shackles. But first he’s gotta increase those minutes.
Up Next: Dunkerque vs ASSE at 8am on Sunday (NZT)
Owen Parker-Price - Örgryte IS (Swedish Superettan)
Joe Bell wasn’t the only New Zealander partying in Scandinavia. Following the stunning, form-defying 3-0 win against IFK Norrköping in the home leg of their promotion playoff, all Örgryte needed to do was not embarrass themselves in the away leg and they’d be back in the top division. Don’t concede early, don’t make dumb mistakes, don’t get a red card like in the first leg. None of those things happened as ÖIS battled to a 0-0 draw with Owen Parker-Price getting 35 minutes off the bench in a game that was interrupted twice: first for a medical event in the crowd (the patient was eventually apparently okay) and then for some pyro on the pitch.
And thus the job was complete. 3-0 over two legs and Örgryte are back in the Allsvenskan. This is the first time since 2009 that ÖIS have been back in the Swedish top flight – twice in the intervening years they were relegated to the third tier. It’ll be interesting to see what they’re able to do in the transfer window to prepare for the jump, although they’ve already done some of that business ahead of time because it was widely assumed that Owen Parker-Price’s move a few months back was about bulking up their squad as they pushed for promotion. The fact that he ended up playing as much as he did was down to how instantly impressed they were with his abilities (don’t forget his coach telling media that he lost faith in Swedish football after finding such a gem left down the division for so long).
Before that move in August, OPP was trying his best to keep Torslanda from being relegated into the fourth tier (which is what ultimately happened after he left)... so in the space of a few months he’s leaped from near the bottom of the third tier all the way up to the top division in the country. There he’ll potentially run into another Ole Academy alum in Kees Sims who just helped GAIS to a third-place finish (their best effort since 1989). Not to mention how this immediately improves his World Cup squad chances. Funny coincidence: the coach of Örgryte, Andreas Holmberg, is the brother of Fredrik Holmberg who coaches GAIS... funnier still because those two clubs are local rivals.
So we’ve got Joe Bell winning the Norwegian Eliteserien, Gabi Rennie winning the Swedish Elitettan and earning promotion to the top flight, Owen Parker-Price winning promotion from the equivalent men’s division, Kees Sims getting European qualification with a third-place in Sweden, Callum McCowatt still being the equal second-top scorer in Denmark’s top division, and Grace Wisnewski making it to the Europa Cup quarter-finals with her Danish club (and Malia Steinmetz soon to return to fitness as her teammate). We did have a relegation for Jacqui Hand, Liz Anton, and Liv Chance in Norway’s top women’s league but the ratio of success for kiwis in Scandinavia lately has been astonishing.
Up Next: New season kicks off around April and there’ll be a break for the World Cup
Max Mata - St Patrick's Athletic (League of Ireland Premier Division)
Oh yes, he’s back. Max Mata’s been out of football since getting injured during preseason with Shrewsbury Town in England and negotiating an early release. With a couple months on the sideline required and no clear role to return to at Salop, it made sense to cut ties. Mata’s taken his time to get right again... and now he’s going back to the league where he’s had the most success. But not with Sligo Rovers. Instead, Mata is taking a step upwards by joining St Patrick's Athletic – a club that had a disappointing fifth-place finish in 2025 but which was third in each of the previous two years and won the title as recently as 2013.
The LOI season kicks off in mid-March. Still a wee while (and a full preseason) to go before that but once it starts it’ll have Mata playing regularly all the way up until the World Cup, should he be fortunate enough to make it. With talk of extended squads and the struggling form of Ben Waine he’d at least be in the conversation if he can score a few goals. Mata scored 22 times (with 7 assists) for Sligo Rovers in 64 matches across two stints. He’s got a great reputation over there and will even be reunited with his old strike partner Aidan Keena from those Sligo days – he’s at St Pat’s too.
The manager of St Pat’s is Stephen Kenny who previously had a spell coaching the Irish national team. Results weren’t so great so he didn’t last very long and his last game in charge was... a 1-1 draw against New Zealand in 2023. Matt Garbett scored the goal for the All Whites and Max Mata was the first man up off the bench that day. He also once scored the winner in a 1-0 victory away to St Pat’s in that same year. This should be fun.
Max Mata: “I'm really excited to have signed for a big club like St Pat's, obviously I've played in the League of Ireland before and Pat's have always been a club that I enjoyed playing against, home and away. I'm really looking forward to getting started and hopefully scoring loads of goals. I know the League quite well having played there before, so I'm familiar with many of the teams, players and stadiums so that bit of familiarity for me was a big reason for wanting to come back to Ireland, connecting back up with Aidan Keena after our time together in Sligo was another big pull factor for me.
I've had some really good, promising conversations with the people at the club over the last while, we've discussed how we want to play and how I'll fit in and it seems like the right move for me. The club is ambitious, The Manager (Stephen Kenny) is ambitious and I feel we've got a really good group of people to push in the right direction. Playing at Pat's as an away player was always a good experience and I enjoyed playing at Richmond Park, the fans get pretty rowdy which is exciting of course, it will be bit of a different experience for me now being a Saint so I'm really looking forward to that and getting going with my new teammates in the new year.”
St Pat’s coach Stephen Kenny: “At 25, we are getting Max at a good time in his career. He is a traditional number 9, who has a high work ethic and will lead the line and bring a physical presence to the team. Max is a different profile to what we've had in that position, he's strong, links the play really well, attacks crosses and scores headed goals. Being part of a team that won the Australian A League is a huge success story. Max is a full New Zealand international, and played against Ireland at The Aviva a couple of years ago. It's a World Cup year too, now that he's come back from the injury that saw him miss the last couple of squads, he will be highly motivated to make a big contribution here at St Patrick's Athletic to be in the World Cup conversation. Max has recent experience of playing in and scoring in the League of Ireland which is important, we feel he will be a really good team player who will make a positive impact here.”
And let us also not igonre the fact that Dundalk were promoted back into the top flight as second division champions and Norman Garbett has been with that lot for the last couple years. Very injury affected couple of years but he did get a little run of appearances around September/October so hopefully they bring him back and we can revive the kiwi presence in the League of Ireland.
Up Next: The big return is still a couple months away
Alex Paulsen - Lechia Gdansk (Polish Ekstraklasa)
Injury worries in the rearview, AP is back on the grass. Following the knee injury scare that saw him summoned back to Bournemouth for tests and forced him to skip the November international window, Alex Paulsen returned to the squad for a league game against bottom-ranked Nieciecza – sitting on the bench as Lechia won 5-1 - and then resumed his number one status for the next fixture. That was a Polish Cup round of sixteen match at home against Górnik Zabrze. Taking into account the international stuff and his sitting on the bench on the weekend, Paulsen missed only five games over a span of almost exactly one month. Much better than initial fears.
Sadly, they did lose the cup game, beaten 3-1. Paulsen missed a punch against a corner kick for the first concession but was left pretty helpless against counter-attacks for the next couple. Lechia did briefly make it 2-1 when the opp keeper made a blunder but yeah nah no more Polish Cup footy for this lot. Perhaps a bit of rust from AP after missing the previous four weeks of action. In fairness, Górnik Zabrze are currently top of the Ekstraklasa so there was nothing unexpected about that result.
Lechia took seven points from the three league games that they played without him, all against favourable opposition, which hasn’t gotten them out of the relegation zone yet but they’re moving in the right direction. They’re exactly halfway through the season with one more match to go before the winter break... and it’s against the same blokes that just knocked them out of the cup. After that they don’t play again until the very end of January.
Up Next: Lechia vs Górnik Zabrze at 8.30am on Saturday (NZT)
Ben Waine - Port Vale (English League One)
We’ve got a red alert over here because three months after his last minutes for Port Vale FC, Ben Waine was picked to start in the EFL Trophy knockout match against Barnsley. Midweek footy with rotated squads, sure, but Waine-o hadn’t even made the bench in a League One match since late August and when they remembered to select him for an FA Cup first rounder against non-league Maldon/Tiptree... they left him on the bench as an unused sub. That was almost worse than not being in the squad at all, given how desperate he was for minutes. You could see that his confidence was down whilst playing for the All Whites. Not the workrate, never the workrate, but he was snatching at his shots and looking like nothing was happening smoothly for him.
Beggars can’t be choosers so Waine was picked on the left wing and it was pretty obvious from the get-go that he intended to put all his waking energy into leaving that field with a goal to his name. It only took him ninety seconds to have his first blocked shot – a familiar sight as he shuffled into a position to pull the trigger but still hit a defender. Port Vale then went ballistic, scoring with two goals inside ten minutes, both thumping finishes from Ruari Paton – Waine’s movement was at least a factor in both. They also hit the crossbar during that spell.
Great for the team but still no goal for the Waine Train. He dug one over the bar on the half-volley midway through the half after the match had settled into a more normal flow and there was a closer effort late in the stanza, fizzing slightly wide from the edge of the box. That one got the hands-to-the-face reaction. Amazing half from the Vale... yet after three months of absolutely nothing, simply fitting in wasn’t going to be enough for Ben Waine. He needed to make a statement (like Ben Old did with his four-bagger). And with just over ten minutes to go, he finally did it...
It ended up as a 5-0 win, sending Port Vale cruising into the last sixteen. Waine was with Plymouth Argyle when they made the final of this competition (held for teams in the bottom couple divisions in England’s EFL and some Premier League U21s teams) back in 2022-23, although he wasn’t picked for the final at Wembley where they got thrashed 4-0 by Bolton. Maybe he can win it this season instead. Waine had eight shots in this match, four of them on target, so it would have been a kick in the teeth if he didn’t score. Sneakily, he also completed 15/15 passes. Port Vale hadn’t even scored a goal in any of their three previous games so this stunning explosion came entirely out of the blue.
Unfortunately, Matt Garbett wasn’t able to repeat the dose with Peterborough. The Posh won the last two editions of this competition but fell 1-0 to a late Swindon Town goal in the second round. Garbett had a decent chance when he swept one past the post, 16 mins in, running onto a ball just outside the area. That was as close as he came. The goal was scored after he was been replaced.
Up Next: FA Cup second round, Port Vale vs Bristol Rovers at 4am on Sunday... but will Ben Waine be involved? (NZT)
Marko Stamenic - Swansea City (English Championship)
For some reason, Swansea City were kind enough to put the full replay of their game against West Brom up on their YouTube channel, usually that stuff is hidden behind official website subscriptions (some clubs do put them up for free if you sign up for an account though, keep an eye out for the nice ones). Have a peek at that and you’ll see Marko Stamenic starting in the #6 jersey (and the six position) and you’ll see Jan Vipotnik score after just 12 seconds. The Swans then made it 2-0 after 11 minutes... before going on to lose 3-2. Stamenic was pretty quiet, not getting too many touches as the Swans spent much of the match without the ball trying to defend their lead. Might be getting to where they start demanding a little more than a good defensive presence from him, wanting to see a few more risks in possession. Dunno.
What we do know is that Swansea City are only goal difference above the relegation zone after 18 games. This was the second match in charge for new coach Vitor Matos, who still hadn’t got his backroom staff sorted as this one kicked off. The Swans have lost five consecutive games and you’ve gotta go back to October for the team’s last win. Stamenic is a regular starter. He’s settling pretty nicely. But the team is in a slippery place at the moment... although their next two games are against the team directly above and directly below them so by this time next week they might have gone a long way towards turned things around or it could have gotten a whole lot worse.
Max Crocombe was involved in a wild game for Millwall, coming from a goal down to be 2-1 up after 81 minutes against Southampton, conceding an 87th min equaliser, then seeing teammate Tristan Crama score the winning goal on 90+7’ to give Millwall a 3-2 result. Crocombe was fantastic, making seven saves (four of those from shots inside the penalty area). Massive result for the Lions who rise to third on the ladder with that. They’re only two points behind second-placed Middlesbrough for an automatic promotion spot. Great timing with that Crocs performance because having seen off the challenge of Steven Benda, last year’s number one Lukas Jensen just made his return from an achilles tear with an appearance for the U21s.
No sign of Tyler Bindon with Sheffield United though. Not even on the bench. Only four more weeks until the transfer window opens. Meanwhile Libby Cacace skipped another match for Wrexham (who drew 1-1 with Blackburn to stay tenth... only five points behind Millwall) however it sounds like his calf issue is almost gone. Could see him again very soon.
And up in the Premier League, Chris Wood remains on the sidelines for Nottingham Forest as he takes it easy to allow his sore knee to settle. That meant he skipped out on the 3-0 win against Malmö in the Europa League and then also the 2-0 Premier League defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion. Nor is he expected to against Wolves tomorrow morning. Wood has only played 15 minutes of Europa League this season, not quite the long awaited return to continental footy we were hoping for... though he did score a goal from the penalty spot during his lone substitute opportunity. This Brighton loss was the eighth match he’s missed for NFFC with this knee issue (and you can add two All Whites games to that list as well if you want). Wood scored a hat-trick in a 7-0 win in the same fixture last season. It’s expected he’ll return to training very soon.
Sean Dyche: “It is just a settling down period. It is a tricky knee injury. It just needs time. There is nothing we can do to fast forward it at the moment. He is feeling better in himself. It is a deloading phase so he can keep some form of fitness but not the pounding. We are waiting for it to settle enough where he can continue his work. It is just a bit of a waiting game at the minute.”
Up Next: Swansea City vs Oxford Town on Sunday at 4am (NZT)
Elijah Just – Motherwell (Scottish Premiership)
Motherwell didn’t win on the weekend, they didn’t even score a goal. However they didn’t concede one either and a 0-0 draw with league leaders Hearts certainly suits them more than it did their opponents. And despite the scoreline it was a fascinating game with chances at both ends. Motherwell had an early goal disallowed for offside while Hearts had a shot acrobatically cleared off the line. Good fun all around.
Elijah Just was excellent same as he usually is, only thing missing was a goal. He put a diving header on target but straight at the keeper and there was a brilliant drop of the shoulder to go running through on goal but a defender pushed him onto his right and the keeper made a good save rushing out. Those were his two best chances. All up he had five shots (three on target) and made two key passes. Gotta catch those Motherwell games when they’re happening, EJ is unreal for them.
That was a pretty similar performance to what Callum McCowatt did over in Denmark. McCowatt played ninety for Silkeborg against Randers, looking fully fit once more, and was involved in several chances – some that fell for him, some that he created for others. The best of those was a side-footed volley running onto a deep cross. He also had a curling lefty shot chopping back inside that was saved (might have been going wide anyway). Silkeborg thought they’d won it with a couple minutes to go only for that goal to be disallowed for one of those offsides that nobody would have ever thought to look for until VAR came along. Oh well. 0-0 final score in that game too.
Up Next: Falkirk vs Mortherwell at 8.45am on Thurs; Motherwell vs Livingston at 4am on Sun (NZT)
Ryan Thomas – PEC Zwolle (Dutch Eredivisie)
A victory for PEC Zwolle. Ninety minutes for Ryan Thomas. That’s two wins and a draw in their last three and now they’re up clear of the relegation zone, exactly what we like to see. Zwolle really had to dig their heels in to hold on for that win after all the goals were scored in the first half. Doesn’t look like Thommo is dealing with any lingering injury stuff after missing the last All Whites tour. This three-game run is the longest unbeaten streak of Zwolle’s season, 14 games deep into the Eredivisie, and its come directly after an 8-2 defeat against Heracles in which Thomas didn’t play (he was on the bench but not fit). Yeah, he’s pretty valuable to them.
Up Next: PEC Zwolle vs AZ Alkmaar at 8am on Thurs; Feyenoord vs PEC Zwolle at 9am on Sun (NZT)
Stipe Ukich - NK Istra 1961 (Croatian Nogometna Liga)
You see that #25 on the bench? New Zealand U20 World Cup rep Stipe Ukich, previously seen tearing up the National League as a 17yo, winning the Jack Batty Medal for player of the day in the 2024 Chatham Cup final, moved to Croatia (where his father’s side of the family is from) basically as soon as he turned 18yo and was eligible to sign an overseas professional contract. That was in January 2025. Since then he’s almost exclusively played for the U19s team there however back in August he made a senior debut as a late substitute in a cup game and more recently he’s been listed on the bench for the past two league games. He’s getting closer and closer. NK Istra are currently sitting fifth in the Croatian top division, only two points off third which would mean European qualifiers. There are three more games before the month-long winter break.
Up Next: Osijek vs Istra at 5.30am Monday (NZT)
Rebecca Lake - Vancouver Rise (Canadian Northern Super League)
Two weeks ago she won a championship with them, now Rebecca Lake is a free agent. She strode into town, led them to glory, and then left again with her job complete. Legendary stuff. Lake was one of five players released by the Rise and four of those departures were international players. Other clubs haven’t been as forthcoming with their updates just yet so we don’t know what the deal is with Meikayla Moore and Ally Green at Calgary Wild, though we do know that Milly Clegg won’t be back with Halifax Tides since that was only a loan move.
With the North American leagues all wrapping up around this time, here are some other players in that part of the world who have been confirmed to be leaving their clubs...
Bill Tuiloma – Charlotte FC (American Major League Soccer)
Ronan Wynne - Atlanta United 2 (American MLS Next Pro)
Oskar Van Hattum - Valour FC (Canadian Premier League)
James Musa & Elliot Collier – Indy Eleven (American USL Championship)
Riley Bidois - Loudoun United (American USL Championship)
Could be a few more to follow where that lot came from. We know that Michael Boxall’s had his contract option picked up for next year while Finn Surman and Tyler Boyd already had existing MLS contracts spanning at least into 2026 (Portland are talking about giving Surman a new deal with a payrise). Milly Clegg is scheduled to return to Racing Louisville for the last year of her NWSL contract. Troy Putt has another year with the Minnesota United Next Pro squad but James Bulkeley (North Texas) will have to hop his option gets picked up... and no idea what’s happened to Finn Linder (Vancouver Whitecaps) who didn’t play at all in 2025, presumably out injured.
Kyle Adams (Louisville City) and Alex Greive (San Antonio) are under contract in the USL Championship. Already mentioned that we’re still waiting to hear what the deal is with Meikayla Moore and Ally Green at Calgary Wild. And Helena Errington’s season with Sporting Club Jacksonville in the USL Super League is only halfway done but she’s yet to play a single second through the first 11 games. Got onto the bench a handful of times but yeah that old familiar story about kiwi players (centre-backs excluded) getting undervalued in America seems to have another chapter there.
Up Next: Get the agent on the phone
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