Flying Kiwis – June 18
Gabi Rennie - Eskilstuna United (Swedish Elitettan)
Gabi Rennie was in a generous mood for Eskilstuna United’s penultimate game before the summer break. She didn’t score as Esky won 4-0 against Gamla Upsala. Those goals were instead supplied by Viivi Ollonqvist (41’), Emma Bülow (55’), Emma Bülow again (65’), and Inka Sarjanoja (73’). Instead she simply set all four of them up...
Yes, all four of them. One, two, three, four assists in a single match. Rennie’s pace and power on the right wing was constantly getting her into good positions and then her excellent crossing did the rest. Pretty much everything went through her in this game (seven key passes!). It’s the same formula that made her so successful with Aland United in the Finnish league last year and she’s since switched to the second tier in Sweden, which is probably a slight upgrade, without missing a step.
You can probably guess who they gave the Player of the Match honours to...
Depending on where you look, one of the goals here may not be credited as a Rennie assist (there are two which look like the defender might have gotten a touch on them). Sofascore said she got three. PlaymakerStats said she got four. Let’s allow the kiwi bias to shine through and count all four, in which case she’s supplied two goals and eight assists in nine appearances for the club. That’s been ramping up lately too, with Rennie having provided at least one goal contribution in each of the past four fixtures as she’s well and truly found her feet with her new team. Counting assists can get a bit wobbly because of shifting definitions but beneath the numbers is the undeniable truth that Rennie’s been creating an abundance of chances for Eskilstuna United.
The team’s going pretty great too. Thanks to Umea’s game being postponed, Eskilstuna now reside in first place with 22 points from 9 matches. They’re currently on a four-game winning streak and haven’t lost since IK Uppsala beat them in the first game (IK Uppsala are currently ranked third). Even if Umea win that game in hand it doesn’t really matter because the top two positions get automatic promotion while third-place gets a playoff. This squad is absolutely challenging for a spot in the Damallsvenskan. After next week, when the summer break arrives and everyone gets a month off, Eskilstuna will have played 10/26 games so we’re more than a third of the way through and Rennie is the leading assist-maker in the entire division.
Up Next: Trelleborgs vs Eskilstuna at 5am on Friday (NZT)
Ally Green – Calgary Wild (Canadian Northern Super League)
The first time that Calgary Wild and Halifax Tides met in the NSL, Meikayla Moore scored the opener for the Wild as they went on to win 4-1. Ally Green also played that match but alas Milly Clegg was still injured for Halifax. Since then, Moore and Green have continued to be first-eleven players for the Wild and Clegg has seemingly earned the same status with the Tides. But the schedule threw another doosra in our direction when the two clubs met for the second time on a Thursday night local time, two mere days after all three of those NZers had been involved in a Football Ferns win against Venezuela across the seas in Spain.
Therefore Meikayla Moore was only on the bench for Calgary and didn’t end up playing, while Milly Clegg rested entirely for Halifax. But Ally Green had only gotten six minutes off the bench for the Fernies so after making the quick trip back to Canada she was fresh enough to play the first half of this game and oh would you look at that...
That goal gave Calgary the lead midway through the first half. Jenaya Robertson then stabbed one home on 43’ before Taegan Stewart made it 3-0 at half-time, with the third of those goals coming after Green had dribbled infield and played a superb switch out to the opposite wing. AG then got subbed at the break, presumably having hit her minutes limit after international duty (after very much delivering the goods in those 45 mins). Green only arrived back in the country at 2am on matchday, with kickoff arriving at 7pm that night. Big effort there. Things got nervous without her after Halifax scored twice to get back in range... but Calgary held on for the 3-2 win.
Since this is a double edition Flying Kiwis (international break for the blokes combined with most European seasons being over and transfer windows mostly closed, meant very limited talking points so last week’s focus was about the international stuff), Calgary have played again since that match. They hosted Toronto with Green and Moore both in the starting line-up... but were unable to dig out of a two-goal hole from the first half hour, losing 2-1 in the end. Green got beaten pretty badly for the first goal and was subbed near the end as Calgary chased goals. Moore played the full thing.
Meanwhile, Halifax Tides finally won their first game of the season with a 2-1 victory against Ottawa. Milly Clegg wasn’t involved in either goal but she did return to the starting eleven having had that rest in the Calgary game. It was cold and it was wet back in Canada, very different to the conditions Clegg had with the Football Ferns in Spain (by the way, good to see Clegg now playing without the strapping on her hamstring injury since that Ferns tour), and the Tides fell behind from a corner kick after only quarter of an hour. However, a second half comeback soon sorted things out. Nothing really fell her way in this match but Clegg was sharp with her movements and the rhythm seems to be returning after scoring for the national team. Super League goals should follow soon enough.
Up Next: 6am on Sunday its Ottawa vs Calgary (NZT)
Nik Tzanev – Newport County (English League Two)
The first of our goalkeeping dominoes has fallen. Still waiting on what Max Crocombe’s going to do - although the longer he takes, the more obvious it seems that he won’t be staying with Burton Albion. Alex Paulsen’s had a few speculative links but we’re not much closer to learning where he’ll be playing next season. Zac Jones hasn’t announced his next destination yet. But Nik Tzanev has: he’ll be joining Newport County in England’s League Two (the club itself is Welsh but they compete in the EFL).
The transfer window isn’t currently open so they can’t finalise the move yet even though Northampton Town have long since announced his impending departure. Plus Tanz is away on holiday after having been part of the All Whites squad that went to Canada. But personal terms have been agreed so it’s only a matter of time until he’s pictured waving a scarf around.
Tzanev was really good for Northampton when given the opportunity to play. That didn’t happen often enough though, hence he’s left for first-team footy - no doubt with possible World Cup selection front of mind. Gotta be playing if he’s going to have a chance. The catch to that is he’s dropped from League One to League Two in order to get that game time. And while one season doesn’t necessarily reflect the next, Newport County only finished one spot above relegation in the campaign just gone. They’ve only recently appointed new manager David Hughes (announced in May) and Tzanev will be their second new addition following Welsh international midfielder Matt Smith who’s joined from St Johnstone in Scotland.
For the past seven years, Antigua and Barbuda international Nick Townsend has been the gloveman at Newport, making over 200 appearances for the club and winning Supporters Player of the Year for the past two years running (chunky shoes for the replacement NT to fill). Townsend was offered a new deal last month but it was confirmed a week ago that he’d rejected the offer and would be leaving... with a note that Newport had already agreed terms with his replacement. We know now that Nik Tzanev was that guy. Curiously, Townsend ended up joining Eastleigh FC in the National League one tier down. Last year’s backup, former Man United academy lad Jacob Carney, is still there to give Tzanev some competition for the number one spot.
Speaking of kiwi keepers in Wales, we’re still waiting on confirmation of Zac Jones’ next move after he left Haverfordwest County on a high. Hwest have already replaced him... but Jones remains in between. Probably because he’s been back in NZ for a visit (hence why he was unable to attend the Cymru Premier awards in person to collect his Golden Gloves trophy). The Welsh media have pretty much told us that he’ll be joining perennial champs The New Saints (who themselves are yet to announce a replacement for their own long-serving goalie... keeping that plan on track) but we’ll just have to stay patient.
Up Next: Holidays then formalities
Jay Herdman - Cavalry FC (Canadian Premier League)
See if you can spot who got the assist for this rocket of a strike from Sergio Camargo...
That’s right, it’s our mate Jay Herdman. It actually hasn’t been a great year for him so far. He joined Cavalry on loan in mid-2024 and helped give them a push on their way to winning the Canadian Premier League and then signed on permanent terms for this year after missing out on an MLS contract with Vancouver Whitecaps. Herdman started both of Cavlary’s Concacaf Champions Cup games against Pumas, setting up a goal in the first leg... but then getting sent off in the second leg. And after starting the first two games of the CPL season, he was subbed off at half-time of the second and had mostly only played on the bench since (with the team scoring goals and winning games without him).
So it was a relief to see him not only back in the eleven for the visit from York United but also going the full ninety for the first time all year (other than a first round Canadian Championship cup game against a lower-tiered opponent). Plus he set up the first goal as Cavalry went on to win 2-1 in pretty sweltering conditions. That win lifted them to second-equal on the back of a six-game unbeaten streak. But wait there’s more because Jay Herdman even got a Team of the Week nod for his efforts...
CanPL.ca: “Jay Herdman (Cavalry FC) - Herdman played a key role in Cavalry's 2-1 win over York United, picking up an assist on Sergio Camargo's opener, while creating three chances. He also put in an outstanding shift defensively, winning 8 of 12 duels.”
Herdman’s been in and out of the line-up so a start here was nothing abnormal... but it’s possible that he wouldn’t have been picked were it not for a few injuries and international call-ups. Full credit to the bloke for making his opportunity count and clearly it worked because he retained that spot for the 1-1 draw away to Wanderers that followed. The home side took the lead after eight minutes but Cavalry battled away with more possession and eventually levelled things up through Caniggia Elva after 68 mins, that bloke scoring immediately after being subbed on as part of a double change that ended Herdman’s involvement for the day. Herdman’s best contribution was actually a defensive one, making a brilliant recovering tackle in the box in the first half. Not the finest outing for Cavalry as a wider team but the unbeaten streak rose to seven with this result, although they did drop to third.
In other CPL activities, Monty Patterson’s Atletico Ottawa are the league leaders having only lost once in 11 fixtures this year. Seems like they might be threatening to pull away from the crowd too. Patterson’s the backup striker so he’s only getting short substitute appearances. He’s yet to play more than twenty minutes in a match. All up, he’s played nine times for 86 minutes... though he does have a goal and two assists.
Up Next: Cavalry vs Pacific at 10am on Sunday (NZT)
Betsy Hassett - Stjarnan (Icelandic Besta Deildin)
Haven’t had too many chances to catch up with Betsy Hassett since she returned to footy after giving birth to her son Nói. She’s said she originally intended to retire after the Olympics but then changed her mind and re-signed with Stjarnan... where she’s become a regular first eleven player just like she was before motherhood. Only difference is that she’s been converted to a fullback instead of a midfielder (as we also saw with the Football Ferns against Venezuela). Usually on the left though occasionally on the right.
She was at RB on the weekend when Stjarnan defied their 37% possession and small fraction of the chances against Thróttur Reykjavík to win 2-0 courtesy of an early goal from Hrefna Jónsdóttir (11’) and a late goal from Úlfa Úlfarsdóttir (83’). They defended well, their keeper made a bunch of saves, and they took their opportunities on attack. Hassett played ninety minutes. That was a fantastic win against the league leaders (who drop to third as a result). The Stars are sitting sixth with four wins and five defeats (and no draws). No goals or assists for Hassett since she switched into this more defensive role but she has been getting forward, especially against the lower teams, so there should be a few on the way.
Up Next: Sunday at 2am at home against Breiðablik (NZT)
Owen Parker-Price, Dom Woolridge, Harry Moss-Edge & Sean Bright – Torslanda IK (Swedish Ettan Södra)
We shall ignore the fact that Torslanda conceded three times (and got a red card) in the final twenty minutes of their game away against Skövde. They were 2-0 up after 22 minutes then absolutely blew it to lose 3-2 in the end (probably because Dom Woolridge was unavailable at the back... although Moss-Edge and Bright both played ninety alongside OPP). Instead we’ll just focus on Owen Parker-Price adding another goal to his yearly tally...
All four of the kiwis at Torslanda are among their best players but Parker-Price continues to prove himself as one of the strongest talents in the whole division. He’s 26 years old now and clearly committed to the project there because there’s no doubt he could play at a higher level. OPP has been on the pitch for every minute of the Ettan Södra to date, leading to his ten goal contributions from midfield. He also set up the first goal against Skövde. Torslanda are hanging out in the mid-table ranges of the Swedish third tier.
Up Next: Thursday at 5am sees Torlsanda vs Ljungskile (NZT)
Olivia Chance & Liz Anton – Kolbotn (Norwegian Toppserien)
The good news is that Liv Chance and Liz Anton are very much ninety minute players for Kolbotn. Chance in the midfield, Anton in central defence. The bad news is that, after failing to overcome an early goal to lose 1-0 against Stabaek, they still haven’t won a game since April and have dipped into last place of the standings. They do have a game in hand against Røa, who are only two places above them, but even if they win that they’ll still be one point adrift. Much work to be done.
Up Next: Kolbotn vs Rosenborg at 4am on Friday (NZT)
Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)
He may have said he doesn’t want to have to bother with the All Star game but the people are speaking and as of the last major MLS update a few days back, Boxy was running second among all central defenders in fan voting. Only issue there is that Finn Surman wasn’t keeping him company...
Voting closed last week so it’s looking like Michael Boxall will be getting the first All Star nod of his career. We’ll find out next week when the squads are announced. The MLS All Stars have changed through the years so it’s not the easiest thing to research but Ryan Nelsen played in the 2003 edition and it would appear that’s the only previous kiwi involvement. Even Simon Elliott never got get picked when he was among the league’s top assisters year after year.
There’s even a bit of Defender Of The Year buzz for Boxy coming from the MLS media side of things. That really would be unprecedented (unless you count Abby Erceg in the NWSL who won the equivalent honour in 2018). Again, Nelsen is the only precedent having been shortlisted for the award in 2003 (Carlos Bocanegra won instead). Nelsen also made two MLS Best 11s (2003 and 2004), another thing that none of the other 21 NZers who’ve played MLS have accomplished.
The way it works with the All Stars is that 12 players are picked by fan voting, another 12 players are picked by the coaching staff, and then the commissioner adds two more players... presumably in case the fans and coaches forget to include Lionel Messi. That squad will play a game against a selection of the best players in Liga MX on 23 July in Texas. Don’t overlook the possibility of Finn Surman getting in there by coaches choice either – Surman had a strong game against Austin FC in a 0-0 draw back in April and it’s AFC’s boss Nico Estevez who gets to make those selections. The Timbers have been doing their bit to get Surman to Texas...
Alas, after all that, Minnesota United had a defensive nightmare against San Diego FC this week where they blew 1-0 and 2-1 leads to ultimately lose 4-2. To be fair, Minny’s first goal had nothing to do with them. The SD goalie simply missed a backpass under his foot for a comical own goal out of absolutely nowhere. Nevertheless, they were 2-1 up at half-time and usually this season that’s been enough for them. But they were shorthanded here. Michael Boxall backed up after All Whites duty but the Loons were without goalkeeper Dayne St Clair and top scorer Tani Oluwaseyi who were both away with the Canadian side.
At least the Loons are still third on the table... equal on points (but ahead by goal difference) with the Portland Timbers who drew 1-1 with San Jose with Finn Surman in the line-up. Looked like they’d won it after Juan Mosquera scored with twenty minutes left but unfortunately they leaked an equaliser in stoppage time. Surman might have done a little more to keep with his marker but really it was a goalkeeping error, spilling a shot that was straight at him from outside the box right at the feet of Preston Judd. Bugger. Unlike Minnesota, Portland also had a game during the international break so Surman missed a 2-1 victory against St Louis.
Also, shout out this champion for catching a plane to Cincinnati to watch brother Nikko play for Auckland City at the Club World Cup…
Up Next: No games this weekend in the MLS
Vic Esson - Rangers FC (Scottish Premier League)
Rangers FC no longer, after it was announced that Vic Esson will be leaving the club following three years of service. That shouldn’t have caught anyone off guard after she spent the vast majority of the past few months on the bench watching on as Rangers won two cup finals and narrowly missed out on the SWPL title on the final day. She’d been in a job share with Scottish international Jenna Fife for all three years she was with the ‘Gers, with a more or less 50% split between the starts, but that seemed to change recently which makes this news very understandable. Esson has a national team spot to prioritise. She doesn’t want to be sitting on the bench.
Rangers were in contention for three trophies so her benching probably had nothing to do with an impending departure. They were trying to win games. Granted, they did sign Icelandic international Telma Ívarsdóttir in January which could be seen as a proactive measure for this outcome. But the bottom line is that Esson simply felt it was time for a change, as she said in her farewell statement.
Esson previously spent three years with Avaldsnes in Norway and six months with SC Sand in Germany so she’s pretty well travelled and has her international reputation to fall back on as well. Shouldn’t have any trouble finding another gig at a high level.
Up Next: Agent stuff
Max Mata - Shrewsbury Town (English League One)
Shropshire Star: “After his spell in his homeland [Max Mata] will join up with his Shrewsbury team-mates at the end of this month when they return to their Sundorne Castle training base to begin preparations for next season. Town will be seeking to bounce back after they were relegated to League Two following a very difficult campaign.”
There you have it, Max Mata’s loan at Auckland FC has come to an end and Shrewsbury Town will be recalling him for next season. He’s still got one more year on his deal there. Could be that he ends up out on loan again, though probably not at AFC who seem likely to fill his target man striker role with an import. Before anything else, Mata will report for preseason with a chance to earn his way back in with the Shrews as they seek to bounce back from relegation to England’s League Two. The assistant coach was asked a few weeks ago about the prospect of recalling Mata (and others) now that the situation had changed and he promised all such fringe players a clean slate.
Shrewsbury assistant coach Richard O’Donnell: “Absolutely, yes. Everyone who reports in pre-season has a clean slate. So we are all moving in the right direction. It has been a difficult season for the football club. That is previous, now we are looking forward, and we want to be really positive in how we approach it. We want it to be a really positive work environment for them to come into because that is what it is - they have to come into that with a positive mindset and be prepared to take risks and embrace the challenges that we put upon them.”
Keep in mind that multiple managers have come and gone since Mata got his previous chance with the club. He was signed by Matthew Taylor and got a run of starts under him but only provided one goal and one assist in 1036 League One minutes. Then Taylor got dumped and was replaced by Paul Hurst, who saw no use for Mata at all, therefore he was loaned back to Sligo Rovers. Hurst only lasted a couple months into the following season (by which time Mata was at Auckland FC) before Gareth Ainsworth took his job. Ainsworth then got flicked with the team on track for relegation and Michael Appleton was hired to deal with that eventuality. So a clean slate is only fair.
Up Next: Sounds like they’ve got preseason friendlies lined up throughout July
Jacqui Hand & Olivia Page - Sheffield United (English Super League 2)
Significant changes are happening in English women’s football... and these two can headline the update because they’ve felt the immediate positive ramifications. To begin with, there’s been a rebranding so the second tier is no longer the Championship, it’s now WSL 2. Bit silly but whatever. Then there’s also been news that Blackburn Rovers have withdrawn from the division for financial reasons. The same thing happened to Reading before last season which was why only one team got relegated... and that one team was Sheffield United.
But with Blackburn also now dipping out, that means nobody needs to be relegated. As a result, Sheffield United have been reinstated in the second tier. No relegation. That’s lovely news for Olivia Page, who is part of a successful youth wave at the club which has begun filtering into the top team. She might have stayed regardless. It also gives Jacqui Hand a decision to make since she, as a first-choice Football Fern, surely couldn’t have justified sticking around in the third tier. She may still decide it’s time to leave but at least now she’s got another option where she’s already settled as a first choice player.
Nottingham Forest and Ipswich have been promoted from the third tier. London City Lionesses have been promoted as champions and hopefully Grace Neville will remain with them in the top flight, while previous WSL 2 champs Crystal Palace were relegated with Indi Riley on the books. And that’s not all because the stakeholders have decided that after next season, the WSL will expand to 14 teams. In order to accomplish that, the 2025-26 campaign will have a unique format where the top two WSL 2 finishers get automatically promoted, instead of only the champs, while third place will also get a playoff against the bottom team in the WSL (there had been some criticism that the WSL was becoming too much of a closed door so they’ve presumably added the playoff to keep the threat of relegation alive despite the expansion). After that it’ll return to the usual format of one up, one down. They haven’t yet decided what to do about the third tier teams moving up.
That creates a huge window of opportunity for a shot at the top league for those various WSL 2 clubs. Last season, we had Jacqui Hand and Olivia Page (Sheffield United), Mickey Foster and Hannah Blake (Durham), Katie Kitching (Sunderland), and Grace Neville (London City) all involved while Indi Riley (Crystal Palace) and CJ Bott (Leicester City) were the two WSL representatives after Anna Leat (Aston Villa) left in January. None of these clubs have been any good at updating who’s staying or leaving but note that the previous season’s contracts expire at the end of June so that’s when information should begin falling into place.
Up Next: Patience
Dane Ingham - Sabah FC (Malaysian Super League)
Released by Newcastle Jets, signed by Sabah FC. Dane Ingham is moving to Malaysia where he’ll be joined by fellow A-Leagues alum Dean Pelekanos (Western Sydney). Australian Scott Ollerenshaw is the sporting director at Sabah, where he’ll be plotting something better than the third-placed finish they had last season. With 40 points from 24 matches, they ended up way off in the distance of champions Johor Darul Ta'zim (70pts) and runners-up Selangor (52pts).
There has been one New Zealander play in the Malaysian Super League before. Goalkeeper Lawton Green spent last season with Kuala Lumpur City, making one 10-minute substitute appearance in the MSL. Green was born in Tauranga and spent time in Scotland with Motherwell and Greenock Morton prior to the KLC move. He’s still only 21 years old though it’s not yet clear if he’ll be back next season.
Up Next: The next season kicks off in August
Elijah Just - SKN St. Pölten (Austrian Erste Liga)
Up Next: Goals, goals, goals
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest (English Premier League)
Up Next: Goals, goals, goals
The Niche Cache is out here in the trenches for kiwi sports, so if you appreciate the yarns and can spare a little currency to help us out then Patreon, Substack, or Buy Me A Coffee are the places to go
Also helps to whack an ad, share the articles around, and let all your mates know about us too