Flying Kiwis – January 7
Elijah Just – Motherwell (Scottish Premiership)
There aren’t many All Whites (or Football Ferns either, for that matter), who can claim to have had a better 2025 than Elijah Just. In fact, you can stretch that out to the last 18 months... and there’s no end in sight. After getting out of what had become a stink situation at AC Horsens, Just began scoring goals for fun playing for St Pölten in Austria and now he’s an instant favourite at Motherwell in Scotland, looking fantastic for a team that’s playing some of the most attractive possession-based footy in the division and lately have been winning a whole lot of games that way too. Chuck in a bunch of goals for the national team (including the winner against Ivory Coast) and it’s all been going swell for him.
Last time we checked in, Motherwell had just made it six clean sheets in a row after beating Dundee FC 1-0. They subsequently lost 1-0 to Rangers to bust that streak but what followed was one of the most famous results this club has experienced for many years: Motherwell 2-0 Celtic. Ibrahim Said (14’) and Elliot Watt (58’) scored the goals. Motherwell hadn’t beaten Celtic for close to 13 years, a stretch that spanned 35 games of football.
All that was missing was an Elijah Just goal because he was absolutely fantastic in this match, involved in so much of his team’s slick play, drawing fouls and whipping in crosses, winning the ball in midfield, dribbling past challenges... and especially getting shots away. Just had six attempts in this match, two on target. The closest he came was his first attempt which curled just past the far post. The most effective was a blocked attempt after Just, setting up within the high press, stole a pass directly from Celtic goalkeeper Kaspar Schmeichel on the edge of the area. EJ’s shot may have been charged down but it deflected nicely for Watt to score Motherwell’s second.
The kiwi playmaker is all over the highlights package. To turn in a performance like that against an Auld Firm club is some serious business, especially when the main criticism of his wonderful form in Austria was that it was at a comparatively low level (there are three main factors with kiwi footballers overseas: playing time, performance level, and quality of the league... as long as 2/3 are ticked, we don’t need to get greedy).
But wait there’s more because Motherwell had to back it up four days later – their third game in eight days – against St Mirren and that fixture went the same way. Defensively magnificent on the way to another clean sheet. Goals either side of half-time to set up a 2-0 victory. Tawanda Maswanhise (35’) and Elliot Watt (57’). And, hmm, yes, let’s have a peek at who created and assisted that opening goal...
Once again. That’s three goals and four assists in 1324 Premiership minutes... but even when he’s not getting the goal contributions (like against Celtic) he still looks awesome. Just guy is brimming with confidence, playing for a coach who understands him in a system that suits him. He’s risen to the level. No need to worry about the physicality because these defenders can’t seem to catch him with the way he drifts into pockets of space and collects the ball in motion. The workrate is madness too. It’s a joy to witness.
Case and point, have a look at this analysis of how clever and anticipatory he is with his pressing. This is such a big part of how Motherwell like to play under Askou and was a crucial reason how they picked apart Celtic...
And now let’s introduce a more oblique football stat: Pack Count. This is a simple tally of the amount of defenders that a player progress the ball beyond during the game, either via vertical passing or by dribbling. Just does both of those things really well and, as you can see, he was almost double any other player in the match by that measurement...
Gotta stress that the formula is proving a success for the overall team as well. These two victories have lifted Motherwell up to within two points of second-placed Celtic (who lost 3-1 to Rangers after losing to Motherwell and thus instead of going top they’ve fallen six-points behind the upstarts of Hearts – Celtic sacked their manager after those two defeats), albeit having played one game more. Best defence in the competition with one measly goal conceded in their past nine fixtures. Starting to score a few more themselves now. Only three defeats from 21 matches. The Motherwell Machine is churning.
Unlike the Kilmarnock Machine which lost 3-1 against Hibernian. They’d gone 10 matches without a win when they sacked Stuart Kettlewell. They’ve now gone 14 games without a win. The interim boss has restored a back four and George Stanger’s been the one to miss out – he hasn’t played in any of the four matches since Kettlewell got the flick. But it’s not like they’ve been any better without him so surely he gets another chance soon. Either that or they can hurry up and hire a permanent boss.
Up Next: Sunday at 4am, Hibs vs Motherwell (NZT)
Andre De Jong - Orlando Pirates (South African Premiership)
There it is, a secret so poorly kept that it wasn’t even a secret. Been waiting since 00:01 on 1 January for this news to come down the line and finally it’s confirmed that Andre De Jong has swapped Stellenbosch for Orlando Pirates – a move which would have been a slight upgrade in the previous two seasons but which becomes a gigantic switch based on this season’s form. He’s going from the tail to the top.
Each of the previous two seasons finished with Mamelodi Sundowsn in first, Orlando Pirates in second, and Stellenbosch in third. But 2025-26 has Pirates in a legitimate title race whereas Stellies are one point above the relegation zone. As often happens when underdogs have a spell of success, a few too many players (and also more recently their coach Steve Barker) have departed in the wake of that and they haven’t necessarily got the resources to replace them straight away. In other words: it was a good time to leave. Stellies did at least manage to re-sign star forward Devin Titus to offset this damage. Plus they do still have former Wellington Phoenix scholarship goalkeeper Dublin Boon in their reserve team to maintain some kiwi presence.
Stellenbosch FC: “Stellenbosch Football Club has reached an agreement with Orlando Pirates Football Club for the permanent transfer of Andre de Jong. The New Zealand international joined Stellenbosch from Royal AM in January 2023 and went on to record 19 goals and 11 assists in 114 appearances during his spell in the Cape Winelands. De Jong was a notable figure in the squads that won the 2023 Carling Knockout trophy and reached back-to-back MTN8 finals, and scored Stellies’ first-ever continental goal during the 2024-25 CAF Confederation Cup campaign. His contributions to the Club’s success will be fondly remembered, and he departs with the gratitude and best wishes of all at Stellenbosch FC as he embarks on the next chapter of his career.”
Orlando Pirates have been after De Jong for a while now. They tried for him at the start and then again at the end of the offseason transfer window. Eventually they got him at the third time of asking... and you’d have to assume the undisclosed fee was probably marginal since he only had six months left on his contract. Could have gotten him on a free if they’d waited but obviously they want him for the title push. Pirates therefore become ADJ’s fourth South African club following stints at AmaZulu, Royal AM, and most notably at Stellenbosch.
Clearly they have a vision for him since they worked so persistently to sign him... but there’s no guarantee that ADJ will walk into the starting team for a club as strong as this where his rivals for minutes will include current South African interantionals. It’s a huge move and he wasn’t actually having that strong of a season with Stellies. Admittedly, lots of that was down to the depleted options around him, often leaving him having to play as the furthest man forward. Pirates operate with a good old fashioned target man in Evidence Makgopa so De Jong will be seen much more as a link man between midfield and attack which is where he’s at his best. Pirates know that well – their head of performance, Ruan Rust, used to work at Stellies with ADJ.
Stellenbosch FC head of recruitment Brendon Fourie, from 2024: “Andre is an interesting case study. We think Andre is one of the most under-rated footballer in South Africa. When we talk about players who are under-rated, we say they are 'Andre-rated', because he's got his own metric. What we saw is that sometimes, we needed to not just be able to play on the counter all the time. Andre was someone that gave us something different - he's an outlet. When you can't build up, when teams are sitting a little bit deeper, he can find a little bit of space. He can also run in behind. He presses a lot more than people think. He's not really quick, but he presses. What drew me to Andre was: he was the only forward, number 10 - or whatever you want to call it - that was above average for almost any metric that you looked at. Usually, when you see players like that, you think: 'OK. This is a player who adjust to what the game requires.”
Orlando Pirates are currently top of the Premiership with 28 points from 12 matches, two clear of defending champs Mamelodi Sundowns who have played an extra game. Long way to go yet, they’re not even halfway, but so far so good. Pirates last won the SA Premiership back in 2011-12. They’ve been runners-up behind Sundowns in three consecutive seasons.
Up Next: The South African league is currently on break for AFCON so ADJ’s debut won’t come for a few weeks until they face Sekhukhune United away at 2.30am on Sunday 25 January (NZT)
Emma Pijnenburg – Feyenoord (Dutch Eredivisie)
Nothing new here... EP has already played twice for the Wellington Phoenix since this move was announced. But it was announced and it does bring an end to Pijnenburg’s time in the Netherlands, where she made 28 appearances for their first team, most of those in the Eredivisie. Only 145 minutes this season but she had begun to be used much more in her preferred midfield role so it’s not like she’d hit a wall... although with only six months left on her contract and the offer of a much more prominent spot back in Aotearoa with the Welly Nix that was a perfectly understandable move to make, negotiating an early release. Pijnenburg is officially an injury replacement signing to cover for Alyssa Whinham who tore her ACL early in the season.
Pijnenburg was 18 years old when she left Western Springs to join Feyenoord, initially playing in their academy system before making a first-team debut in February 2024 and going on to play regularly at fullback for the rest of that season (which included a run to the Dutch Cup semis and also her only Eredivisie goal). She wasn’t able to hold a regular starting spot in the subsequent season and a half that she spent there although she was always in matchday squads. She’s also broken into the Football Ferns equation under Michael Mayne, making seven appearances for the national team last year.
Her move to the Phoenix was advertised as another Football Fern returning home but that’s putting more expectation on Pijnenburg than is fair at this stage of her career. She’s got seven international caps but they’ve all been as a substitute. Still only 21 years old and was a youth team graduate squad member at Feyenoord, never a locked-on started except during the injury crisis that led to her debut. Nowhere near on par with top choice internationals like CJ Bott and Vic Esson who are much closer to the other end of their careers with all the experience that entails... but without doubt one of NZ’s most promising midfield talents and absolutely someone who could vault herself back into European football in a few years.
Up Next: COYN for the Pijnenburgs
Tyler Bindon - Sheffield United (English Championship)
You can get whiplash from tracking these things sometimes. Boxing Day was not a good one for Tyler Bindon. Retaining his spot after a brilliant goal-scoring performance in the 3-0 win against Birmingham six days earlier, Bindon had a shocker away against Wrexham. The Blades were leading 3-1 after 25 minutes with Patrick Bamford scoring a hatty... but they couldn’t deal with the aerial threat of Keiffer Moore up the other end with the Welshman scoring twice in what ended up being a 5-3 victory for Wrexham. Rotten giveaway from the Blades.
That alone would have been bad enough, especially since Bindon was one of those who struggled so badly against Moore. But it got worse. Bindon scored an own goal after nine minutes and then gave away a penalty within the last ten. Both of those were unlucky. The OG was a touch-back from close range which he had to play at but it got to him quicker than he could handle as he tried to dig it away with the outside of his boot. As for the penalty, well, they were already losing at that stage but had just had a chance blocked in search of an equaliser. Then Wrexham broke away and Bindon, who’d been caught jockeying his man without committing in the lead-up to the fourth concession, overcompensated by sliding a split-second too late... although it didn’t look like there was much contact. George Thomason saw Bindon go to ground and then left his leg in to draw the foul. Thomason was the starting left wing-back for Wrexham so on another day that could have been Bindon fouling Liberato Cacace instead.
Nasty stuff for Bindon, an own goal and a penalty conceded in the same game having only just gotten his Blades career going properly. But the whiplash goes both ways. As much as the fanbase was willing to point fingers of blame at him for that result, they were quickly singing his praises again after a tremendous performance in a 2-1 win away to Stoke City a couple of days later.
Chris Wilder made several changes to his line-up but not to his central defence, instead demanding a rebound... which he got. Stoke’s attack has been sharp lately so the focus was on Japhet Tanganga and Tyler Bindon to hold their own and they barely gave the Potters a sniff until they were already 2-0 up. Bindon even helped with that attacking part too – going up for a free kick and managing to squeeze a half-blocked effort from the second phase, which was dribbling towards goal and would have been cleared off the line but for Jairo Riedewald getting in the way to claim the goal. No assist for that but it’s a goal that wouldn't have happened without Bindon’s efforts. Great time to score, two minutes into the second half, after having been dominant but wasteful in the first spell.
They’d score again through ex-Stoke man Tom Cannon about five minutes later, nice finish back post from a corner kick (set pieces doing the trick on this day). However, Stoke pulled one back on 65’ after a long throw went uncleared and the Blades had to knuckle down from there. The last 25 mins were nowhere near as flash as the 65 that preceded them but the grittiness was there when required as they held on for the 2-1 win.
And since this is the craziest time of the year where most leagues ease up for a few weeks yet in England they instead decide to double the workload... Sheffield United also had to face Leicester City and it would have been four games in 11 days had a frozen pitch not postponed the visit of Oxford United afterwards. So just the three games within this fortnight’s round-up. Sheff Utd won the Leicester City game 3-1 in one of their best displays of the whole season, only conceding in stoppage time to spoil what would have been a deserved clean sheet. Quieter from Bindon on this occasion but it won’t be lost on his gaffer that TB has been involved in a lot of victories lately. His first four Championship appearances were all defeats back during the brief Ruben Selles window. Since then he’s played in six games and they’ve won four, drawn one, and lost one.
That’s useful information because while Bindon has finally and deservedly overtaken Mark McGuinness in the depth chart... Ben Mee is about to return from injury and he’s a fella whose absence has been noted with sadness by the manager more than a few times. The Oxford game might have given us an answer there, instead we’ll have to wait a bit longer to see if Bindon has done enough to hold this spot down. What we do know is that, a month after the rumours that Bindon’s loan was going to be cut short in January, he’s still there after Ben Godfrey and Louie Barry were sent back to their parent clubs. Bad news for Oxford United who had him on their longlist of January transfer targets, based on a printout that accidentally popped up on their social media...
Up Next: Sheffield United vs Mansfield Town at 3.30am on Monday in the FA Cup third round (NZT)
Max Crocombe - Millwall (English Championship)
Not to be overshadowed, Max Crocombe’s Millwall have bounced back nicely since the defeats against Blackburn Rovers and Hull City prior to Christmas. First was a Boxing Day clean sheet in a 0-0 draw against fellow playoff challengers Ipswich Town. Crocombe made four saves, the only challenging one of those being a stop with his knee at the near post. Millwall almost snuck it with a runaway goal near the end which got called back for a marginal offside but the defence held it down throughout, particularly in the second half as Ipswich turned up the heat, and everyone was chuffed enough with a point against a team above them on the ladder.
Then they won 2-1 against Bristol City a few days later. Crocombe perhaps ought to have done more with the goal he conceded, beaten at his near post from a shot inside the box. He made a couple other routine stops in that match before the Lions won it with an 81st minute close-range flipper from Macauley Langstaff. Next came another Crocs clean sheet in a pretty dull 0-0 draw against Southampton. Still made a couple saves therein, including a good two-hander at close range from a corner kick situation early in the fixture.
After which came another dramatic win, beating Swansea City thanks to a 90+2nd minute Caleb Taylor goal. No Marko Stamenic for the Swans – he was rested after playing three times in a week, although did pop up off the bench for the last 15 minutes. It was Swansea keeper Lawrence Vigouroux who got all the buzz after some magnificent saves along the way, albeit in defeat, but Crocombe had a great game too. Six saves including four from inside the area. One of those was after he’d shanked a clearance to put his team under pressure but hey he dealt with the situation. There was also an amazing reaction save against Ethan Galbraith while it was 1-1. Did what he needed to do to keep his team in the contest before they went up and won it (Stamenic getting outjumped for the header at the back post).
The January transfer window has opened and Millwall are only two points out of automatic promotion. It’s not out of the question they might decide they need a more renowned goalkeeper to deal with their change in hopes/expectations. Probably not though. There’s Lukas Jensen to return from injury at some stage and Steven Benda is still hanging around. But more to the point, they’re winning these games with Max Crocombe between the sticks. He’s got a save percentage of 75% which is the third highest mark in the division. Six clean sheets in 17 matches. If you wanna get more analytical about it, he’s ranked in the top ten for Post-Shot xG differential, both cumulatively and also per/90 mins. Obviously the distribution isn’t up to much, that’s never been his strong point, and he kicks long from goal kicks more than any other Championship keeper (he also has one of the biggest boots). But he’s playing well and they’re winning games... what more does anyone really want?
Up Next: FA Cup third rounder away to Burnley at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Marko Stamenic - Swansea City (English Championship)
Listen closely to the Swansea City broadcasts and you might be able to pick up a new fan chant:
“He’s our big kiwi, he wears the number six... his name is Marko, Marko Stamenic”
Or something to that effect, anyway. Point being that they love him now. He’s not doing all that much different to what he was doing at the start of the season, though previous Flying Kiwis yarns have explored how he’s added a little more attacking impetus to his game, but the main difference is just that the team is much better under new coach Vitor Matos. After winning four of their first 18 matches, they’ve since won five of their last eight and that’s including the defeat against Millwall most recently... in which Stamenic was on the bench, rested for all but the last quarter of an hour after playing every minute of the three games (!) between Christmas and New Years Day. When the team is performing and getting results, everyone looks better. Particularly classy defensive midfielders, hence things like this start happening...
That was after a brilliant display from Stam in a 1-0 win over Oxford United. He scored his only Championship goal thus far the previous time he played Oxford, this time it was all about his defensive shift as the Swans held on for victory after Jan Vipotnik’s early goal (13’). Stamenic completed 78% of his passes, he made seven interceptions, seven defensive recoveries, a couple of clearances, a couple of fouls too (with a booking). Basically, he imposed himself upon a close game and helped his team to snatch the points. The Swans have only won once without him in the starting line-up this Championship season and that was before he signed. There are only three players in the squad with positive goal differences during their league minutes: Marko Stamenic, Jan Vipotnik, and Zeidane Inoussa.
Sidenote: remember how the first thing that Stamenic did on debut for Swansea City was to chop down Nestor Irankunda and get yellow carded? He got four bookings in his first nine Championship appearances which put him on the brink of an accumulation suspension. The amnesty doesn’t come until the team’s 19th game... which meant that the weeks he missed during his bereavement leave brought him closer to that limit although he still managed to avoid a booking in four games after his return to get him to the amnesty. And what’s he done since then? Four yellows in seven matches. Now that’s a brother that knows where the line is. The next limit is ten yellows and the amnesty for that is game 37 (Swansea have played 26... so he’s probably not going to make it to that one).
Up Next: Swansea vs West Brom in the FA Cup third round at 3.30am on Monday (NZT)
Liberato Cacace - Wrexham (English Championship)
We’ve been waiting since early November for that sight. In a half-season blighted by injuries – the first time in his entire professional career that he’s had to deal with injuries – Liberato Cacace only appeared in 7 of Wrexham’s first 24 games back in the Championship.
The Red Dragons have had to work through a few different LWB options in that time, with midfielder George Thomason doing a nice job of it lately. They’ve also found their feet after a slow start. Remember how much their defensive record relied on Cacace’s presence earlier on? Only three goals conceded in the 490 mins that he’s been on the pitch for... but they’ve gotten a lot better since then, surging up the ladder with some super results.
That means Cacace will have to earn his spot back in what’s now a winning team. It also means they’ve had the luxury of being able to take their time working him back to fitness which should be better for him in the long run. Cacace’s return to the Wrexham squad has coincided with a four-game winning streak... yet he’s actually only played seven minutes during that. He was an unused sub in the 5-3 win against Wrexham and again for the 2-1 win against Preston. He then got subbed on late in both the 2-0 win against Blackburn and the 2-1 win against Derby County.
Tentative steps back into action but it’s great to see him active and available again. Get ready to start hearing Wrexham fans claiming “he’s like a new signing” as soon as he gets going properly, he’s been there six months and they still haven’t seen anything except glimpses of the player that us All Whites supporters know and love. An FA Cup tie against a Chris Wood-less Nottm Forest next week could a low-risk opportunity to stretch Libby’s hamstrings out a bit more. By the way, these four league wins on the trot have gotten Wrexham up within one point of the playoff positions... suddenly they’re in the promotion mix.
Up Next: FA Cup away to Nottingham Forest on Saturday at 8.30am (NZT)
Noah DuPont - West Bromwich Albion (English Championship)
Not a lot of low numbers in that West Brom matchday squad, aye? Lots of games in a short space of time combined with a few injuries and whatever else has stretched the Baggies to their limit and one of the beneficiaries of that has been NZ U20s defender Noah DuPont who you’ll notice there in the #44 jersey amongst the substitutes. What’s more, this 1-0 defeat against Swansea City (already discussed in the Marko Stamenic section... lots of overlap with all that’s going on in the English second tier) wasn’t the first instance of DuPont’s promotion either. It was the third. Three matchdays squads in a row... no senior debut just yet for the 18yo but the signs are very encouraging (the streak ended when he wasn’t involved in the game against Leicester City on Tuesday morn... also coach Ryan Mason has since been sacked).
DuPont was born in England with a kiwi mother. He’s been in the WBA academy since he was six years old and signed his first pro contract last year not long after turning 17. Even by then he’d already played a handful of games for the U21s and he’s played plenty more since. Travelled with the first team squad a few times before this recent run of bench nods. DuPont started all three games for NZ at the 2023 U17 World Cup and was the second youngest player selected, behind Luke Brooke-Smith, in the U20 World Cup squad in September 2025 where he made one appearance off the bench (he’ll be eligible again in 2027). This is a quote from when he signed that first pro deal last April...
WBA Academy Manager Richard Stevens: “As a centre-half you need certain qualities, and Noah has those. He’s strong, competitive, has a good frame which will make him a really good, modern-day defender, and he’s shown he can cope against the levels above his age group. Training with the first team when they’ve needed players, playing for the 21s and particularly when they’ve competed in the National League Cup, he’s shown he can play against men and stand up to those challenges. The attributes he has will develop him into a good footballer and I believe our programme is going to help him do that.”
Yeah, well, that programme seems to be working because DuPont is racing his way through the ranks. Here he is talking after scoring in a 5-1 Premier League Cup (U21s) win over Luton Town in November. He scored again three weeks later against Brentford U21s in the same competition...
DuPont’s not the first kiwi to sneak onto the Baggies bench this season either. Former Auckland City keeper Joe Wallis, who was also part of that 2025 U20 World Cup squad (though didn’t feature off the bench with another fringe Championship youngster, Henry Gray, taking all of those duties), has been in four matchday squads himself. The most recent was in a 2-0 win over Sheffield United in mid-December. Wallis’ nods have been spread out across the campaign and there has always been another goalkeeper on the bench alongside him so he’s not as close to a debut as DuPont appears to be... but jot that name down as well. 20-year-old Wallis has only made four youth team appearances this season, significantly less than DuPont, because he’s been hanging around the senior squad as their third-choice goalkeeper. At least, that’s the obvious conclusion based on the fact that only three keepers have made Championship matchday squads for West Brom this season and he’s one of them.
Up Next: Swansea City vs West Brom in the FA Cup third round at 3.30am on Monday (NZT)
Matthew Garbett - Peterborough United (English League One)
The Posh got smacked 5-2 by Lincoln City most recently... but before that they’d had a wonderful run throughout December winning 2-1 vs Reading, 2-1 vs Northampton, 1-0 vs Port Vale, 1-0 vs Leyton Orient, drawing 1-1 with Reading, and then beating Rotherham 2-0. Garbett came off the bench in the first Reading game but played at least 70 minutes in all of the others (including the Lincoln loss).
No goals or assists in any of them but he’s continuing to make a name for himself with his dynamic midfield efforts, whether playing through the middle or posted wide on the right. He was voted Player of the Day by the Posh fans for both the Orient and Rotherham victories. The bloke in the Peterborough Telegraph, when writing about the Lincoln loss, referred to Garbs as the team’s “best player” in bemoaning his substitution and later criticised some of the fouls that went unpunished against Garbett (sounds like that was a common complain among Posh faithful).
In other words, yeah he’s doing pretty well. And the team has massively improved since Luke Williams took over for Darren Ferguson as coach – from lingering deep in the relegation zone before, they’re now closer to the playoffs than to the drop zone. Garbett has proved himself as a key player... just maybe gotta add a few more goals and assists to the count. He’s got two goals and one assist in 21 games for the club. He’s above his Expected Goals marker, though that’s because most of his attempts (including both of his goals) have been low percentage efforts from distance. 41 shots in total, 34 from outside the box. 2 goals from 1.70 xG. He’s proven he can score from there though. And the assists aren’t his fault at all. He’s creating chances pretty much every week and the deeper numbers speak of 3.11 xA for just the one actual assist. Ranks highly amongst League One midfielders for his defensive work too, particularly his combativeness and tackling. Easy to see why they love him over there.
And in completely contrasting news... the Ben Waine revival ended abruptly with the firing of Darren Moore as Port Vale manager. Bro spent more than two months winning over the gaffer, finally managed to do exactly that thanks to a few goals in cup competitions and a sneaky switch out to the left-wing... then Moore got sacked and Waine hasn’t been involved in either match since. Returned to the bench for a 1-0 loss to Bradford and then wasn’t even in the squad for a 5-1 win (breaking a 12-game winless streak in the league) against Blackpool. Brutal timing of events for Waine-o. This was under interim coach Jamie Smith and they are hoping to have a new head coach in place shortly so fingers crossed the real bossman sees things differently.
Up Next: Peterborough vs Bolton at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Ben Old - AS Saint-Étienne (French Ligue 2)
Getting at it again after a few weeks off and look at that, Ben Old’s still the left-back. Ebenezer Annan remains injured, wasn’t in the matchday squad, and the more games he misses the more that Ben Old is being allowed to settle and adjust to this new position. This was his fourth match there (third start) and he’s gotten slightly better each time. ASSE did drop more points so that’s now three games without a win (four if you include their French Cup exit) but a 0-0 draw away to Le Mans wasn’t terrible by any means. Certainly not on the defensive end where they kept a welcome clean sheet.
Saint-Étienne have dropped to fourth amidst this wee dip, seven points off leaders Troyes though only one behind second placed Reims. Spots 2-5 are separated by just two points so it’s shaping up to be a hectic promotion race. ASSE have another week off before they play again – it’s a cup weekend next and they’re already out of it. Could be a bit of transfer business between now and then so lots of moving parts in this Ben Old situation but with every subsequent week he looks a little more comfortable.
Up Next: ASSE vs Clermont Foot at 8.55am on Sunday 18 January (NZT)
Moses Dyer - Phnom Penh Crown (Cambodian Premier League)
Two games for Moses Dyer over the past week. Both were victories. He scored twice in a 3-2 win against Army FC, including once from the spot. He then got a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win over Life FC. Beat the army and then beat life... count that as a successful week for PPC. What makes it even better is that Myer Bevan’s Boeung Ket also pulled off an upset 2-1 win against Svay Rieng to allow PPC to jump ahead of the latter into first place. Bevan hit the post in that match, unlucky not to open his account in Cambodia.
Bevan then failed to score in a 6-0 win against Army FC in which his strike partner, Cyrus Dehmie, scored four. He’s starting games and linking up nicely and getting into good positions. It’ll follow. Moses Dyer took a couple games to get fully acclimatised to his new environs too. Only a couple weeks though. At this stage he’s cooking up a feast having scored 15 goals with 3 assists in only 17 matches across all competitions. He’s got 8 of those goals and 2 assists in his 12 league matches.
PPC are now two points clear with a game in hand after Svay Rieng also dropped points by losing 2-1 at home against Visakha... prior to that, the only game they’d lost had been against Crown with Moses Dyer scoring a very, very late winner from the penalty spot. PPC are on a five-game winning streak. They’re seeking to win their first Cambodian championship since going back to back in 2021 and 2022.
Up Next: PPC vs Kompong Dewa at 0:00 on Sunday (NZT)
Ollie Whyte - FC Haka (Finnish Ykkösliiga)
Oliver Whyte has returned to the old stomping ground almost exactly a year after he left. That separation didn’t work out for either party so they’ve reunited to try and make amends. For Whyte, he left to join Muaither SC in the Qatari second tier but didn’t play much so he shifted to Manchester 62 in Gibraltar, where he scored two goals with two assists in nine appearances but the team wasn’t going too flash and it seems that the paycheques weren’t always on time so he left early.
Cue a return to Factory Field... after FC Haka were not only relegated in his absence but also had their main stand burnt down. Terrible times for the club. The fire was started by a trio of teenagers, all under the age of 15, though it’s not clear if it was deliberate or accidental. Whyte (and company) won’t have to rebuild the stand but they will have the task of getting this club back into the top division after their five-year stint came to an end. Last time this club was in the second division, back in 2019, they won 24/27 games to be promoted as champions so that’s the blueprint to follow. Whyte has signed a one-year contract with an option to extend by a further year. He’ll also be working with a newly-hired coach.
Tommi Ekmark, FCH coach: “Oliver is exactly the type of player who fits the football we want to play. He is very hardworking and strong in both directions, who can move the ball and do the desired things with it in both directions. He will play a significant role in achieving our goals next season.”
Ollie Whyte: “I am excited to return to the club, where I have many great memories. My first impression of the new head coach is that he is very ambitious and hard-working. He wants to play an intense attacking game, and that suits my style of play very well. I expect that next season we will be a dominant football team and that we will achieve our goals, we will return to the Veikkausliiga!”
Whyte played 96 times for FC Haka during his first stint, including 67 in the Veikkausliiga (not including European playoffs) on top of various cup competitions and even one Europa Conference League qualifier back in 2023. He scored 14 goals with 16 assists in those 96 matches.
Up Next: Still a few months before the new season begins but the second tier League Cup begins in four weeks with Haka vs SKJ Akatemia at 1.45am on 1 Feb (NZT)
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest (English Premier League)
Nearing on ten weeks since the last time we saw Chris Wood on a football pitch, the All Whites captain went under the knife. Following a spell of what his coach Sean Dyche repeatedly referred to as a “settling down period” it would appear that his knee refused to settle on its own so it’s been given some help. The wait to see The Woodsman scoring goals again will extend a little longer... but just how much longer is the question. Seems like a lot of fans and media (kiwi media in particular) saw the image of Chris Wood doing a thumbs-up in a hospital bed and jumped to worst-case scenarios about “lengthy sideline spells” and “battling to make FIFA World Cup” but the damage doesn’t appear to have been as serious as that.
Wood’s message included this bit referring to his prospective return...
“Truly gutting and frustrating that I’ll be on the sideline for another period of time. It’s what’s needed to come back stronger and better to help my teammates do the job needed in the Prem and in Europe.”
For starters, that strongly hints that he expects to be playing again this season and, given the European reference, not just right at the end either. That inference has been backed up by Sean Dyche talking about it hopefully only being “weeks” before he’s available again. These quotes came after Nottingham Forest’s 2-1 defeat against Manchester City, a match which Wood attended (albeit with a knee brace and crutches) mere days after his surgery. Sounds like this was a clean-up operation and shouldn’t need any extensive recovery.
Sean Dyche: “Woody, yeah, he’s had an operation. At the end of a period of trying to settle it down, which is unfortunate but we had a lot of specialist opinion on trying to get it through naturally. They've decided that it's it's time to go and do it. It's a sort of cartilage operation. We're not sure [how much longer he’ll be out]. It certainly won't be days obviously. We're hoping for weeks. We'll have to wait and see how that settles, but the signs were good from the surgical point of view. We'll see. I don't like throwing time-frames about. We're hoping it's a smooth pathway. It sometimes isn't. So, we'll just have to wait and see.”
Nottingham Forest are currently four points above the relegation zone having lost four games in a row since beating Spurs 3-0 in mid-December. They had a crucial midweeker against West Ham this morning, the team directly beneath them on the ladder (amidst rumours that Hammers boss Nuno Espirito Santo needed a result in order to save his job, having already been sacked by NFFC this season after falling out with the hierarchy), followed by an FA Cup tie against Liberato Cacace’s Wrexham. But Chris Wood’s not going to be fit for either of those tasty duels, unfortunately. Dyche didn’t throw any time-frames about so we can’t do that either.
Up Next: Week by week by week
Zac Jones - AFC Fylde (English National League North)
Unusual instance to finish off this week’s edition... skip to around 1:05 in that video and you’ll see Jago Godden of Bedford Town scoring an own goal – glancing a free kick off his head and past his own keeper – in a 2-0 loss against Zac Jones and AFC Fylde. An own goal within a Flying Kiwis Derby. Not really what we wanted but it happened, there ya go.
In fairness to Godden, he hasn’t stopped scoring ever since he linked up with Bedford Town from Christchurch United so at least this way he was able to put the ball in the net without spoiling the clean sheet of a compatriot. He scored in four of his first six National League appearances, described by the Bedford Independent (in the context of scoring this own goal) as having been “nothing short of superb in blue thus far”. That’s not including cup stuff because he scored in a regional cup fixture too. They’ve played him in midfield (his main position), on the wing, and even up front. Massive impact already.
As for Jonesy, the former Wellington Phoenix and Haverfordwest County man, this was an eighth clean sheet from 25 matches as Fylde continue to march onwards in their promotion quest. They’re second as it stands, two points behind South Shields with an equal number of matches played. He’s been great all season having played every single minute.
In that interview, Jones is asked about a brilliant save he made late in the 3-3 draw against Radcliffe that preceded the Bedford Town game. It was actually a double stop, the first coming off a touch from his own defender. Here’s a peek at that stunner...
But he did concede three that day and one of those was scored, wouldn’t you know it, by a former Wellington Phoenix buddy. Yup, old mate David Ball popped up off the bench for Radcliffe to score his fourth goal of the campaign. That’s as many as he scored in his last three full seasons with the Nix. Jones never made an A-League appearance for the Phoenix but he did sit on the bench seven times, backing up Stefan Marinovic at the end of the 2019-20 season (during the covid bubble portion after Oli Sail got suspended for his golf cart escapade). No obvious link between Jones and Godden, as the latter was too young to have come up against Jones in any National League exploits back in the day.
Up Next: Hereford vs Fylde in the FA Trophy fourth round at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
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