Flying Kiwis – November 13
Jesse Randall – Dundee United / Alex Paulsen – Motherwell (Scottish Premiership)
It was mate against mate over in Scotland. Two former Auckland FC pals going head to head for their current clubs (on the weekend of the derby, no less) in the matchweek immediately before they both flew out together for All Whites camp. And while the game itself was a 1-1 draw between Dundee United and Motherwell, Jesse Randall did do this to ensure a few bragging rights...
That’s his third goal of the season to go with three assists – he already had the most goal contributions in the Dundee United squad and nothing’s changed after this game. In a squad with a lot of attacking options, meaning a lot of attacking rotation, it’s Jesse Randall in his first season in Scotland who has played roughly 180 minutes more than anyone else in the front four. It’s worth watching that goal back from another angle because while the improvised finish was a delight, the entire move was equally delightful going from six yard box to six yard box in a silky phase of play, with Randall involved multiple times along the way. It was so good they voted it Goal of the Week for the Scottish Premiership.
Motherwell had taken the lead from the penalty spot after nine minutes, Lukas Fadinger doing the honours after the VAR suggested a look at a shove from Dylan Tait. Randall’s equaliser came late in the first half. There weren’t any other goals although Paulsen did get bailed out by a goalline clearance after he wasn’t able to get through a crowd to bunch a cross away. AP made four saves during the game, all within his wheelhouse, and his distribution was typically good... while Randall kept busy with a bunch of tasty crosses along with five more shots (albeit none of which were on target). Given our split allegiances, a draw was probably fair enough. Motherwell hit the international break having gone DWD after that long losing streak. Dundee United hit the international break on a seven-game unbeaten run, sitting sixth in the standings.
Should mention that Jake Girdwood-Reich played a solid ninety minutes in central defence for Motherwell too. Paulsen has played every minute for Motherwell this Premiership season but JGR has been in and out, only starting 8/13 games. He and AP didn’t overlap at Auckland FC but he and Jesse Randall certainly did and in the highlights you can see the two of them sharing a yarn after the final whistle. Nothing compared to the chat that Randall and AP would’ve had on the plane back to Aotearoa following that backheeled goal.
Jesse Randall: “Yeah, I think just instinct. Just try and get anything on the ball towards the frame of the goal and yeah it worked out nicely. I can't say I practised that. It was just off the cuff.”
The Courier: “It may have been somewhat lost amid the recent praise of United’s classy midfield trio of Tait, Zidane Iqbal and Lyall Cameron, but Randall is quietly becoming one of the most dangerous wingers in the Scottish Premiership and his audacious, clinical finish against Motherwell should serve as a warning shot to the rest of the division; if the Kiwi adds more goals to his game, then he is pretty much the complete package.
Randall, a constant threat down the flanks with his blistering pace, has found the net three times and boasts three assists in 12 league games, while he is fourth in the Premiership for expected assists (xA) and chances created. Yet there is still a sense of there being more to come. This is the first time the former Auckland FC man has played professionally outside the A-League – an entirely different pace and intensity of football – and only his third full season as a regular in senior football. A rawness is to be expected. However, he is getting better with every passing game and, as his confidence surges, is becoming an increasingly thrilling sight on the wing for all Arabs.”
As for Kilmarnock, they’re last at the November international break following a 1-0 defeat against Celtic. Liam Scales with the only goal on 26'. Celtic did miss a penalty in the second half but all things considered that was a decent defensive effort from Killie, with George Stanger making six clearances along with winning all four of his ground duels. He’s forged a very nice CB partnership with Hull City loanee Cathal McCarthy and that’s cemented them both as first eleven players despite the team’s overall worries. In fairness, Motherwell are only four points above them.
Quick shout as well for Lawton Green who has started the last two games for Alloa Athletic in League One (Scotland’s third tier). He was signed as the back-up to Ross Stewart but that bloke got red carded a few weeks ago, leading to a one-minute league debut for Lawton Green. Green has made five appearances in cup games already. The 23yo also made one League One appearance for Queen of the South last season. Alloa lost both league games with Green in goal and currently sit ninth out of ten teams, ahead of Cove Rangers thanks to having scored one additional goal.
Up Next: Hibs vs Dundee Utd at 4am on 22 Nov; Motherwell vs Rangers at 9am on 22 Nov (NZT)
Joe Bell – Viking FK (Norwegian Eliteserien)
It would not be a lie to say that Joe Bell has dipped in form a bit this year. Lots of reasons why that might be the case from the World Cup to that calf injury he was playing through to the emergence of young Tobias Moi competing for his position to having to the double gameweeks with Champions League and Eliteserien to Viking’s counter-attacking approach reducing the need for any guile from Bell. He’s keeping it very conservative these days, doing good work defensively but often just passing sideways or backwards when he gets on the ball. Consolidating rather than creating. He’s attempting way fewer long passes while his progressive passes and crossing accuracy have bombed (mostly because he’s not attempting many).
Seeing him sit on the bench unused for the 4-1 win against Sabah FC in the Champions League highlighted something else too. On the way to the Eliteserien title in 2025, he played almost every available minute: 2,542 mins out of a maximum 2700. He missed one match for yellow card accumulation, had one game where they tried to rest him but ended up subbing him on at half-time, and otherwise he started all of them whilst only ever being subbed off twice. He did full nineties in 26/30 Eliteserien games... along with heavy minutes in the Norwegian Cup and Europa Conference League qualifying (albeit with a couple instances there where they were able to rotate in the easier ties).
This season has been very different. He began the league season with six consecutive full games but since then has only gone start to finish twice from 20 matches. He did additionally do that against Aston Villa in the UCL and in both legs against Dinamo in the UCL qualifying playoffs but this year it has become far more common to see Bell substituted off... or even playing as a sub himself. Bellinho remains an important player for Viking, he’s just not quite as important as he has been in the past. Which is good, it shows the team is progressing.
Hence it was great to see him credited with an assist during Viking’s 5-1 win against KFUM Oslo, just to remind everyone what he can do...
Doubtful he expected to be setting up a goal when he delicately dinked that ball over the top for Henrik Bjørdal to slam home an incredible finish from a nothing angle... but even so it was a bit of final third creativity from Bellinho like we’ve been hoping to see more of. His first assist since April and only the second of his entire season (with no goals – he had three goals and eight assists in 2025 across all comps).
That was the breakthrough after 21 minutes. Peter Christiansen then continued his insane goal-scoring form with one either side of the half before KFUM pulled a goal back and thus Christiansen had to go and score his third to make it comfortable. Niklas Fuglestad added a fifth in stoppage time. Bell was subbed after 77 mins.
That last goal might be seen as meaningless but it absolutely was not. Viking’s loss to Bodø/Glimt last week brought the two title contenders level on points with Viking ever so slightly ahead thanks to goals scored. But B/G only won 2-0 away to Tromsø, a game that was marred by a scary moment when a portion of the away stand collapsed and several fans were injured. The game paused while medics could deal with the situation – there were four injuries and one hospitalisation though thankfully nothing serious. B/G scored both of their goals after that incident. That does mean that Viking are now +2 on the goal difference with four games to go (emphasising how valuable that late addition from Fuglestad was). Viking are away to Tromsø next while B/G host Molde... both are difficult games against top-six opponents.
Joe Bell on sitting out this All Whites window: “No, I'm not going. I declined the call. I'm just focused on what's going on here now. It’s been really busy since the World Cup. Everything’s been in a hurry with a lot of stress on the body over the past year and games for both club and country. So I decided to take it easy and focus on Viking.”
As for the UCL game against Sabah, Bell had started their previous three League Phase outings but this was probably their least demanding of the eight league phase fixtures (and so it proved to be, with a first win of the campaign), so they opted to rest him. He was there amongst the subs if required but they were chasing the game for a while there and made attacking subs. Then they scored a couple times to take control and there may have been a window where Bellinho could have been chucked on as a defensive closer except that Sabah got a red card and lost all threat so they opted to give a few youngsters some experience instead. All of which definitely had the weekend’s Eliteserien game in mind.
Up Next: Tromsø vs Viking at 2am on Sunday 22 November (NZT)
Jacqui Hand – FC Basel (Swiss Super League)
Unreal bit of skill from Alice Berti in there for the assist... and a wonderful header Jacqui Hand, who has scored in consecutive games for FC Basel. She also scored in a cup game a few weeks earlier – that’s been the main thing with Hand in Switzerland, she’s getting great minutes and seems to be performing well but she needed to put a few more goals away to really emphasise her value not only to this team but also to the Football Ferns with a World Cup not so far away. Basel are a decent defensive team but have lacked the consistent goal scorers to compete with the top few clubs in the Swiss Super League so this burst of form from Jacqui Hand has been very timely. Albeit they did lose 3-1 against second-placed BSC Young Boys in this one.
Up Next: Basel vs Aarau at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Katie Kitching – Sunderland (English Super League 2)
The most dependable Football Ferns attacker is also pretty important at Sunderland. The Black Cats had unexpectedly (though perhaps overdue-edly) lost their previous WSL2 game so they couldn’t take anything for granted against struggling Durham – who’d probably be struggling anyway but the loss of Mickey Foster to an ACL injury seems to have wrecked them. And they didn’t. It was a thorough performance from Sunderland who took the lead via Kitching’s 17th minute goal and then added two more before the break. Second half was more competitive but the result was basically in the bag by then. Ended up as a 4-1 scoreline.
Kitching often takes corner kicks but they had her marshalling the perimeter for the second ball in this instance. Led to a goal so who’s to argue? Four goals and three assists for Kitch across WSL2 and the League Cup... she’s had a few games where she’s missed chances or where she’s created a lot that didn’t get converted by teammates but whether or not the rewards are there, it just seems like she’s having an influential role in every single game. Always in amongst it, always making things happen.
The win lifts Sunderland back up to second place after Ipswich lost 2-1 at home to Bristol City. It was Ipswich that inflicted Sunderland’s only league defeat through these seven rounds and that, in turn, was Ipswich’s first notch in the loss column. Sets up a very tasty top of the table clash next week against arch-rivals Newcastle United. Sunderland vs Durham is a derby as well but it’s a one-sided derby with eight consecutive victories for the Black Cats. Sunderland vs Newcastle is next level. They’re calling it El Lassico.
Since then they’ve also lost 3-1 to Birmingham in the League Cup although Kitch only played the last half hour of that game. Sunderland are still in with a good shout of progressing past the League Phase with two more games to go. Watford had a 1-0 win over Leicester City in WSL2 to jump up a couple spots on the ladder. Then they lost 3-1 to Brighton in the League Cup despite having been leading at half-time. Grace Neville played every minute of those games, lining up at left-back. Also Southampton won 4-1 against Sheffield United though Alina Santos was on the bench. They’ve got a couple more League Cup games where Santos will hopefully get to show what she can do.
Up Next: Sunderland vs Newcastle at 3am on Monday (NZT)
Tyler Bindon – Charlton Athletic (English Championship)
After 11 games without a win, after mounting pressure on the coach, after Tyler Bindon fell out of favour amidst numerous defensive alterations... coach Nathan Jones opted for a new look centre-back pairing of Billy Koumetio and Tyler Bindon for the visit of Sheffield United and all was resolved. The Addicks won 2-1 against the Blades with Matty Godden’s 79th minute goal the separator. Koumetio (23yo from France) and Bindon (21yo from New Zealand) were excellent and victory was achieved.
Let us also not forget that this was Bindon up against the club he spent last season on loan at. They know him well and they still couldn’t get the better of him (although Bindon did pick up a yellow card along the way). The main critique of Bindon from Charlton fans seems to be that he needs to bulk up a bit more for this level... but they said the same thing about him at Sheffield United before he won them over eventually. Young defenders often get lumped with the lightweight tag. As we saw with Sheffield United, the more important thing is finding a regular combination like he had with Japhet Tanganga at SUFC. Not an ideal duo on paper but they were given room to make it work. Bindon has played in back threes and back fours with Lloyd Jones and Billy Koumetio, sometimes on the left and sometimes on the right. He was RCB with Koumetio at LCB against the Blades so fingers crossed they stick with that winning combination now.
Bindon has since withdrawn from All Whites camp, citing a minor ankle injury that he’s been managing. We might as well view that as a positive for his situation at Charlton – taking things easy during the international break at a time when he may have just revived his first eleven possibilities. Tyreese Campbell also withdrew from the Jamaica squad after being named so perhaps they had their medical notes signed by the same doctor.
Up Next: It’s Wolves vs Charlton after the international window, 4am on Sunday 22 Nov (NZT)
Marko Stamenić & Elijah Just – Swansea City (English Championship)
Unlucky or a definite red? It seems that opinion is completely divided on the matter, with half the people commenting about that incident saying that Stamenić clearly got the ball and only his trailing leg clipped the forward whose poor touch caused the challenge and he probably exaggerated the effects; and the other half saying that he left his feet with force which is dangerous and reckless and deserving of an early shower. It definitely wasn’t deliberate, we can say that for sure knowing Marko’s character (and the fact that the ball was very clearly there to be won). But whether it deserved a red or not, he did go in harder than he needed to and gave the referee a decision to make. It is what it is.
The pesky thing here is that Swansea City had started superbly against an in-form Birmingham City side, their Matos-style footy running rampant for 25 minutes until Stamenić got sent off and the Blues were able to calm things down against ten men. Even with ten they didn’t get dominated and were unfortunate to lose 2-1 to an 87th minute goal. But prior to the red card they were slicing them apart only for their own mistakes to cost them – not only the red card but also a missed penalty and a shot off the post prior to that. Elijah Just was subbed on after 58 minutes and they did score while he was out there... however they couldn’t hang on. Four defeats from the last five for the Swans. Clearly the red card was where momentum swung, though the coach was adamant it shouldn’t have been a send-off...
Vitor Matos: “The ref decided. I have nothing to say about that decision. In my opinion, it’s not a red card – there’s no contact on the player, the contact is on the ball. It’s a ball challenge. But if we go back to the last games, I think we had a lot of ball challenges that ended up with injured players for us. It’s hard when the criteria is changing. It’s hard for judging intentions but for me it was still the intention to go for the ball. Marko steps on the ball, the second foot takes the ball. So, yeah, I have nothing much more to say about that.”
Swansea City did appeal the decision... but sadly they were unsuccessful with that and thus Stamenić will have to serve a full three-match ban, missing games against West Brom, Middlesbrough, and Cardiff. Considering he’s already skipped the All Whites tour, he’s going to have to wait until December for his next game. Shouldn’t affect Elijah Just’s situation at all since they occupy different midfield roles for the Swans. Stamenić has started all but three games so far this season whereas Just has made the same number of Championship appearances (14) but has only started two of the past seven. He’s also resting up for this international window.
Max Crocombe held onto his spot at Millwall for another week as they went away to face West Bromwich Albion... but it was more of the same, sadly. It was a 3-0 loss in which Crocs once again failed to have a positive influence. The Lions took it to half-time still scoreless but five mins after the restart, Crocombe was beaten by a long shot that he was slow to get down for. Crucial breakthrough in the match... then WBA scored twice more in the last fifteen to seal it. The second goal saw Crocombe off his line and diving on the square pass, getting his hand there before the open striker but failing to prevent it getting through. The third was a late counter where he couldn’t close down the shooter in time. At least that one wasn’t his fault.
Three saves and three goals conceded does nothing to fix his rotten season stats. He’s conceding the most goals per ninety minutes of any goalkeeper in the Championship this season (2.32). His save percentage of 54.2% is third worst of anyone with at least 500 mins played after having been second in the entire division last season (75.7%)... and seventh for goals against (1.09 GA/90). It’d be a stretch to say he was one of the best Championship goalkeepers last season – he did get dropped after all. But to plummet so suddenly in those stat categories goes well beyond the uncontrollables. As soon as either of the other two keepers returns from injury, he’ll be back on the bench. Oh well, he’s still got at least one supporter in the Den.
We’re dealing with lots of injuries elsewhere in England although Matt Garbett did make his first start since New Zealand vs England when he got 55 minutes as Posh were thumped 5-0 by Reading in the FA Cup. Charlie Savage scored for Reading against the team that his dad, Robbie Savage, coaches. Savage was a teammate of Bindon’s while he was at Reading and remains there two years later.
Jack Perniskie made his second senior appearance for Milton Keynes Dons with a hefty 32 minutes running around in a 2-1 win over Bromley in the EFL Trophy (his debut in the same competition had been a late cameo so this was a big jump). Apparently he’s been scoring a few goals for the MK Dons Academy team too. He’s doing well. But there is bad news around Matt Dibley-Dias’ hamstring issue, which is severe enough that he’s gone back to parent club Fulham to continue his rehabilitation. Shouldn’t be a long term thing, they just want to be careful with him. Fulham naturally have the superior medical facilities. It’s also where he lives. Makes sense.
Hayden Mullins: “Yeah so Tan [Tanatswa Nyakuhwa] and Matt are longer term ones. I think we won't see them for another couple of weeks. Both have gone back to their their clubs to get their rehab done, so Matt's gone back to Fulham, obviously. He's down that way so it's a chance for him to get back home as well, and Fulham can get eyes on him. He'll be in and around there for a bit of time, and same with Tan. Hopefully a couple of weeks back at their their clubs and we get them back and we can finish their rehab. I can't give you a time but we hope that we get them back in a matter of weeks rather than months. All being well and they don't get any setbacks, hopefully we get them this side of Christmas.”
Meanwhile, Ben Waine’s coach at Port Vale has told media that Waineo is “two to three weeks” away from a return. Waine has missed the last five matches for the Valiants. And AFC Fylde have confirmed that Zac Jones has a shoulder injury but there’s no date on when he might return. The Everton youngster they brought in had an initial one-month loan but they’re able to extend that if needed.
And a shout out is in order for NZ U19s rep Alex Lienard who played a full game in a 4-2 win over Paris Saint-Germain U21s in the Premier League International Cup (he’s the blondie at right-back in the #2 jersey). Knocked over the academy side from the two-time reigning Champions League holders. Lienard is only just turned 18 years old, by the way. He might just be the best youth prospect aligned with Aotearoa right now.
Up Next: Swansea City vs West Brom at 4am on Sunday (NZT)
Katie Bowen – Fenerbahçe (Turkish Süper Ligi)
Fenerbahçe did not turn around the Europa Cup tie against Real Sociedad in the second leg. They kept it close enough with a 2-0 deficit after the away game to think there was at least some ray of hope in front of their own folks, even though they’d been pretty well dominated by the Spanish club in that game. Unfortunately, they scored an own goal after 49 seconds of the second leg so that was the end of that dream. Sociedad scored again with a glancing header from a corner after 32 minutes... and that was how it ended. 2-0 loss in the first leg. 2-0 loss in the second leg. Katie Bowen played every minute of both.
That means a first round exit from the Europa Cup, though for a team outside the big leagues of UEFA the achievement was in getting this far at all. Bowen also played in the round of sixteen with Inter Milan last season, her four appearances in the competition (which has only been around for two years) matches Grace Wisnewski’s tally from FC Nordsjælland’s run to the quarters last time. Hannah Blake (Rangers), Helena Errington (FH), and Rebekah Trewhitt (Subotica) were all involved during the qualifying rounds.
In other news, Fenerbahçe had another game four days earlier in which they beat Galatasaray 1-0 thanks to an 89th minute goal from Ece Türkoğlu. A draw wouldn’t have been too big of a deal considering they’ve still got a couple games in hand on everyone else around the upper rungs of the league ladder (including Galatasaray) but a victory really sets them up nicely. Full game for Bowen. Fenerbahçe are one point off the lead with two games in hand. They have conceded just once in eight games.
Up Next: Bakırköy Kadın vs Fenerbahçe at 0:00 on Sunday (NZT)
Finn Surman – Portland Timbers (American Major League Soccer)
The two-time reigning Portland Timbers Supporters Player of the Year got the job done as Finn Surman captained the Timbers to a 2-0 clean sheet win against Austin FC to not only seal a spot in the postseason, but to jump up to seventh and avoid a play-in game... which may have compromised Surman’s availability for the All Whites window. As it happens, he’s only going to play the second game against India in his hometown of Christchurch to keep himself fresh for MLS playoffs but that’s cool, that’s a fair compromise.
It was a thoroughly professional job away to Austin. Ariel Lassiter scored in the third minute and then Kristoffer Velde got a magnificent second on 70’. Austin were already out of contention but they had more of the ball and more of the chances in this match... they just could not find a way past Surman and his defence (although they did hit the crossbar so they went very close). This was only the second start for Surman since his knee injury, and fourth matchday squad overall. They’ve won all four of those games, scoring multiple times in each to book a return to the playoffs. Surman completed 43/45 passes and made the equal-most defensive contributions in the Austin game, with seven clearances and a block. Just adding to the season tallies...
Most Blocks in MLS 2026:
Finn Surman (Portland) – 47
Manu Duah (San Diego) – 37
Ethan Kohler (New England) – 35
Lucas Bartlett (DC United) – 34
Henry Kessler (Charlotte) – 32
Most Defensive Clearances in MLS 2026:
Lucas Bartlett (DC United) – 209
Morris Duggan (Minnesota) – 189
Finn Surman (Portland) – 176
Kye Rowles (DC United) – 175
Mamadou Fofana (New England) – 175
Remember he had the most defensive clearances in 2025 too. First last year, third this year. And top of a distinct other stat category as well. Portland Timbers will face second-seed FC Dallas in the first round of the playoffs, contested as a best of three series with penalty shootouts after any draws to ensure there’s a winner each time. Last year they won a wildcard game against Salt Lake but then went out in the first round, losing in game three against San Diego. The year before they got thumped 5-0 by Vancouver in the wildcard round. It’s very possible these could be the Surmanator’s last games for the Timbers so here’s hoping they can make a run of it now that they’ve found some form under new coach Marti Cifuentes.
2026 Timbers under Phil Neville:
14 GM | 4 W | 2 D | 8 L | 22 GF | 28 GA | -6 GD | 14 PTS
2026 Timbers after Phil Neville:
20 GM | 9 W | 5 D | 6 L | 40 GF | 33 GA | +7 GD | 32 PTS
Up Next: Dallas vs Portland, MLS Playoffs First Round, 10am on Sunday 22 November (NZT)
Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)
There was no such joy for Michael Boxall, who sat on the bench throughout as Minnesota United won 3-1 against San Jose but still missed out on the play-in game as other results (including Portland’s win) failed to go their way. The Loons were 1-0 down after 54 minutes but rallied back to victory, not enough to extend their season though at least they gave the home fans something to cheer about. There was also a nice presentation for Boxy before the game to celebrate his 300th appearance for the club a fortnight earlier, this being the first home game since that milestone...
And then he gave a quick speech after the match as the club captain acknowledging the fanbase...
And now we wait and see. 38-year-old Boxall is off-contract but he’s declared he does want to come back for another year and there have been some preliminary conversations. There’s the Sprint Season thing coming up which could be a compromise if they only wanna give him another half-year contract. There seems to be an expectation around the media and fanbase, or at least a hope, that if he doesn’t return as a player he’ll be back on the staff in some capacity. All in due course. In the meantime, he’s been added to the All Whites squad after Tyler Bindon picked up a minor injury.
It also remains to be seen what happens with Cam Knowles as head coach in Minnesota. Probably New Zealand’s highest ranking head coach at the moment... maybe he’ll even chuck his hand up for the All Whites job? There was big pressure on him during their horrible run of one win from 18 matches but winning four out of five to close the season will have helped his reputation. He was shielded from a lot of the criticism that downer streak arguably deserved by the lack of investment in the squad (remember when they lowballed their offer for Callum McCowatt and then missed out on him?), putting ownership much more in the firing line along with the sports director who bailed on them late in the transfer window to join another MLS club and the head coach who left after one day of preseason for a job in England that he’s since been fired from.
Up Next: That remains to be seen...
Callum McCowatt – AGF (Danish Superliga)
This was a good week for Aarhus Gymnastikforening. A 0-0 draw against Braga in the Conference League gives them a second point in the League Phase and unlike their previous draw against Egnatia where an early red card caused McCowatt to be substituted in a tactical reshuffle after only 11 minutes... this time he did a quality 71 mins. He’s started all three Conference League games and he’s also started the last four Superliga games, including a 2-0 win over Horsens most recently in which he did this...
Sneaky assist, finding a pocket of space in the area, and combining smoothly. That was the opening goal coming after 53 minutes and scored by Jacob Anderson. They wouldn’t seal the deal until the 87th min when Anderson teed up Stefen Tchamche. Three more points on the board.
When McCowatt joined the club, AGF were winless and only goal difference above the relegation round after six rounds. Now the defending champs are finding some rhythm and are only two points outside the top half after 14 rounds. Big push upcoming after the international break with eight games in four weeks leading into the winter break. That includes three Conference League games, three Superliga games, and a two-legged Danish Cup semi-final.
Still no Dalton Wilkins for Sønderjyske... and still no wins without him in the starting eleven. Sonders have sacked their manager since Wilkins got hurt and they did actually grab a 2-2 draw against league leaders Midtjylland prior to the international break so there’s some promise there. Over in the A-Liga, FC København added another point to their tally thanks to a stoppage time equaliser in a 2-2 draw away against Kolding. No Ally Green though, must have had a knock. That’s a good point against a fellow team in the relegation battle – couldn’t afford to lose that one. Here she is doing a couple of recent interviews, chatting about her career and situation...
And there was a return to winning ways for Malia Steinmetz and FC Nordsjælland after they were upset by FCK last week. They won 3-0 against Aarhus. It was only 1-0 after 65 minutes when Steinmetz was subbed, Sarah Winther being sent on as a more attacking option. They scored twice and then Winther got red carded so that was an eventful twenty-minute spell. FCN are in second place but seven points behind leaders HB Køge.
Up Next: AGF vs Lyngby at 7am on 21 Nov (NZT)
Kate Taylor – Madrid CFF (Spanish Liga F)
Little bit of a humbling going down 5-1 against the best club team on the planet. Madrid chucked an extra centre-back into their formation and still got completely outplayed, with the goals scored by Esmee Brugts (39’), Eva Pajor (45+1’), Carla Martinez (68’), Patricia Guijarro (73’), and Claudia Pina (79’)... before Ines Konan got a consolation back in the 82nd minute. Did pretty well to hold on for as long as they did and it’s a pity they shipped that one right before the break or else they might have been able to put a bit of a squeeze on Barca. Good experience for Taylor and company to learn where the peak of women’s football is. Madrid have only won one of their past five games but that includes three games against other sides in the top five. The next couple matches should be a bit easier.
Up Next: Madrid vs Logroño at 0:00 on Monday (NZT)
Suya Haering – Montpellier (French Première Ligue)
Another one for the humbling basket but that was to be expected. The fixtures served up consecutive games for Montpellier against the three standout teams in France. They only lost 1-0 to PSG but that was followed by a 5-2 defeat against Lyonnes and then this 5-0 loss to Paris meaning it got worse with each subsequent outing. Suya Haering started all three of those games, with ninety minutes in the two most recent. In fact, that’s six consecutive starts for her at left wing-back. Really starting to embed herself in this team. They’re only three points above the relegation zone but obviously the games should be a little more competitive now that they’ve gotten that nasty run out of the way.
There was also a 2-0 win for Saint-Étienne against Laval with Ben Old playing the full game. Goals on either side of half-time taking care of business there, keeping them three points clear at the summit in Ligue 2. Ben Old has started five of the past six games since returning from injury and the one game he didn’t start, they subbed him on at half-time. They’ve got a cup game on the weekend which is one of the reasons he’s not in the All Whites squad.
Up Next: Montpellier vs Fleury at 6.30am on Sunday (NZT)
Ryan Thomas – PEC Zwolle (Dutch Eredivisie)
Zwolle took the lead with 1:01 on the clock, Willem II equalised with 2:07 on the clock... and with that all the scoring was completed nice and early. It ended 1-1 which wasn’t ideal for Zwolle against a winless team at the bottom of the table (once home to James McGarry and Michael Woud, who are now All Whites teammates and on opposite sides of the A-League’s NZ Derby).
But another point to the tally nonetheless, continuing their upsurge since they sacked their coach. Prior to that management decision, Zwolle’s Eredivisie form had been: LLWLDLLL. Since then they’ve gone: WDWD. In four games they’ve double the points count of the previous eight. Ryan Thomas played 85 minutes against Willem II and it’s a well known thing over the past two years that they fall to pieces when he’s not on the pitch.
Up Next: Telstar vs Zwolle at 9am on Sunday 22 November (NZT)
Michael Fitzgerald – Albirex Niigata (Japanese J2-League)
We’ve got two veteran defenders named Michael still playing excellent footy in their late-30s. Michael Boxall, sure, we all know about him. But don’t overlook Michael Fitzgerald who turned 38 in September (almost exactly one month after Boxall celebrated the same number of candles) and continues to do a job for Albirex Niigata as they seek promotion back to the top division in Japan. He doesn’t play every week, having only started 7/16 league games thus far (along with a handful of substitute appearances), but when he does start he captains the team.
He scored that winning goal against Ventforet Kofu as a substitute. Brought on in a curious double-change after 25 minutes in which they replaced both centre-backs (including Australia’s Jason Geria). Did the job though because they kept a cleanie and one of those replacements, Fitzy, scored the decisive goal in a 1-0 victory. He was back to the bench for the next match which was also a 1-0 win against a team down near the bottom of the ladder. With those two results in the bag, Albirex Niigata have climbed to the summit of the division. It’s extremely close with the top six teams separated by only three points. But so far so good.
Fitzgerald has been an incredible servant for Niigata, playing 346 times over two separate spells. They got relegated from J1 in 2025 and then the first half of this year they held a mini-season (like they’re doing in MLS next year) in order to shift the calendar to align with the European season. Fitz has played 179 times in J1 and 128 times in J2 throughout his career since moving to Japan in 2008. He signed a one-year contract extension ahead of this campaign, promising to lead the club back to the top, and was later announced as the club captain.
Michael Fitzgerald, upon being named club captain: “Becoming captain will not fundamentally change the way I approach things, but I am prepared to speak up when necessary to help the team continue to grow. If we want to achieve the highest standards as a team, it starts with demanding more of myself, while also creating an environment where everyone pushes each other to improve. By maintaining close communication with the coaching staff, I want to help build an even stronger and more united 'ONE TEAM' and continue driving the team's growth.”
There’s another kiwi defender one division below this: Marco Lorenz at Gainare Tottori in J3. Lorenz was mostly a bench player to begin the season, having moved here from Hong Kong... but he got good minutes in a few impressive victories during the J.League Cup and the Emperor’s Cup which has led into more prominence in the league of late. He started their two most recent games. All up he’s made 13 appearances in 2026 with eight of those being starts. Does have two red cards in there though (both for second yellows, one in the league and one in the cup).
Up Next: Niigata vs Tegevajaro Miyazaki at 6pm on Saturday (NZT)
Nathan Garrow – Stellenbosch (South African Premiership)
After making his senior debut for Stellies in the Knockout Cup a couple weeks ago, Nathan Garrow got another go when the next round came along. Quarter-finals against AmaZulu and he had another very solid game the gloves in a 2-1 victory to progress to the final four. Garrow benefited from an early one where a striker ran through on goal and then passed square to a non-existent teammate instead of shooting... but maybe he would have saved it anyway. He saved everything else, albeit nothing that tested him to his limits. AmaZulu’s shooting was pretty weak so lots of off target stuff for Garrow to watch sail by. The only goal that beat him was a deflected shot from inside the six yard box that went down as an own goal.
That’s all well and good but it wasn’t until the dying embers of second half stoppage time that Stellies won it. Looked like they were set for extra time when a handball drew a penalty kick and Sinoxolo Kwayiba stepped up to send Stellies into the semis. 90+8th minute winner. And what do ya know, they’ve been drawn against Orlando Pirates in the next round. Dublin Boon probably won’t be in the matchday squad but it was his leaving Stellies to join Pirates that cleared the way for Nathan Garrow to step into this gig. Andre De Jong remains injured with no timeline on that so maybe he’ll return in time, you never know.
Up Next: Knockout Cup semi-final vs Orlando Pirates TBD on Sunday 22 November (NZT)
Tim Payne – Club Olimpia (Paraguayan Primera División)
After three straight games as an unused substitute (something he’d never done before for Olimpia, not even when they were easing him in at the start), Tim Payne was finally unleashed for a 4-1 win against Recoleta. He played ninety minutes for just the third time and the win made it four on the bounce for Olimpia as they’ve pulled clear atop the Primera División Clausura. They had a slippery start, then Payne’s presence inspired a few victories, then they started winning without him as well and the coach was free to pick his preferred bloke at right-back. A cynical perspective would be that this rotated start gives him an excuse not to pick Payne again during these last few weeks... in fact he wasn’t even in the squad for the following game against Guarani (a 3-1 win). Not sure what that was about.
Payne went 59 days without being in a starting eleven prior to that Recoleta appearance. It’s been kinda stink because when he has played he’s shown that he belongs and there is definitely a section of the Olimpia fanbase convinced that he’s a better option than Raúl Cáceres at right-back. But that’s not what the coach thinks and only he gets to make that decision. On the plus side, Olympia are now eight points clear with only three rounds remaining so they only need one more win to clinch the championship, perhaps not even that. There is silverware coming for T-Payne.
Up Next: Olimpia vs Trinidense at 10am on Monday 23 November (NZT)
Kyle Adams - Louisville City (American USL Championship)
Have a geeze at the last couple of minutes of that highlights package for a wild playoffs comeback. Having already ground their way past Pittsburg Riverhounds for a 1-0 win in the conference quarters, Louisville City’s championship ambitions were looking good until they found themselves 2-0 down against Miami FC with less than quarter of an hour to go. Then they scored three time (79’, 90’, 90+8’) to win it 3-2 and progress onwards. Incredible.
This is a team that has been smashing regular season records these past couple years without being able to translate that into postseason success but they were only fourth in the Western Conference this time and are going on a run. Adams is the last kiwi left in the competition with San Antonio going out with a 2-1 loss to Locomotive – no Alex Greive there but he was on the bench for their last two regular season games after missing the entire season due to injury until them. Didn’t play though, meaning he’ll have go the entirety of 2026 without any football. Last appearance was in November 2025.
Up Next: Charleston Battery vs Louisville City at midday on Sunday (NZT)
Jay Herdman – Bali United (Indonesian Super League)
Say would you look at that. Herdman’s move to Indonesia very blatantly followed his dad getting the head coaching role with their national team but if you assumed he’d go straight in and score bundles like Moses Dyer did in Cambodia then you were mistaken. He’s had to work hard for his minutes at Bali United. Still hasn’t started a game in the league, with two assists from six bench appearances, but he was given more of a leash in this League Cup game against Persiba and he did what he needed to do with three assists in a 6-1 victory. Here’s hoping that’ll push him into a little more prominence.
Up Next: Persib vs Balu United on 23 November at 1am (NZT)
Myer Bevan - Boeung Ket (Cambodian Premier League)
We began with a kiwi scoring a backheel against another kiwi, we finish with a kiwi scoring a backheel against another kiwi. Bragging rights for Myer Bevan over Moses Dyer as Boeung Ket won 2-0 against Phnom Penh Crown. Neither team has had a very good start to the league, each with only one win out of five heading into this fixture. PPC are balancing domestic stuff with the AFC Champions League 2 at the moment but that’s something they’re going to have to be careful with. Second goal of the campaign for Myer Bevan, while former Melville United midfielder Aarun Lim was an unused sub (he’s made two appearances this year). Lim is the older brother of Lucca Lim who plays for the Auckland FC Reserves, though he represents Cambodia at U23 level. Dyer has five goals (two in the CPL, three in ACL2) but hasn’t found the net in any of his past five matches.
Up Next: Life vs Boueng Ket at 0:00 on Sunday 22 Nov (NZT)
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