Flying Kiwis – May 20
Ben Old - AS Saint-Étienne (French Ligue 2)
Saint-Étienne missed their chance to earn automatic promotion back to Ligue 1 by stumbling badly over the last month but they do still have that playoff lifeline. By finishing third they didn’t have to bother with the quarter-final round where Rodez won 3-2 in an entertaining game against Red Star. Instead they stepped in three days later to face Rodez where the league table suggested that St-Etienne ought to win but the form count claimed otherwise. ASSE had lost three games in a row prior to their 5-0 win over Amiens in the final round – including a 2-1 loss to Rodez. In contrast, Rodez had won five of their last six and were on a 14-game undefeated run in league footy dating back to November.
In that sense, a 0-0 draw may not have been such a bad outcome for ASSE. In any sense that’s what happened so it was off to a penalty shootout to determine whose hopes of promotion would be dashed and who’d advance to the final against Nice (who finished third-to-last in the top division). This was Ben Old’s contribution to that cause...
Yikes, not ideal. But that’s alright because they had a secret weapon in the form of goalkeeper Brice Maubleu... who was subbed on in the last minute of normal time (no extra time for this match) in place of their captain, no doubt with penalties in mind. Maubleu saved the first two penalties he faced so ASSE were already 2-0 up when Old missed his take. From there they traded successes before Aimen Moueffek missed for Les Verts with victory in sight and it was off to sudden death.
Three more successes followed apiece with the Saints each time converting while on the brink of elimination. Then Maubleu saved another and stepped up to be the hero himself... only to also miss. But then he made his fourth save of the evening and Mickael Nade scored to give ASSE a 7-6 penalty shootout victory. The dream lives on, with a two-legged final to come (which is going to make Ben Old one of the last players to arrive for the World Cup but so be it).
Up Next: ASSE vs Nice in the home leg on Weds at 6.45am (NZT)
Finn Surman - Portland Timbers (American Major League Soccer)
Finn Surman thinks that blocking shots is nice? Never was a truer word spoken at a time when his 29 blocks this MLS season aren’t far off doubling the second-most prolific blocker in the division. He learned from one of the best in Steven Taylor at the Wellington Phoenix and now he’s taking these skills to the world... even Lionel Messi got a taste of that medicine this week. Of course, Messi also scored a brilliant goal and had an even more brilliant assist as Inter Miami won 2-0 against the Portland Timbers but that’s just how it goes with that guy. This was one of five shots that Surman threw himself in the way of during that defeat...
Interviewer: Finn, there was one play in the second half where Messi's charging at you. You shadow him towards the corner, he shoots the ball, you block it. just how did you feel in that moment even though the team was down two-nil?
Finn Surman: I don't know. Just like, normal. I was annoyed that we were losing at the time, I think, and I mean it's good to somewhat keep us in the game, I guess. If he scores then it probably ends the game but, you know. It’s a nice thing. It's always nice to block a shot. But nothing really out of the ordinary.
Most Blocks in MLS in 2026:
Finn Surman (Portland) – 29
Kyle Rowles (DC United) – 16
Micael (Inter Miami) - 15
This after he led the MLS in Defensive Clearances last year (he’s fourth in that count this time). The only two reasons he’s not really in the MLS All Star voting conversation at the moment is because his team sucks (14 points from 13 games, haven’t won consecutive games this year) and also because his reputation hasn’t quite gone beyond his his own fanbase yet. Remember it took Michael Boxall until last year to finally crack one of those things. There are 30 teams in MLS and everyone’s got at least two starting centre-backs so getting to the very top there requires more than just elite performances, if we’re being honest about it.
Speaking of Boxy...
Cam Knowles: “He doesn’t have an age, I don’t think, but he hit a new historic max speed the other day in training. Which is incredible, there are very few like him. He is the most professional person and player that I’ve ever seen.”
Dunno when they filmed that but the idea of Boxy, in his age-37 season, breaking his own personal best speed tracking is madness. Especially at a team he’s been playing with since 2017 so they’ve got no shortate of data on him.
Boxall has lost his unbeaten record in combination with coach Knowles though. He’s returned to the starting line-up for the past two games but both were losses, this after two sub appearances to mark his return from that adductor injury. He played 45 mins in the 1-0 loss to Colorado and then 72 mins in the 2-1 loss to New England. Building up his workload, nothing wrong with that. But yeah two defeats does knock a wobble into Minnesota United’s activities with one game left before MLS goes on hiatus to accommodate the World Cup.
Up Next: Portland vs San Jose at 1.30pm on Sunday (NZT)
Malia Steinmetz & Grace Wisnewski – FC Nordsjælland (Danish A-Liga)
Not a lot of vision on offer in those 42 seconds of embeddable highlights but that’s probably for the best after Nordsjælland were thumped 4-1 in the Danish Cup final by HB Køge. Nordsjælland conceded in the third minute and were then 2-0 down after 23 mins, both goals courtesy of American defender Macy Schultz for HBK (who are also leading the league with three rounds to go in search of a double). That’s the way it stayed for ages, that next goal still capable of getting FCN back into the contest... but it went the other way when Sarah Thygesen scored on 78’. A penalty soon afterwards was converted by Flora Højer to make it 3-1 but then Mai Wendicke scored right at the end to get the celebrations underway. No trophies for Nordsjælland this season... although they can still qualify for continental action if they keep it steady and land a third-placed finish in the A-Liga.
FCN drew 1-1 against this lot a couple weeks ago so this wasn’t a case of them being complete underdogs. They’d have brought a bit of confidence into the cup final... but they were never really in it once it started, trailing for almost the entire way. The consolation is that Grace Wisnewski did play 74 minutes in the midfield (back in the mids these last few weeks after centre-back Bongeka Gamede, a South African international, returned from injury) and it was still only 2-0 when Wiz was replaced. Didn’t see any Malia Steinmetz. She was on the bench and when you’re behind in a cup final and chasing goals it isn’t really the time to sub on a defensive midfielder. She was there if needed though, having won this trophy two years ago with the same club. Always beneficial to have kiwi players involved in big games, though it would have been more fun if they’d won.
Up Next: AGF vs Nordsjælland at 10am on Saturday (NZT)
Elijah Just – Motherwell (Scottish Premiership)
Motherwell did what needed doing in the final round of the Premiership season to book their fourth-placed finish and qualification into Europe. A 1-0 win over Hibernian got the job done thanks to a Lucas Fadinger goal after 33 mins, holding onto that lead despite Elliot Watt being red carded with twenty to play. Would have been nice to add another Eli Just goal in there and he did go close a few times: there was a fizzing shot from distance in transition early on, then in the second half he turned down a chance with some delicious interplay on the break before later having an effort saved after stealing a loose pass in behind but being forced too wide. No stress, the result was all that mattered to cap off a magical season for the Steelmen.
Having never played Scottish football before, having followed his coach there on a leap of faith, having been told repeatedly that he was too small to cut it in this league... Elijah Just polished off his season having played 36 matches with seven goals and eight assists being used everywhere across the front four. Motherwell’s Player and Players’ Player of the Year. Shortlisted for Player of the Year across the whole league by the Players’ Union and the Football Writers’ Association. Now he’s on track for some Europa Conference League qualifiers later in the year (after the small matter of a World Cup first).
That’s assuming that he’s still a Motherwell player by then. He’s been heavily linked to both Celtic and Rangers going back months already and with his coach Jens Berthel Askou also a candidate for the vacant Celtic job there’s a decent chance something happens on that front. But EJ told his agent to park any transfer talk until after the World Cup so we’ll do the same.
Celtic won the league title, by the way. They beat Hearts on the final day to ensure that the four-decade wait for a team other than Celtic or Rangers to win the Scottish Premiership goes on. Hearts would have scraped it on goal difference if they’d beaten Motherwell a couple weeks ago... or if Celtic hadn’t been awarded that very very very late VAR penalty to beat Motherwell last round.
Up Next: The World Cup
George Stanger - Kilmarnock (Scottish Premiership)
A 4-1 win to wrap up the 2025-26 campaign. It sucked for most of the way and then they won four games in a row to finish things off, scoring at least three goals in each of them, to avoid relegation. Stanger spent a big chunk of that season out of favour before suddenly playing every minute of their last nine matches until being subbed for the last half hour of this Livingston game. That was after the fourth goal had hit the net. Ethan Schilte-Brown replaced him there – the bloke who lost his spot as a consequence of Stanger being recalled. Considering that they took 19 points from the last nine games with Stanger starting and only took 21 points from the entire rest of the season that turned out to be a very clever managerial decision.
Stanger signed a two-year deal following his transfer from Ayr United so he’s going nowhere... and they might even opt to extend him given how he’s reasserted himself under the new coach. Wasn’t enough to get him into the All Whites World Cup squad, where he was probably one of the highest performing players to miss out, but there’s little doubt that an international debut is coming sooner rather than later. And crucially he seems to have found a home in the top level of Scottish footy. Not bad for a bloke who has played in each of the top five divisions in that country.
Up Next: Holidays
Helena Errington – FH Hafnarfjörður (Icelandic Besta Deild)
Having pretty quickly settled in at her Icelandic club, it was only a matter of time until Helena Errington brought out the goal contributions. A 7-0 win against Selfoss in the cup quarter-final was as good a time as any. Nice bit of movement to find some space in the box and quick feet to guide the ball on target for her goal. The first assist was a bit fortunate as a cross floated in from a narrow angle but the second was a super ball over the top, misplayed by the defender though that’s the defender’s problem. Including the last two league games, that’s now three matches in a row that Errington has started and FH has won the lot of them.
Up Next: FH vs IBV at 6am on Thursday (NZT)
Rebecca Lake - Thai Nguyen T&T (Vietnamese National League)
Rebecca Lake is not walking the beaten path with her career. Last year she joined Vancouver Rise in the brand new Canadian NSL (winning the championship with them). Baffling that they didn’t bring her back but never mind, now she’s playing in Vietnam where not only is that an extremely rare destination for a kiwi player... it’s rare for any international. They’re making a bit of a deal over there about how great it is to have attracted a foreign professional and what a huge impact that could have on the local talent. It’s also hoped that Lake’s presence will help Thái Nguyên close the gap on perennial champs Ho Chi Minh City - who themselves picked up a few imports to help them out in the AFC Champions League last season and Brazilian striker Joelma Gabriel has stuck around for the domestic season too.
That season began over the past week with Thái Nguyên winning comfortably against Hà Nội 2 in the first round of the Vietnamese Cup. It’s a group stage situation so there’s work to be done before hopefully qualifying for the semis but an 8-0 victory first up is about as bright as it gets. Rebecca Lake debuted with a clean sheet and because it was also her 27th birthday they gave her a cake afterwards, how about that?
Rebecca Lake: “Yeah it’s so good. Obviously at half-time we were winning 2-0 but we knew that we could do even better and coach knew that too. So we came out second half and scored more goals and finished our chances so really proud of the team.”
The Tea Tigers then followed that up with a 1-1 draw away against Phong Phú Hà Nam. They should really have won that match, proving very wasteful with their chances. When they finally did score in stoppage time of a dominant first half, it came about because Lake absolutely lashed a shot from distance that clogged a defender in the gut and winded her, allowing Ngọc Minh Chuyên to get free in the six yard box. Lake’s height, strength, and range are so clearly going to be critical parts of this team’s strategy. She played the full game here on the right-edge of a back three and would have had things covered for a clean sheet except her goalkeeper dropped a cross at the feet of a striker with ten minutes remaining.
Nevertheless, the draw combined with their goal difference from the first game means that Thai Nguyen advance to the semi-finals as the top seed from their group. They’ll face Hà Nội in the final four – the first team to the reserves that they smashed on Lake’s debut.
Up Next: TBD for the semis of the Vietnamese Cup
Alex Paulsen - Lechia Gdansk (Polish Ekstraklasa)
It’s not getting better over here. Lechia hosted Legia Warszawa needing points to haul themselves out of the relegation zone and they didn’t get any. The problems began when they fell behind after ten minutes to a guided header that evaded a stretched out Alex Paulsen. The thing that he’s been criticised for in Poland is his height, something he spoke about in an interview not that long ago, yet his aerial stats are actually really good. However it’s probably moments like that goal where his 6’0 frame might have prevented him from reaching a shot that a taller keeper may have gotten fingertips on. Or, you know, his defenders could just win a bloody header.
He was lucky not to ship another one when another Legia header thumped off the post... but Lechia improved from there and got level with a header of their own after an hour. A point would have lifted them up to 15th, keeping their fate mostly within their own control. Buuuut then a dodgy red card for Ivan Zhelizko with five minutes left was chased by a 90+3rd minute concession where Paulsen was adamant that he’d been fouled on the end of a long throw that bobbled around before being flicked in at close range. Unfortunately there have been a lot of those ones lately where Paulsen isn’t entirely to blame for a goal that he’s conceded but he also clearly could have done a little better than he did. Those ones add up.
Lechia have now lost four games in a row and conceded 10 times in the process. The good news is that they face last-placed Bruk-Bet Termalica in the final round and those guys have already been relegated. There is a chance they could survive with a draw but a win would guarantee it thanks to Widzew Łódź hosting Piast Gliwice with one of those teams therefore guaranteed to drop enough points for Lechia to go ahead. Problem is they haven’t won since 7 April.
John Carver, Lechia coach: “I could actually copy and paste how we conceded goals in previous matches and how we concede now. This is a recurring pattern. We don't block crosses, we don't cover in the penalty area well, we don't collect second balls. It's not like we don't see it and analyse it because we've been training on it all week.”
Up Next: Bruk-Bet Termalica vs Lechia Gdansk at 3.30am on Sunday (NZT)
Lara Colpi – FC Thun Berner-Oberland (Swiss Super League)
In the first game of the relegation rounds, FC Thun were 2-0 up against Yverdon and somehow conspired to lose 4-2. in the fourth round of the relegation rounds, they faced them again (away this time) and were again 2-0 up. Goals from Celine Schmid (11’) and Simona Stefanova (61’). Difference was: this time they held on.
Massive result for Thun who move ahead of Yverdon on goal difference and out of the relegation spots. Still got two more games to go but they’re back on track to stay in the top division. Lara Colpi got a full game in the midfield as she’s been doing regularly of late. Looks like it was Colpi who won the ball near halfway to spark the move for their second goal. Yverdon also collected a red card inside the last ten mins.
There was also a positive result for Jana Niedermayr at Union Kleinmünchen in the Austrian Bundesliga. It’s not been a very happy season for them but a 2-2 draw against Südburgenland has given them the point they need to move three points clear of last-place with one game remaining and a far superior goal difference to their beaten opponents. They should have been clear of that already because they were 2-0 up in this game and only drew because of a 90+6th minute equaliser conceded... but the draw still means that unless they lose 8-0 next weekend and Südburgenland win 8-0 (or some equivalent set of outcomes) then Kleinmünchen will finish above the designated relegation spot.
Not that it matters because USV Neulengbach have already been booted out after the small-town club that once won 12 consecutive ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga championships (from 2003-2014) went bankrupt and had their licence revoked. USV Neulengbach’s demise means that nobody needs to be relegated. That’s a relief for Jana Niedermayr who played every single minute for Kleinmünchen in 2024-25 (23 games for 2070 mins) and has almost done the same in 2025-26 except for one substitution early on (21 games for 1868 mins with one to go). If the 23yo sticks around then a third campaign in the top flight beckons with UK (following two years in SKN St/ Polten’s reserve team).
Up Next: Thun vs Luzern at 5am on Sunday (NZT)
Callum McCowatt - Silkeborg IF (Danish Superliga)
A few weeks ago, the final round fixture between Fredericia and Silkeborg shaped to be an absolutely decisive relegation outing. Instead Silkeborg found a run of very tidy results during the relegation rounds (excluding their hidings at the hands of FC København) and that was enough to save them with a couple weeks to spare. So there was nothing on the line in that last match which explains why they picked a rotated team and got thrashed again.
It was 4-1 to Fredericia, going four down before pulling one back in the last quarter of an hour (and then also missing a penalty). Callum McCowatt played but they only gave him 60 minutes up top with a scattering of players in the starting eleven and off the bench being used who wouldn’t ordinarily have gotten those runs. Reward for training hard during the season... also a bit of focus on those who’ll be returning next campaign. This doesn’t affect their league standing in anyway but it does mean that a hugely disappointing season ends on another disappointing note.
The club has already given farewells to goalkeeper Nicolai Larsen and striker/top scorer Tonni Adamsen in the home finale when they were both subbed off with a minute to go, giving the crowd the chance to serve some applause. Both have been key players this year. Both are leaving on free transfers. SIF rejected a seven-figure bid for Adamsen from Brøndby in the January window and opted to take the financial hit of losing him for free so as to have his goals as they scrapped against relegation – given how that worked out, gotta say that was the right call. But with two of their best players leaving for nothing, that puts their other key contributor, Callum McCowatt, in a curious spot. He doesn’t necessarily want to leave but he’d easily be the most profitable offload for a club that would not only need to replace him but also their goalkeeper and striker. A good fee for McCowatt might pay for all three.
Sidenote: Callum McCowatt has become just the second player ever from Silkeborg to be selected for a World Cup squad – following on from Peter Kjær who was Denmark’s third-choice goalkeeper back in 1998.
Elsewhere, Sønderjyske lost 4-1 at home to Nordsjælland in the final round which means no European footy for them. They sunk back to sixth with that result – no Dalton Wilkins due to injury. He does have another year under contract with them. In the past two seasons, he’s only managed to play 16 times for them adding up to roughly 400 minutes. He was a little more prominent in his first season on their way to promotion but yeah the injuries have been brutalising his career, sadly.
A couple others to squeeze in here... Joe Bell was absent again as Viking FK won 6-3 (!) against IK Start. They were 2-0 down after 32 minutes and 3-1 down at half-time and still somehow won it in a canter. That’s the third game in a row that Bellinho has skipped though it doesn’t sound like anything to worry about. They’re winning without him and he’s got a World Cup to play soon. Viking have two more games before the Eliteserien takes a pause for the World Cup but the second of those will almost certainly be postponed given that Bell’s got a few teammates also heading to North America.
Similar deal with Ryan Thomas at PEC Zwolle. He skipped their last two games immediately after they guaranteed their top flight safety. It was well known that he’d been playing through a few niggles so no need to go crazy with nothing else to play for.
Meanwhile, here’s how Owen Parker-Price’s latest game went down...
Bit of scarf burning in the stands and they had to call off the game because of the smoke it caused. They returned a day later and finished it with IFK Göteborg winning the derby 3-2. OPP played 69 minutes spanning over 24 hours (40 on the first day, 29 on the second day). Örgryte did equalise on 86’ but then conceded again straight afterwards and that drops them down into the bottom two after eight games, having not won since the second gameweek. GAIS drew 1-1 with Degefors in their game, dropping points for the first time since goalkeeper Mergim Krasniqi returned three weeks ago. Kees Sims was on the bench again with the other keeper still unavailable in concussion protocol.
Up Next: World Cup things
Maya Hahn - Viktoria Berlin (German Bundesliga 2)
Last game of the season and Maya Hahn played an hour in a 2-0 win for Viktoria Berlin against her former team Turbine Potsdam, subbed soon-ish after the second goal hit the net. Good win to conclude things as VB finished fifth in the standings, eight points beyond the promotion spots. Plenty to build upon there. Maya Hahn played in 22 of their 26 games with one goal to her name along with six yellow cards.
One division upwards, Suya Haering has had a curious few weeks getting back into the frame after seeing her minutes dip post-international debut. That’s led to her being a half-time introduction in a 5-1 loss to Freiburg, subbed off at half-time of a 7-0 loss to Werder Bremen, and subbed on at half-time of a 3-0 loss to FC Köln most recently. Half games alternating on and off. They were already three down in the FCK game so at least she kept things scoreless during her stint. Carl Zeiss Jena have been strolling towards relegation all season and that was confirmed for them last week.
Up Next: Footy Ferns in a couple weeks, you know
Chris Wood - Nottingham Forest (English Premier League)
He’s been the main man for the last few weeks but there’s just not much to say about Chris Wood’s antics this week. No more European games so just the one Premier League match. Nottingham Forest have already confirmed their presence in the English top flight for another week but they still named a strong line-up to face Manchester United away. That included the Omari Hutchison, Morgan Gibbs-White, Igor Jesus, Chris Wood front four that has been so effective for them since Woodsy returned from injury – this being MGW’s first game since getting his face split open two weeks ago.
But they lost 3-2 as third-placed Man United proved a little too good. Wood played 70 minutes and was replaced with his team trailing 2-1, good minutes for him in an otherwise meaningless game. He had a couple of micro-chances with a header back post off a corner that he couldn’t get proper contact with and a through ball where his first touch let him down. Worked hard but nothing much came his way. Doesn’t matter. The main thing is that he’s staying fit ahead of the World Cup... although it would be cool if he could add another goal to the tally in the final matchweek.
The Athletic: “Chris Wood’s return from injury has been seen as vital. Forest’s coaching staff regard him as being a key figure in the dressing room, with a “deep understanding” of the league’s demands. He is seen as a vital asset for the future.”
And, yes, it looks as though Tyler Bindon is still training with NFFC as he seeks to make an impression on the new coaching staff ahead of next season, keeping himself in their plans with the aim of himself becoming a vital asset for the future...
Up Next: Forest vs Bournemouth at 3am on Monday (NZT)
Jacob Borgnis - Aldershot Town (English National League)
It’s only May and we’re already getting transfers. Jacob Borgnis (full name: Jacob Hammond-Chambers-Borgnis) has been announced to be joining Aldershot Town at the end of his current contract with Reading. He’s been with the Royals throughout his youth development and often captained their U21s team but was one of six players named in the ‘Released’ section of their Retained/Released list last week. This follows his loan move to Slough Town in the sixth tier last season where he was very good until an injury spoiled his final couple months.
Aldershot Town are a fifth tier club so this is a jump up a division for him (considering his only first team action for Reading was in the EFL Trophy). They were one place above relegation from that division but that doesn’t matter. New coach, new players, new season. That new coach has a lot to do with this, by the way, because Scott Davies is the same boss that Borgnis played under at Slough Town. He’s also a former Aldershot player and he started his playing career in the Reading youth team. Connections aplenty – which also explains why Basil Tuma from that very same Reading FC released list has also been snapped up, as has off-contract senior Reading defender Michael Stickland – Borgnis, Tuma, and Stickland were all regular teammates for the Reading U21s together. Kiki Oshilaja has also been signed from Slough Town.
There are 12 players being released by Aldershot at the conclusion of this season (contracts normally expire at the end of June) and another four returning to their parent clubs so it’s going to be a near-complete rebuild for Scott Davies. For context, the National League where Aldershot will be competing in next season is the same division that Tommy Smith and Braintree Town just got relegated from and Zac Jones and AFC Fylde just got promoted into.
Coach Scott Davies: “I’m really pleased to have Borgy with us. He was outstanding for me last season when on loan from Reading. At 21, he’s only going to get better at his craft and that excites me. He’s a fully committed type of midfielder, one that’ll fly into a tackle or two whilst also being able to use the ball productively. He’s a brilliant character off the pitch too which is just as important for the environment in which we want to create.”
Jacob Borgnis hasn’t played for New Zealand yet, he was a couple months too old for the last U20 World Cup. However we know that he’s eligible because his younger bro Toby Borgnis was part of the last U17 World Cup squad – the Borgnis Bros were raised in England but seem to have been born in Aotearoa and even if they weren’t they’d still qualify through their kiwi mother. It’s telling that all the media chat about Jacob with this transfer refers to him as a New Zealander. His Reading FC club profile always did the same.
Toby Borgnis has also been on the books at Reading and they came very close to sharing a matchday squad for the U21s earlier this season when Toby was included as a travelling reserve third keeper for one of those fixtures. Jacob is gone but Toby might still be there, it’s hard to tell with those youth teams – although he wasn’t listed in the contract offers for their U18s team and he did change agencies recently so if he does pop up somewhere else then don’t be surprised.
Up Next: Meet the lads that he doesn’t already know
Max Crocombe - Millwall (English Championship)
Let’s stick with the information gifted to us by those wonderful Retained/Released lists that they do in England because there’s been a twist in Max Crocombe’s tale with his name completely absent from those who will “leave the club following the expiration of their contracts” and those who “remain in discussions over new contracts” which suggests that his case falls under the “all other First-Team squad members remain under contract for the 2026/27 season” banner. Millwall never stated the length of his contract when he signed but other outlets had suggested a one-year deal. Seems very possible that he would have signed something like a 1+1 with an automatic trigger for appearances (he played 23 Championship games for them, exactly half of the campaign). That would explain the discrepancy... but whatever the situation is, he remains a Millwall player.
That doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be there next season, transfers do happen, although Alex Patterson’s loan has ended and if they had reservations about Crocombe at this level then they’re certainly not going to lean upon a 21yo George Evans (most recently on loan with Hartlepool in the fifth tier) while Lucas Jensen only played three reserves games all last season due to injuries. Best case scenario here would be that manager Alex Neil is more trusting of Crocombe having now been through a playoff campaign (albeit on the bench) and he therefore gives Crocs and Jensen the chance to scrap it out for the number one status. Worst case scenario is that they bring in another loanee or even a permanent keeper ahead of both of them to leave Crocs stranded as a backup. Patterson might be available again although Sunderland would probably rather offload him permanently and it’s doubtful that Millwall could afford that fee. Gotta see how things unfold... but it does mean that Crocombe is not a free agent heading into the World Cup.
The Premier League season hasn’t quite finished so there’s no clarity yet on Matt Dibley-Dias (Fulham) or Marley Leuluai (Burnley). Dibs has another year under contract with Fulham following his short-term loan with Braintree Town and will surely attempt another EFL loan after his last two were cut short due to injuries (Northampton in 2024-25 and Cheltenham in 2025-26). Leuluai seems to be at the end of his current Burnley deal and that five-game stint with Marine FC might have been a primer for him to go out on his own. He’s only 19yo though so Burnley could bring him back for their U21s team if they want.
Chris Wood, Tyler Bindon (Nottingham Forest), and Alex Paulsen (Bournemouth) also have existing Prem deals. No worries about Woodsy. Bindon and Paulsen will probably be back for preseason but could be looking at loans afterwards. Henry Gray is also moving back up to the Premier League with Ipswich Town though they haven’t done their list yet. The deadline for EFL clubs (which Ipswich remain for a couple more weeks) is this coming weekend. Remains to be seen what happens there... but he is under contract following his loan at Harrogate Town.
No stress with Marko Stamenić (Swansea City), Libby Cacace (Wrexham), Matt Garbett (Peterborough), or Ben Waine (Port Vale) who all made the retained sections following moves within the past twelve months. As did young goalkeeper Joe Wallis at West Bromwich Albion who seems to have claimed the GK3 spot for the Baggies and has had his automatic contract extension activated. NZ U20s rep Noah Dupont is also with WBA having signed a two-year pro deal 12 months ago. Wallis and Dupont were in the same U20WC squad as Henry Gray in September 2025 and also in that group was a surprise figure: Josey Casa-Grade. At the time he was on the books of Bristol City. He’s since spent some time on loan at Dorchester before conceding eight goals in his only U21s game for Bristol City this season. He’s disappeared off the radar since then but was still referred to as part of the BC academy as recently as March so perhaps he’s injured. His contract expires soon and Bristol City haven’t done their released list yet.
Nik Tzanev was curiously listed as being “in discussions” with Huddersfield Town despite having joined them on a short-term deal to be their third-choice keeper in January. He did end making two appearances for them as the two guys ahead of him both got injured but they’re also still both under contract with the League One club. But possibly they’re looking to offload one? They can’t both be starters so whoever out of Jak Alnwick and Lee Nicholls isn’t favoured might prefer to go be a number one elsewhere which would push Tzanev up into a more palatable bench role.
Jago Godden is currently on loan with Drogheda United in Ireland until January but has a contract with Walsall (League Two) until the end of next season with an option for an additional year. Excluding youth players - Alex Lienard is the bloke to watch there, having played six times for Sunderland’s U21s this season as a 17yo, after captaining Aotearoa at the U17 World Cup in 2025 – that brings us to the National League where Matt Gould has signed a one-year extension at Yeovil Town (where he’s the backup keeper/goalkeeping coach) and Zac Jones has had his option picked up for a further year with AFC Fylde after their promotion. Jamie Searle has been released by Eastbourne Borough a division below.
Up Next: The usual offseason stuff of holidays, fitness training, playing at the World Cup, etc.
Tommy Smith – Braintree Town (English National League South)
Carrying on from the Retained/Released lists, there has been no word yet from Braintree Town who have been celebrating Tommy Smith’s World Cup selection at the same time as they’ve also been slapped with a transfer embargo for late wage payments...
The club is up for sale and seeking new investment. Lots of reasons listed there for why they’re in this situation, some their fault and some not their fault. They also list a few solutions for getting out of this financial hole with one of those being: “windfalls from player inclusion in the World Cup”. Smith’s inclusion in that All Whites squad has been a big talking point (good signs of a settled team that the biggest debate is around selection 26/26) but from a Braintree Town perspective it was already immensely cool for them to have their first ever World Cup representative (for a club that’s existed since long before the World Cup was even a thing) and now it turns out the compensation money they’ll get from FIFA might help them solve this current predicament... if FIFA pays up soon enough for them to avoid things getting irreparably worse in the meantime.
Tommy Smith only signed a one-year contract so dunno if he’ll be back with Braintree in the sixth tier or not. Injuries meant he only played in 17/46 games last season but he was a regular started (and often captain) when fit. Remember that he moved back to England from Auckland FC for family reasons so he’s got other priorities to think about. At 36 years old he may also fancy hanging up the boots, you never know. Those Retained/Released lists don’t have to be made public... most clubs do but in Braintree Town’s current pickle you can understand them playing things close to their chest. Players under contract may not actually be under contract much longer if things get voided, it’s a messy situation.
As for Smithy himself, everyone’s been talking about him but only Paul Hawksbee and Andy Jacobs from England’s TalkSPORT radio have actually spoken to him (skip to around 1:06:00)...
It’s funny how every English interviewer who talks to a kiwi footballer asks them straight away about how tough the travel is, not realising how rare it is for the All Whites (and especially the Football Ferns) to actually get to play at home in Aotearoa. Probably because the England men’s team plays all of their friendlies at Wembley Stadium and pretty much only play outside England for qualifiers and tournaments (granted, they have a lot of those being in Europe). They also asked him about playing against Romelu Lukaku (Belgium) and Mohamed Salah (Egypt)... he’s not actually going to get to play against them, since there’s little chance he actually gets on the pitch at the World Cup, but fortunately he pointed out that he’s already played them before – Salah at the Olympics and Lukaku in an Ipswich vs Chelsea reserves game once upon a time. Here are a couple of Word Cup preparation notes...
Tommy Smith: “I travel next Thursday (21 May). For the lads that finished their season earlier than the others, they're putting on a little sort of pre-camp in Miami and then the whole squad meets up on the 27th in Boca Raton, Florida. We’ve got friendlies against Haiti and England. Obviously [the England game] will have a special place in my heart with it being the country of my birth. Looking forward to that one and my family is getting out there for it. My wife and kids will be there. So that'll be a special occasion. We're based in San Diego with our first game in LA and our second two group games up in Vancouver. Based in San Diego and when we do fly up to Vancouver, we'll stay up there for both games.”
“Our sport scientist is encouraging us all to take part in some heat adaptation training. So, I've been in the sauna every day really between 30 and 60 minutes to try and get the body exposed to that heat that we're going to going to be exposed to over in the States. It's something that we did at Auckland FC as well, for when we play away games in Australia where the heat can be very similar to that in the US. So I've got good experience of playing in those conditions, but it never makes it that much easier.”
Up Next: Check the bank account and see if Braintree have paid him or not
Andre De Jong - Orlando Pirates (South African Premiership)
ADJ’s minutes in league games since joining Orlando Pirates:
26, 11, DNP, 16, DNP, 62, DNP, DNP, 45, 13, 22, DNP, DNP, 14, 8, DNP
That’s 16 fixtures across which he’s only played in 217 minutes. Two starts and in one of those he was subbed off at half-time. It’s been a tough task trying to fit into a new squad midway through a successful season when most of the guys he’s competing with are South African internationals.
But there’s a silver lining here which is that Orlando Pirates, despite a 0-0 draw in his absence most recently, will lift the PSL trophy if they win their last game. They’re away to Orbit College who themselves need to avoid defeat in case Magesi wins their last game and knocks them down into the relegation zone. If Pirates don’t win then Mamelodi Sundows will claim the title for the ninth season in a row. Orlando Pirates last won this thing way back in 2011-12. An ADJ winner off the bench for the championship sounds like a decent script.
Up Next: Orbit College vs Orlando Pirates at 1am on Sunday (NZT)
Moses Dyer - Phnom Penh Crown (Cambodian Premier League)
Svay Rieng have been rubbish since winning the title, losing their last three games in a row... to the benefits of both kiwi strikers. Myer Bevan got a goal and an assist in a 3-2 win over Svay Rieng last week and Moses Dyer did the same in a 2-1 win this week. Boy was that an important win for Phnom Penh Crown too. PPC’s form capitulated over the last few months but that win meant they finished on 56 points level with Angkor Tiger for second place. Angkor have the far better goal difference but the tiebreaker that counts is head to head points and that went in PPC’s favour. That means that Phnom Penh Crown not only finish second but they also gain entry into the AFC Champions League Two preliminary stage. They’d have gotten nothing if they’d failed to win that game and landed in third.
Not to be overshadowed, Myer Bevan was also coming in hot to finish the season...
Bevan scored one goal in his first 14 league games for Boeung Ket. He scored three goals with an assist in his last three. Did get a couple goals in a cup game during that slow introduction but that rush of form at the end was some serious business. His team finished fourth, three points behind the ACL2 qualifiers, though do still have a chance to compete for silverware as they face Svay Rieng in the cup final.
Up Next: Svay Rieng vs Boeung Ket, tonight at 11pm (NZT)
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