Of the 23 players who played on senior contracts under Mark Rudan, how many are under contract for next season? Just seven. An absolutely ridiculous amount of player turnover and at this point, with only one player left who’s played more than 52 times for the club, and frankly those dreams of continuity have been absolutely drenched at this point.
In the end it wasn’t to be. With numbers forward, pressing for a desperate winner into the final minute of stoppage time, the Ferns got caught on the break by Cameroon and a bit of Ajara Nchout magic allowed her to cut inside and curl one inside the far post with eleven seconds remaining in the game and put Cameroon through into the next round with a 2-1 victory.
So here we are then. On game and ninety minutes with basically the entire World Cup campaign on the line. The Ferns had two objectives coming into this tournament: to win their first World Cup game and the make the knockouts stages for the first time ever.
These remain rather slim times for the Flying Kiwis crew but a few hearty souls are holding things down amidst all the World Cups and off-seasons. It was US Open Cup week in the States and that meant a unique opportunity for our Kiwi x MLS & Kiwi x USL crew to compete on a level playing field.
It won’t take too long to sum that game up, it started with Canada in control and it ended with Canada in control and in between they scored twice while the kiwis barely even threatened.
It’s never easy saying goodbye, but last year’s Wellington Phoenix squad seem to be getting pretty good at it. When Mark Rudan took over the Nix he barely had half a squad to work with and now he’s left the Nix and his successor, our beloved Uffie Talay… barely has half a squad to work with.
Heartbreaking. To get so close to a famous result and to concede at the end… it’s devastating, it’s shattering, it’s deflating. After ninety-plus minutes of resolute defence and an absolutely spot on tactical approach from Tom Sermanni the Ferns were on the brink of a valuable point against the Netherlands but couldn’t quite close it out, Jill Roord popping up with the stoppage time winner.
Where to start? Where to start? The only proper game we’ve got feels like as good a place as any, with the Rapids and the Loons going head to head in an MLS x Flying Kiwis Derby.
With all the intense effort and attitude that it takes even just to get yourself in contention to be picked for a World Cup, the last thing you wanna see is a player having their dream shattered three days out from the start of the tournament thanks to injury.
The post-Roy Krishna era of the Wellington Phoenix has begun with one of the more impressive kiwi signings this team has ever made. Stefan Marinovic has joined the Welly Nix on a two year contract, directly replacing Filip Kurto as the number one with the gloves and with that a regular All Whites starter has returned to the motherland.
And completing the clan with the last three groups. Do the research. Enjoy the World Cup.
Dishing up the goods ahead of what’s only gonna be the biggest, most competitive FIFA Women’s World Cup in history.
The Football Ferns had a brilliant win over England on the weekend but just in case anyone was getting carried away they went and chased that with a 1-0 defeat against Wales. It was a comedown game in many ways.
People, we’re living rent-free on controversy corner right now. The kiwi U20 lads were up to some magical things in Poland and were on the brink of history when keeper Michael Woud pounced to his left to deny Andres Perea for Colombia. It was Woud’s third straight save to start the shootout.
Two games in the space of a few days with promotion to the top flight on the line. Nikko Boxall’s Viborg finished second on the ladder by a single point and so were confident coming into it against Hobro but their opponents weren’t about to phone it in and be relegated just like that. Gotta earn it.
All you can do in these tournaments, in this sport, in all of life, is to put yourself in the best position to succeed and the rest is up to fate/luck/spiritual providence. The kiwi lads did that. They showed up and competed at a level that we’ve never seen from a New Zealand side at a FIFA tournament (definitely not a men’s side, at least).
After losing 5-0 to the USA a bit over a week ago, you’d have been forgiven for thinking the Footy Ferns were in for similar treatment against another World Cup contender as they faced England in Brighton. Instead it turned out to be the best result the Fernies have had for at least a couple years.
The lads went down to a 2-0 defeat against Uruguay, which doesn’t do too much damage to things on the surface but it was a disappointing result and a game which wasn’t really worth getting up for especially when you’d already stayed up later than you meant to watching cricket.
Following on from the Honduras win which showcased what they could do at their best, we had a very different challenge in a well-organised Norway side that wasn’t going to allow themselves to be carved open in the first half hour the way that New Zealand did to their last opponents.
Shout out to Bill Tuiloma, who just started his tenth game in a row, the longest streak he’s had for the club, and he’s the only Timbers player to have played every minute of those ten games.