2022 Men’s National League – Week Three Review
How about this for an outstanding game to begin week three of this competition? Birkenhead hosting Auckland City, the only two teams with six points after the first two weeks.
How about this for an outstanding game to begin week three of this competition? Birkenhead hosting Auckland City, the only two teams with six points after the first two weeks.
Even at this stage of the season dropped points are tough to overcome. When only two teams can make the grand final and Eastern Suburbs and Western Springs keep on winning it means that teams like Northern Rovers and Canterbury United Pride simply cannot afford to fall too far behind
Danny Hay is no longer the All Whites head coach. His contract runs up at the end of the month and he’s chosen not to reapply for the gig. He was invited to do so after a routine review into the World Cup cycle was completed but it’s often a bit frisky inviting an incumbent to reapply for their own job…
Not sure what you were expecting as the Footy Ferns took on Japan in Nagano... but it probably should have been exactly what happened. They may have been coming off two a couple wins against Mexico and Philippines but this was different gravy
This week’s Flying Kiwis is largely dedicated to Marko Stamenic, which nobody should be in any way surprised about given the week he’s just had.
Contrasting fortunes for these two teams in round one, as Christchurch United travelled as far north as they’ve gotta go for a defeat to Birkenhead whereas Napier City Rovers hosted the WeeNix and grabbed a cheeky 1-0 victory…
Throughout the year, Northern Rovers and Eastern Rovers have been common foes. Three times they met in league fixtures and they also got drawn against each other in the Kate Sheppard Cup... with Northern Rovers winning all four of those games
Anna Leat has had to wait patiently for her chances since she turned pro, that’s one of the sacrifices you’ve gotta make when you start off in one of the toughest leagues on the planet
In between weeks two and three of this competition there was a very exciting Under-17s World Cup squad named which travelled to India for that tournament on Thursday night. It was a squad with heaps of National League experience, almost every player having played at this level already
Happy days, the National League is back. Well technically the National League has already been going for a couple weeks but now finally the blokes get to join in too
The pressure is off the Football Ferns, suddenly. The weight of their winless struggles has been lifted, at least temporarily, thanks to victories last window against Mexico and The Philippines.
Okay, everybody gather around, let’s all take turns in introducing ourselves... particularly you Northern Leaguers who weren’t able to join in last year. It’s been a complicated couple of years for any number of reasons but here we all are again
Last week it was Marko Stamenic, this week Victoria Esson partook in a massive Champions League game. It was Rangers against Benfica in the first leg of their final qualifying round tie – seeking a place in the top-16 group stage in the club’s first ever European excursion
All four games in round two saw federation teams up against Auckland club teams. Always tough to know what to expect at this stage of the season so this was a curious week for the hybrid format.
Well, that’s not how it was supposed to go down. The All Whites drew an impressive crowd of just a shade under 35k to Eden Park but weren’t able to turn that into a rare victory against the Socceroos
Danny Hay’s made it clear in recent weeks that he wants this All Whites team playing as often as possible and he isn’t at all chuffed about them likely skipping out on the next few windows. Chris Wood was emphatic in saying that Australia vs Aotearoa should be a footballing fixture at least every four years
A little over two years ago, Marko Stamenic was playing for Western Suburbs in what’s now the Central League. On Thursday morning NZT he lined up for FC København in a Champions League game against Sevilla
Aaaand we’re back, a new season of National League footy
Talk about timing. To be playing the Socceroos again after so many years and they happen to be the first games since the All Whites failed to make the World Cup thanks to that brutal and controversial 1-0 defeat to Costa Rica
With the Kate Sheppard and Chatham Cups in the bag, attention always turns immediately towards summer football. Those finals are the conclusion of the winter club season. Next comes the Premiership. Or the South-Central Series. Or the National League.