Perhaps it was fitting that in the 100th edition of the Chatham Cup we got ourselves a historical champion. Christchurch United are now level with University-Mount Wellington for the most Chatham Cup wins after their penalty shootout triumph against Melville United
Western Springs AFC found themselves in a bit of a shambles earlier this year as an ongoing dispute between the women’s team and the club board made it into the national media. Now that very same women’s team are the Kate Sheppard Cup champions
The rumours were true, Joe Bell is a Viking. The curls are at the height of Stavanger fashion once again after Bell’s frustrating tenure with Brøndby in Denmark ended with a switch back to his old club in Norway
You know how champion boxers often have rematch clauses in their fight contracts so that they can instantly avenge an upset defeat? That seems to be how the Australia Cup works too
As far as club debuts go, this was a good one. James McGarry has only been with Aberdeen for two weeks and it wasn’t immediately clear how soon they’d unleash him into the action
Cometh the moment, cometh the Woodsman... you know how the saying goes. Nottingham Forest were hosting Sheffield United and it was poised at 1-1 deep into the match…
They were the worthiest champions. Dominant against the weaker teams and efficient against their fellow challengers. Spain delivered a clinic in possession-based football, built around an incredible midfield and a couple of superbly aggressive fullbacks
In the end, the thing that kept the Football Ferns from making the knockouts of their home World Cup was the thing that was always going to be the problem: their lack of goals
What can you say? The bro knows where the goal is. Given the start up front for Plymouth Argyle in their EFL Cup first round match against Leyton Orient, Ben Waine responded with a first half brace and went on to win man of the match
Every Wellington Phoenix season gets underway with an Australia Cup jaunt. They’re always played on the other side of the Tasman Sea, usually against a lower-tiered NPL club, and generally very early in their preseason activities.
The opening day of the new season is always a special occasion filled with hope and expectation. Players are fired up after another tough preseason, fans are brimming to be back in the stands again
The Football Ferns didn’t quite reach the resplendent realms of the World Cup knockout phase but the word ‘fail’ and its derivatives have no place in such conversations
It has begun. Following a preseason that went pretty much perfectly for both Marko Stamenic and Red Star Belgrade, the Serbian league season has kicked off in pretty much perfect fashion too
And so here we are again. For the sixth time in six attempts, the Football Ferns have been knocked out in the group stage of a FIFA World Cup... but this one wasn’t like the others
From the moment he was announced as the new Wellington Phoenix Men’s Manager, Giancarlo Italiano has made it clear that he backs the club’s academy system and the players coming through it
Well that clearly didn’t go to plan. After beating Norway in a thrilling, impassioned, amazing upset in the tournament opener the Football Ferns would have been all but on the brink of the World Cup knockouts…
You already know how Zac Jones got here. You know about how he won the gloves at Haverfordwest County with a series of strong performances last season. You know about his penalty heroics in helping them qualify for the Europa Conference League prelims
It was hard not to get caught up in the emotions of that legendary Football Ferns victory. All you had to do was peek at Ali Riley after the final whistle, eyes all watery, embraced by a beaming Vic Esson, leaning her head back and roaring into the night sky: “We did it!”
It began with a goal kick, it ended in a goal. In between five different players combined for six touches as the Football Ferns gave the 2023 World Cup its iconic opening game moment
The whole year has been building up towards this for FC Haka and their two kiwi compadres. We’re talking about the start of Europa Conference League qualifying, where Haka had been drawn up against Crusaders of Northern Ireland