History for Global Game

Youth NTC players also received it.....


I am writing to you on behalf of the Executive Committee and management team of NZ Football to update you personally on the events of the last two weeks, arising from the disqualification of our Men’s Olympic team from a tournament in Papua New Guinea. This disqualification arose as a result of alleged discrepancies in the eligibility of one of our players.

May I first say that we are all deeply upset and sorry for the stress and concern that this difficult situation has caused our players, their families, team and management and the wider football community.

Since the initial decision we have been working hard to understand the series of events and issues that led to the disqualification. Last week we received the formal written advice from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) Disciplinary Committee which outlined the grounds on which we were disqualified and the rules that they applied in doing so. As our CEO said at the outset of this situation, playing a qualifying tournament within another event (in this case the Pacific Games) has led to considerable confusion. We believed this had been clarified in advance of the event, however the decision of the OFC says that the OFC did not think this was the case.

In the last few days the Executive Committee has met and been presented with comprehensive advice from our legal team. Having had the opportunity to review all of the information now available to us, we remain disappointed at the sequence of events that led to the harsh decision to disqualify our team. Your Executive Committee has therefore unanimously agreed that there are sufficient grounds to appeal, both in terms of the process undertaken, and the rules applied.

We will be filing our appeal later this week, and will keep you fully informed of developments as and when we can. You will appreciate that given the legal process we are now entering into; it would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.

In the meantime our players remain our top priority. Our management team is currently reviewing all of our internal processes and eligibility information to ensure we do not put ourselves in a position where this could happen again. We intend to have this internal review completed in the next few weeks, and once complete will put in place a programme of action to remedy any eligibility concerns should any arise. This work programme is our key focus, and will be completed irrespective of the outcome of the appeal.

We have been working hard to build a better professional football operation in New Zealand, to support our shared ambition to qualify for and win at World Cup events on a regular basis. While we have made some great progress - evidenced by our Football Ferns and U20 Men making history at their recent World Cups - this situation has shown us that we still have work to do.

Please be assured that you have the full commitment of your Executive Committee and management to achieve this.

I’m conscious that many of you may well have concerns and questions. Please don’t hesitate to contact me personally should you wish to discuss them further. In the meantime we thank you for your commitment to New Zealand Football, and appreciate all of your concern and ongoing support.

Yours sincerely,

Youth NTC players also received it.