The next All Whites coach

If he is the best candidate, we should wait. The new coach will be apppointed with the aim of making Russia 2018, whats a few months more at the start of that.

Oh, so forget about any knowledge or even interest in the game, players or local scene. lets appoint a London city banker who can count the pennies coming in and the pennies going out and look to squeeze the margins. Football is more than selling a product, it is a passion, a game. It's not about selling credit default swaps. I'm not saying that the CEO has to be a footballer but I do say he has to know and love the game or you're asking for trouble.

I have a theory that FVH and RH went for Andy Martin as a snide way of getting their own back for losing their little empire. Ivan Vuksich at ACFC is a classic example of a CEO who loves football with a passion and is a great administrator. You can't have one without the other. Otherwise it's like marriage without love. 

With Ramon out of the shortlist (I always knew he wouldn't fit and I'm glad he's staying at ACFC) hopefully we'll land Anthony Hudson, who at least sounds promising. If it's Dowie or Farina in charge of NZ football I predict lots of tears before bedtime.

Ok we got it. You don't like Andy Martin and you think the sun shines out of yoiur very own Ivan Vuksichs backside. Message received very loud and clear.

Honestly.

1) Andy Martin has played football to a decent level

2) The timings just don't line up. He was appointed in Dec. RH left in Nov. Take your tin hat off.

Apart from your (incorrect) assumption that Andy Martin isn't a football person, what actually has he done wrong so far, BM?

He was in charge at the time of a World Cup that New Zealand wasnt part of. #andyout

A better bit of paranoia would be ...  

" its all a plot to make us wish R H was still in charge "

and how bad would that have to be ....

Thought Martin said in an interview that he was a lifelong football fan.

Liverpool.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/football/10270431/Three-still-in-the-mix-for-All-Whites-coaching-job

What we need to do when we interview anyone for a senior leadership role like this is get them to sing their national anthem, and see who can do it most passionately.  That's the guy who should always get the job, because roles like this are all about PASSION. 

What an absolute load of horseshit.  Seriously, do you truly believe that NZ Football starts and ends with ACFC?

That selection panel looks light on football experience to me whichever way you slice it.

So what conflict of interest if Ramon is not on the shortlist could Ivan have had?

Can you give me a better example than ACFC of a successful outfit on the NZ domestic scene? I just use it as an example of what a well-run club looks like when the CEO is competent and also passionate about football. The trouble is the mere mention of any praise of ACFC has some of you jumping up and down.

Saying the CEO of NZF needs to know and love the game or you're asking for trouble doesn't seem like "horseshit" to me. Try a bit harder. BTW my reference to FVH and RH was a bit of a joke, sort of.

It's like the film business, lawyers and accountants don't make good films, which is why so much franchise crap is now being churned out by studios which were once bastions of creativity. I fear decisions are being made within NZF that are light on actual football knowhow and that concerns me. I'm happy that Ivan Vicelich is back in the frame, his input will be needed.

Seems like NZF let Ivan assume Ramon was still in the running even though he wasn't. Now that he's not is public knowledge, Ivan has again offered his services. !!

Is this truth?

Just trying to work out the sequence of events 1. Ivan offers his services. 2 Ivan hears Ramon is on shortlist so withdraws 3 NZF announce their final 3 are all from offshore 4 Ivan again offers his services. Bit weird but seems to be what's happened.

There seems to be no actual communication between NZF and Ivan in this scenario. Which makes me think that this is exactly what happened.

Except Ramon said he did not make the shortlist so I think Ivan declined to be involved from the very beginning because Ramon had applied (it said Ivan was asked to be involved, not that Ivan offered his services) but said he would be happy to rejoin if Ramon falls out of the running.

You mean other than allow Phoenix resereves to play in ASBP and make our national league an even bigger joke

Has that been confirmed has it now?

Been silence on the issue for a while. With Ifill and now Durante all thinking of getting jobs with the club after their contracts expire we need to put together some more teams just to give all our ex players jobs.

Is this even possible ? 

I mean really ?

He has made it clear it is the priority for the ASBP. I would love to have heard talk of boosting, investing in and expanding the national league, but nothing as far as I've heard. Nothing like making the national league feel like a mere training ground for the Nix reserves and the fringe Under 20 AW players to boost its self esteem, and it has to pay its own way to boot. In fact it has to pay for the privilege. 

Perhaps to please Gareth everyone coming to an ASBP game should bring a dead cat to gain entry?

You ask what he has done wrong so far Captain Mainwarring? How about shortlisting Ian Dowie, Frank Farina and Terry Butcher for a start. I thought it was a joke, but sadly no.

Do we still get beer for rats ?

Im fond of my cat , but if the price is right ......

Jesus. Its like ACFC can do no wrong and absolutely nobody else has a clue about doing anything good in football outside of Kiwitea St.

Martin has been in the job 5 months. His knowledge and perspective of the ASBP is absolutely fuck all. Give the man a chance to learn the landscape for crying out loud. You can't lambast him for being a banker with no football knowledge (a fallacy) and then expect him to fix everything like he has known the entire history the our national league right back to the Rothman days the minute he walks through the door. You are being complete unreasonable and I am not sure if that is deliberate or not.

The three names were listed in the British press, not from NZF either. When you consider Hudson is one, then the article is false  because 3 does not fit into 2.

 "His knowledge and perspective of the ASBP is absolutely fuck all."

OK,  so he's at standard NZF levels already , personally I was hoping he'd be an improvement .... early days yet tho...

Ivan is such a fan of NZ Football he's filled his team with overseas players.

ACFC are by far and away the best run ASBP franchise in the country.  Much of that is based on using the gaming trust system to their advantage and their position as the dominant team in the biggest city in the country.  They have been fairly ruthless in attracting good players from other franchises.  I see very little that is replicable about that when you look at NZ Football overall. 

Knowing and loving the game are one thing, but CEO is a strategic leadership position.  I agree that an understanding and passion for the game is important, but that is not the beginning and end of the skill set.  Sporting organisations are unique in that they need to be run as businesses but outcomes are judged based on field performance.  

Your contention is that the ASBP should be the primary focus for NZF.  The fact is, correctly I think, Martin has identified the All Whites and Football ferns as his primary immediate focus.  I'm unclear on his plans for the ASBP but I agree that something needs to change.  Personally, I think the franchise model works in a couple of places but generally hasn't achieved what it set out to do which is raise standards, crowds etc.  I remain unconvinced that it's the best way forward for the sport at the top level in the country.

If we are going to keep the franchise system I think there are 2 steps I would start with.  1, let's go back to the original franchise agreement and start enforcing the original terms around things like grounds, sign age, match day experience for fans etc.  Secondly, there has to be some competitive pressure to stop teams doing a Waikato and just having a year where they play kids because there is no real problem with finishing bottom.  I think you need some level of security obviously but there neerds to be consequences for failure to promote teams to be ambitious.  Maybe the focus should be on adding an 8 team second division rather than expanding the top division?  Let's say you have Phoenix Reserves, Nelson, North Shore, Tauranga, Second Wellington Team, South Auckland, Palmerston you're then most of the way there.  I'd also tighten up the overseas player category as I don't think it's working as intended.

You constantly preach the same, non-specific mantra of more sponsorship, more investment.  But I still don't understand how you think (a) that money should be applied to improve the league and (b) how you go about improving standards for teams based in small cities with fairly weak local leagues.  The only suggestion is a "TV Highlights" package which I think frankly does little because the quality of the broadcast is low and only really serves to highlight the relatively poor on field product.

So much this. This this this this this this!!!

Back to the subject at hand. Hudson and two others.

Any prophetic people out there?

I know this is heresy, but I don't think Farina would be that terrible.  I know there are people who vocally don't like him on here, but he's pretty experienced within the region and he's not a complete dinosaur.  He didn't get Sydney firing but actually that was a pretty tough gig.  Not saying he's my preferred candidate, but I wouldn't say total disaster if he did end up getting it for 2 years.

Its hard enough to guess outcomes when you know who's in the contest. Impossible when you don't know!

The problem with Farina is that you could get Farina that is a good coach, or Farina that is a train wreck coach. The odds are not in his favour which is why there is a perceived high risk factor in appointing him.

Farina

Yes the national league should be a primary focus of the NZF, not virtually ignored as is. Yes ACFC has advantages in being from Auckland but so does Waitakere. Yes, as I've said so before, more investment and sponsorship for the ASBP should go to help lift the income and playing quality of the struggling franchises. ACFC doesn't need help, but others do. I've always advocated more of a level playing field for our national league but that won't be achieved by dragging down the best franchise. It will only be achieved by lifting up the struggling franchises. As it is ACFC, by winning the O League four times in a row has plowed well over a million dollars back into the ASBP so stop harking on that they just take and don't give. What other franchise has given back so much to the competition?

By the way ACFC also won the 2014 youth league for all those who imply it just takes from the top. I think there is so much resentment of the success of ACFC it clouds reason for some of you. The reason players want to play for the club is because they're successful. That's the nature of the beast the world over.

I love ACFC and I love the national league and I want to see the whole competition prosper. I'd love to see eight teams up to ACFCs standard. Why is that so wrong? Your slur on Ivan is beneath contempt.

I would add that having a robust and competitive national league is more important than the AWs which is largely composed of overseas-based players and more important than a Nix reserve team getting playing time.

NZ drinking culture would certainly suit Farina

We don't need another Aussie or close to one being in charge of any more NZ national teams.

Hudson will do me. Let's not go for an old has been, rather the up and coming man any day.

Martinez or the Moyes type of manager? See the sort we want not the stuck in his ways non achiever.

Well we know the 3 shortlisted are all overseas based (for now). And we know Hudson is the man of choice. And we know Farina, Dowie, Butcher & Sanchez all applied. So I'd pick Hudson Farina and one of D, B & S as the three. Gawd.

Yet you have absolutely no problem doing that to Andy Martin who has done nothing wrong thus far.... Don't throw stones and then whine at others who do it too. 

Pull your head in.