Kiwi Players Elsewhere

Max Crocombe (Millwall | England)

880 replies · 200,606 views
26 Apr 02:45 · edited 26 Apr 02:56 · History
Burton Albion (20th, 43 pts) host Cambridge United (23rd, 38 pts). CU san still potentially avoid relegation with wins in their last 2 games.
https://us.soccerway.com/matches/2025/04/26/england/league-one/burton-albion-fc/cambridge-united-fc/4378906/

Bristol Rovers (21st, 43 pts) host Reading (7th). 

BA with a game in hand in BR. BA win plus BR lose,  and then Burton Albion a strong chance to avoid relegation.
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27 Apr 03:01
Crucial 2-1 win for 10 man BA. They had a player sent off late first half (0-0), as did Cambridge, in a game that would have had some feeling.

BA went up 1-0 early 2nd half, only to concede 84th min for 1-1. Then the big moment a 93td min winner. Crocombe in goal.

Albion (20th) are 3 pts clear of Crawley (21st) & Bristol Rovers (22nd). BA also with the game in hand. They host Wigan midweek (16th - nothing to play for). Albion win that game and staying up is locked in.

With luck all the teams with Kiwis in League One will avoid relegation. 
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27 Apr 03:21 · edited 27 Apr 03:22 · History
Burton Albion only need a midweek point to confirm safety

Edit: i'm sure all the Paulsenheads will be seething that their boy won't get the gloves due to Max staying at a decent level 
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27 Apr 03:24
Copped a potential broken nose or mouth injury for his efforts
IMG_8063.jpeg 1.05 MB
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29 Apr 00:09
Burton Albion (20th, 46 pts) host Wigan Athletic (16th). Wigan nothing to play for

As above BA just need a draw to confirm their League One status. Even if they lose, their GD is so much better than either Crawley and Bristol Rovers (both 43 pts), heading into the final round on the weekend they will survive.

https://us.soccerway.com/matches/2025/04/29/england/league-one/burton-albion-fc/wigan-athletic-football-club/4378821/
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29 Apr 20:51
Burton secure their League One status, drawing 1-1 with Wigan. 11 points adrift at one stage, new manager bounce.....hasn't worked at Old Trafford!
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29 Apr 23:17 · edited 29 Apr 23:22 · History
Good news. Crocombe in goal. His contract expires 30th June. Hopefully it's a simple extension at BA. You feel League One is his level.

If he goes to another club in the UK, is always a chance he becomes the no 2 GK, and you don't want your current AWs starting keeper sitting on the pine in the lead up to a World Cup.

That's taking into account we have zero idea how the next 12 months is going to pan out for Paulsen. Zero idea.

So to have at least one of your two top keepers in a settled environment, most likely playing every week, is a good thing for the season ahead.
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30 Apr 01:12
Niche Cache.

"Max Crocombe, back on April 20: “The noise was magnificent, I could hear them from the changing rooms when I went back in before kick-off. That sort of stuff gets you over the line because you can see what it means to them. It’s important that we respect that by giving our all, hopefully then we can give them something to smile about at the end of the season.”

There has been an unfortunate amount of relegation chat in recent weeks so here’s a glorious tale of a team that might just survive the drop despite all the odds. It took Burton Albion until their 14th game of the season to finally get a win and they’ve been adrift in the relegation zone basically the entire way. But it’s a long campaign in League One and Burton have steadily been stacking up the points since January. After winning 2/25 games to begin things, they’ve won 9/19 since. The latest was a 2-1 victory against Cambridge United which not only confirmed that Cambridge would be going down, it put Burton on the brink of mathematical safety.

Crocombe was typically assertive between the posts, making four saves including an impressive double stop midway through the second spell while Burton were up 1-0. In a feisty game, both teams got red cards in first half stoppage time. Cambridge first, Ryan Loft getting marched for a bit of off-ball retaliation. Then Burton’s JJ McKiernan for a second-yellow after clattering into the CU goalkeeper. Cambridge thought they’d snatched a point with an 84th minute equaliser until Dylan Williams slipped a sharp finish home in injury time to put Burton one point away from their target with two games to go (including a midweek catch-up)... and even if they lose both they’ll probably still stay up thanks to their goal difference.

The key to Burton Albion’s goal difference is that, despite not scoring particularly freely, they’ve conceded ten fewer than Bristol Rovers and twenty fewer than Crawley Town (the two clubs that can still, in some abstract theory, overtake them). That’s probably got a lot to do with the New Zealand international goalkeeper who has made 128 saves in 41 appearances this season. Third-most in the entire league and with that game in hand he could go top before it’s over."
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30 Apr 02:26
Any chance of him playing in the championship? 
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05 May 10:18
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11 May 02:44
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14 May 01:16 · edited 14 May 04:07 · History
Sensible piece of business. Risky Crocs moving elsewhere, when he will be desperate to be playing regularly in the leadup to the World Cup. He'll be 33 next year, so this will probably be his one shot at playing in a WC.

If Paulsen goes to Hibs (or similar level) and rides the pine for a season, you can just see Bazeley keeping Crocombe as his no 1. It's all on Alex to crack through up north.

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08 Jun 23:42
So BA have made an offer to Crocombe, but he's yet to sign on?

Had one of his best AWs games I think on the weekend. And yeah a master of time wasting, Libby stretching out that 'cramp' himself loves some sharkhousery.

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09 Jun 05:53
coochiee
So BA have made an offer to Crocombe, but he's yet to sign on?

Had one of his best AWs games I think on the weekend. And yeah a master of time wasting, Libby stretching out that 'cramp' himself loves some sharkhousery.

This is interesting, I assumed he would of signed straight away, any rumours for those that look in the right places?
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09 Jun 06:05
YellowAndBlack
coochiee
So BA have made an offer to Crocombe, but he's yet to sign on?

Had one of his best AWs games I think on the weekend. And yeah a master of time wasting, Libby stretching out that 'cramp' himself loves some sharkhousery.

This is interesting, I assumed he would of signed straight away, any rumours for those that look in the right places?
Apparently Mansfield Town are after Liam Roberts from Milwall, but Crocombe is their second choice
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09 Jun 06:08
More coin? 
At face value Crocs would be swapping struggling L1 side, for struggling L1 side.
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18 Jun 06:08
Niche Cache.

Still waiting on what Max Crocombe’s going to do - although the longer he takes, the more obvious it seems that he won’t be staying with Burton Albion. 
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20 Jun 01:54 · edited 20 Jun 02:02 · History
Would be a big move. Millwall were 8th in The Championship last season, only 2 points off the playoffs.

If he was a regular starter in the English 2nd tier, would it be the highest level a Kiwi keeper has ever played at? 

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20 Jun 01:57
AI Overview

Millwall's current goalkeeper situation involves Liam Roberts and Lukas Jensen. Liam Roberts recently joined Mansfield Town, while Lukas Jensen is also part of the goalkeeping squad. Sadly, Matija Sarkic, who was a key goalkeeper for Millwall, passed away unexpectedly in July 2024. 

Here's a more detailed look:
  • Liam Roberts: He joined Millwall in July 2024, following Sarkic's passing, but has since moved to Mansfield Town. He was also recently involved in a controversial incident where he was sent off for a high challenge on Jean-Philippe Mateta and subsequently banned for six matches. 

  • Lukas Jensen: He is another goalkeeper currently with Millwall. 

  • Matija Sarkic: He was a popular and well-regarded goalkeeper for Millwall, remembered for his performances and positive impact on the team. His death in July 2024 was a significant loss for the club. 
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20 Jun 08:55
Awesome move, and good on him too. Slogged it out from 6th tier stuff right through to being on the brink of a Championship breakthrough (with a little A-League stuff thrown in the mix too).

Sounds like he'll get a decent shot at #1 at least for the first half of the season with Lukas Jensen apparently out until January as well.
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20 Jun 19:57 · edited 20 Jun 19:58 · History
Reading the Millwall forum, they seem very unexcited by this move.

I forgot that this guy once got sent off for pissing on the pitch. That seemed to be his major claim to fame in their eyes  😂

Auckland will rise once more

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20 Jun 20:40
Wow, seriously intrigued to see how this plays out. Millwall have been consistently quite good for a fair few seasons now, never quite making the jump into top 6. 

They'll be desperate to push further next year especially if they can keep Tanganga at the back who is wayyyy to good for them, so a move for Crocs is either a head scratcher or a huge show of faith in his ability.
Annual finals disappointment enthusiast.

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20 Jun 22:23 · edited 20 Jun 22:24 · History
He’ll need to start the season well, as I imagine the home fans at The Den could be pretty horrid, if they don’t rate you.

But yeah to echo others a move to The Championship is a great move for him. Has a tonne of experience now, in his prime years as a keeper and should have the mental toughness to cope at this level. Just needs to start the season error free
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20 Jun 23:48
Saw Max was in the highlights of their match against Wrexham on episode 7 of Welcome to Wrexham.  Probably a game he'd rather forget.
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20 Jun 23:51
Procrastinixing
Saw Max was in the highlights of their match against Wrexham on episode 7 of Welcome to Wrexham.  Probably a game he'd rather forget.
Barely showed Bindon pocketing Sam Smith all game though, must’ve been too embarrassed
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23 Jun 08:01 · edited 23 Jun 08:02 · History
coochiee
Would be a big move. Millwall were 8th in The Championship last season, only 2 points off the playoffs.

If he was a regular starter in the English 2nd tier, would it be the highest level a Kiwi keeper has ever played at? 

 Mark Paston played for Bradford when they were in the Championship (it was know as Division One at the time).
Supporter world's best and worst football teams: Waikato/WaiBop, Kingz, Knights, Phoenix, The Argyle, The Whites & the All Whites

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23 Jun 09:17 · edited 23 Jun 09:17 · History
And the great Stefan played in the championship with Bristol City 

Admittedly just the one game

Auckland will rise once more

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23 Jun 12:26
The less said about Marinovic's sole BC outing the better.

Paston yes 13 games in the English 2nd tier.
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23 Jun 22:00
How different Marinovic's career could have been had he not so badly bombed his first game at that level.

The life of a keeper - you may only get 1 chance!
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24 Jun 20:37
Excellent move. Well done Max!
Very likely a nice little pay bump too, but the most important thing is that he is playing heading into 2026 (which sounds like it will be the case - initially).
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24 Jun 20:39
Definitely puts some pressure on Alex as well to find a club at this level. 

Auckland will rise once more

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24 Jun 20:47 · edited 24 Jun 20:48 · History
YoungHeartHM
Excellent move. Well done Max!
Very likely a nice little pay bump too, but the most important thing is that he is playing heading into 2026 (which sounds like it will be the case - initially).

Won't the Danish keeper be the number 1, though? (or is he unavailable?). As you say, a nice payrise at the tail end of his career - well done to him.
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24 Jun 21:00 · edited 24 Jun 21:01 · History
Rusty Dunks
YoungHeartHM
Excellent move. Well done Max!
Very likely a nice little pay bump too, but the most important thing is that he is playing heading into 2026 (which sounds like it will be the case - initially).

Won't the Danish keeper be the number 1, though? (or is he unavailable?). As you say, a nice payrise at the tail end of his career - well done to him.

Seen comments online that Jensen is out until January. Just checked for myself - Ruptured Achilles, suffered in late April.

Max has got a really good shot to make a name for himself for the first half of the season at least.
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24 Jun 21:06
This won't get much fanfare at all in the media, but it's actually a pretty huge move for Kiwi football. Obviously really stoked for him, but also mainly surprised, quite frankly - I doubt anyone thought in his A-League and League Two days he would end up being on the books at a top half Championship side. 
Annual finals disappointment enthusiast.

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24 Jun 22:09
Might need to change the thread title to "Millwall".
Proud to have attended the first 175 Consecutive "Home" Wellington Phoenix "A League" Games !!

The Ruf, The Ruf, The Ruf is on Fire!!

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