Mainland Premier League (Part 1)

 Also congrats to Cash tech for winning the regional nike cup playoffs.

Despite drawing with Nomads they made it through the semis and final to prepare for a trip to Aussie

https://www.nzfootball.co.nz/index.php?id=11&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=1480&tx_ttnews[backPid]=10&cHash=082ac29342

Attn Old News!  That link is from 2012.  Altho Cash/Tech/Wanders/Woolston did win in Chch this wknd, they have to beat a Wgton side and then the Auckland side to be the 1 team to represent NZ in Australia.

 ah....that would be why I shouldnt read news on my phone - didnt see the date :\

Any goss on the transfer front? Mainland website is chocker full of Ellesmere transfers to Selwyn but one notable one is former pro Michael White transferring from Nelson to Bay$.  

Anything else in the mix?  I spose the Coastal pre-season tourney will show some new faces at new clubs.  Starts next Tues! Oh how I miss football.

This week sees Rangers pre-season tourney underway, FTC squad announcements, Burnley trials, various school first XIs trials, the Mainland transfer clearances page is kicking into life, teams training for Auckland U17 tourney and various personnel changes about the clubs.

Scandal and gossip: 

Burnley are causing as much friction with Football South as they have with Mainland.

All is not well at Woolston Technical Cashmere Wanderers: old school egos & personalities 1, modern football development 0.

Nomads should be stronger up front this year than last but will be raw in the GK stakes with no Batty or Sinclair.

Coastal beat Nomads 3-1 and Tech beat FC2011 4-1 this evening. 

Some classic moments in football tonight, great to have football back!

Dites-moi plus?

Any match reports?

I only watched the Coastal-Nomads game and it was full of random moments in sport. 

Pretty even in the first half with chances at both ends. Old-school Paul Hughes got a goal relatively against the run of play as Nomads were strong in the first 15. Then it was Coastal's turn for dominance for the rest of the half and it was 1-0 at the half.  Hughsie scored again but Nomads quickly replied after a keeper mare and it was 2-1.  Then the Nomads keeper slammed a clearance from a back-pass straight into Hughsie's puku and it was a hat-trick and 3-1.  

Heaps of referee whistle blowing for little fouls here and there so it was quite disjointed at times.  Coastal may have had only 3 first team players from last year out there by my reckoning, with some Reserve Team players really stepping up and showing they can handle it.  Long haired player ex Chch Utd looked really good at the back, along with Zac Gordon.  But man-of-the-match must go to Paul Hughes despite age and will be making it hard for golden boots Turnbull and Wellbourn to get back in the team!

Any ex ChCh Utd player would have had plenty of practise defending. Was Ando playing for Nomads?

Hughesy is a legend, unforgettable cameo in the last game of last season.

Good results for Coastal and CTech given the number of players they have locked up with Canterbury Utd and the youth. Doesn't bode we'll for Nomads or FC, still early days.

How about some predictions for the season then?

Yes Ando was playing for Nomads.  Told him he chose the right club to join.

As for predictions, this is how the pre-season ended up last year, and in brackets where they finished up in the MPL.

1. Halswell  (5th)
2. Western  (6th)
3. Tech  (2nd)
4. Bays   (1st)  
5. Coastal  (4th)
6. Chch Utd  (8th - relegated)
7. Nomads  (promo)
8. FC 2011  (7th - just)

So does it mean anything?  Considering how many were out of action/in action for CU and otherwise not there.

 Coastal 1st

daylight second

as for the Men

Coastal 1st, Bays 2nd, CTFC 3rd

NZ U20 squad named. Ken Yamamoto missed out . No Cantabs. :(

 none eh? crikey. It seems to be a re-occuring theme on the male side of these squads.

Yeah and I think Ken's younger brother Renta (who played most of the season at MPL/PDL for FCthingy last year) missed out on U17 training squad with only Meysum Shafahi (APFA, now playing with that U17 team in the ASB Youth) making it. Out of sight, out of mind?

Seems silly to worry about the thought of your son/daughter missing out on NTC or higher honours because they are playing for Burnley Academy.

 surprised Ken missed U/20s, esp to one or 2 who aren't even playing NZFC, only youth.

If players vote with their feet and choose burnley or APFA over FTC then mainland/nzf will relax their stance. They won't want NTC full of 2nd tier players.

Anyone see the Tech FC game as heard FC only had 10 players at kick-off with another showing up midway into the 1st half.

SFO probe into pokie grants 

Any Western people reading this? Heard Hamish Cadigan is in the mix for NZ u17s. Can anyone confirm?

Can't say I've ever seen Western supporters on here. 

Coastal White lost 4-3 to Bays and Halswell beat Western 2-0 in their first games of the pre-season tourney. 

So it's academy-land gossip again.

Some kids have recently trialled for NZF/Mainland FTC AND APFA AND Burnley. FTC offers out there now (and gets underway next week), but some still waiting on hearing about Burnley/APFA.

Also seems APFA have lowered the bar in terms of standards. Cha-ching! Will be interesting to see how many APFA kids make NTC. It's a lot of dough to invest to not be making progress.

Burnley have 2 ex-APFA staff on deck.

Nomads pulled out of Burnley (Cashmere got cold feet a while back too). Can anyone confirm this? Gings, you've got some connections there don't you? Initial clubs are Selwyn, Waimak(?), Mid Canty? and Dndn's Green Island? Selwyn one interesting given previous history with APFA but guess they are just trying to provide local quality coaching that maybe Mainland/Chch is perceived as being too much of a hike?

Separate issue: some Nike Cup players are in for a surprise when they try to play for their school or another club and will be told, "sorry, no, you repped for club X in Nike Cp, therefore you must play for them this year"

 Hamish Cadigan is in the national school boys too (Coached by Danny Hay)

I've got connections and contacts everywhere. Hadn't heard Nomads had bailed on Burnley, I'd heard Selwyn had though? Also heard through the grapevine Bay$ made a push for it and got a "thanks but no thanks" in reply.

Chinese whispers of APFA lads can *Apply* to play for a club this year - club, coach and division all needs approval - no approval = no play. Anyone else heard this one or can clarify?

Nike cup is gunna trip up a lot of lads as some clubs/schools have been spreading lies. Some schools trying to do mass recruitment. 14s to be a mess this year - watch this space!

Ah, that makes more sense - it the NZ SCHOOLBOYS team he has made.

I have heard people talking of "dual registration" but if I'm correct that ONLY applies to players at PDL/MPL level, right?

by all that is holy Mainland have to stick to those Nike Cup rules

we asked for clarification around the regulations and followed them. 

As far as I know Selwyn still 100% behind the Burnley venture. I would be suprised if it wasn't seeing Graham McCann head of coaching at the club and it seems like Martin Allen's baby who I think is still coaching U13/U14? team at the club. Trials at Brookside tomorrow so may pop across for a look. Definitely being plugged as the option rather than spending all the $ in fuel/time trekking kids into town for FTC. I would think the point of very few/no age grade players from Mainland area making national age group teams that this will be used as a selling point for Burnley. Although really what do you have a higher chance of doing- playing for NZ age group or a professional side in UK?

Universities have a busy time according to the Mainland site Women's Premier League.  

https://www.sportingpulse.com/comp_info.cgi?a=FIXTURE&compID=253138&c=1-4206-0-0-0 

LOL bit of a major gaff, one would have to assume one the the Unversities should read Cashmere Technical

Results from last night's pre-season are Coastal 1 FC2011 1.   FC2011 scored early with a super volley and held that till around 75 minutes when Coastal equalised.  Coastal dominated for most of the second half and had heapsa chances.  Mind you FC 2011 had heaps too so was a relatively even game.  FC are a very young team.  I hate typing 2011 especially when it is 2013.

Nomads came from behind to beat Cash Tech in a bit of an upset I spose.  Of note is old Stu Kelly back playing for Tech.  He best update his wikipedia page. 

Waimak pre season results.

Waimak 1 FC2011 Bombers divone 1, Nomads 3 Burwood 3 [Burwood 3 up at half time].

Bays PDL 2 Coastal [sunday league guys I think] 1, Hornby 1 Chch United Blue 0.

WF Riverside 5 FC2011 PDL 1, Chch U White 3 Parklands 1.

March 8th at Nomads clubrooms Tulett Park a night with Coaches Allan Jones [no intro needed], Brett Angell [Everton, Stockport] and Andy Hedge [U20s assistant coach]

All welcome starts at 6.30 to 8pm.

All good with Burnley and Nomads Scottie?  Someone was spreading vicious rumours that perhaps it wasn't.  

FTC goss:  One age group has 11 people deciding against doing FTC this year, so invites have gone out to the next 11 kids, making it a little silly saying FTC has the best players in the city.   Just saying.

15's, all hearsay might I add. I definitely can confirm that around half a dozen have pulled out as I know them, however word from them reckons that it's 11 all up.