Roundtable: Who should be unveiled as Auckland FC’s first signings?As the A-League men’s newest side prepares to reveal their first players on Thursday morning, speculation is naturally swirling over exactly who’ll be named as Auckland FC’s maiden signings.
Will it be an All White? Will they snatch a player right out from under the Wellington Phoenix’s nose? Will it be a big name international, on the hunt for one last payday?
NZME’s football boffins have put their thinking caps on as to who they want to see named come Thursday.
Jason Pine - Oskar ZawadaThe towering Polish target man is a proven A-League goalscorer having netted 22 times in 40 appearances for Wellington Phoenix, the best goals-per-game ratio in club history.
While many would see his move from one New Zealand team to another as traitorous, it would instead stoke the embers of what promises to be a cracking rivalry between the Phoenix and Auckland FC.
Imagine the derbies, with Yellow Fever chanting, “Who are ya?!” at the man they have revered for two years.
Auckland FC need to get the chequebook out and bring Zawada in.
Bonnie Jansen - Sarpreet SinghRemember Sarpreet Singh, the Wellington Phoenix wonder-kid who left Aotearoa for European giants Bayern Munich? How could we forget?
Unfortunately, since leaving these shores in 2019 for bigger and better things, the 25-year-old has struggled to make his mark on the big stage. Likely due to being riddled with injuries, Sapreet only featured for the German club’s first team twice. He then joined several other clubs on loan before eventually leaving completely for 2. Bundesliga club Hansa Rostock.
Singh is almost a year into his three-year contract at Hansa Rostock and has only taken the field in half of the side’s matches this season. A return to the A-League seems like a smart move for the Tāmaki Makaurau native, who grew up playing football for Onehunga Sports FC - based three minutes up the road from Auckland FC’s new home ground.
It’s an opportunity for Singh to reignite his football identity and play freely again with less pressure. It’s also a chance for the Black Knights to boast arguably New Zealand’s best-ever home-grown football talent.
Alex Powell - Cameron HowiesonWith more than a century of appearances for Auckland City, and 16 All Whites caps, Cameron Howieson is too good to have never played in the A-League.
As a central midfielder, Howieson isn’t the type of player that you’ll see grace too many highlight reels. But if coach Steve Corica wants to play any type of possession-based system, a player of Howieson’s ilk will be vital.
If Auckland FC are to build their first roster around a local core, a player with All Whites experience won’t go amiss either.
At 29, this could be Howieson’s last chance to secure a spot playing professionally at home, so here’s hoping it happens.
Shared the Canadian Premier League’s golden boot award last season and a move home to Auckland could appeal after a couple of years away.
Played for Auckland City across a couple of stints and scored 17 goals so it’d be interesting to see how he’d go in a fresh A-League side.
I think the buzz of playing for your home town will be a pull for a number of players as Auckland FC grow.
Azaria Howell - Oli SailFormer Phoenix goalkeeper Oli Sail might make the move from Perth Glory to the city of sails - no pun intended.
As a born and bred Aucklander, and a recent Nix player, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the keeper make the move and don the blue and black kit next season.
Perth Glory haven’t been the best, so a move might be a good call. I’ll always support Wellington though.
Excited to see Auckland get a potential women’s team down the line to compete with the mighty Phoenix striker Mariana Speckmaier, who quite honestly deserves the Ballon d’Or.
Winston Aldworth - Tommy SmithThe Black Knights will want two key traits in their early signings: Those who are good enough to do the job on the pitch and those who are well known enough to strike a chord among Kiwi sports fans. Tommy Smith competently (though unspectacularly) ticks both boxes.
The Macclesfield-born centreback arrived into the All Whites with a bit of fanfare. Within two years of turning up he’d played every minute of the mighty 2010 World Cup campaign, ran out at the 2012 Olympics and became the national side’s youngest ever skipper. But his international career has been fitful ever since.
After spells with Colchester United and MK Dons, the 34-year-old returned to this part of the world in February for a stint with Macarthur FC. That deliberately short contract makes him a sitter for a debut Black Knight’s deal.
Dashing attack will win games, but stout defence will keep you clear of the bottom of the table. Enter Smith.
