Chris Wood very recently stated quite plainly his ambition is to stay at the PL level or as close to it as possible until he is 35, which is after the World Cup. No way he signs for Auckland before the World Cup, unless his body suddenly becomes incapable of withstanding the demands of the intensity & frequency of games in England. Without significant physical regression he will be in demand amongst PL/Championship clubs for at least the next two seasons given his track record.
'Embedding in the community' said several times. Mostly Kiwi staff. With some likely from the Golden Knights (his NHL team in Vegas) organisation. Maybe some US sponsors. His son will be on the board. Preferred name 'Black Knights' No problems spending the cap. Marquee signings with the aim to quickly bring success. In for the long haul.
Very promising/heartening interview, from the perspective of someone wanting to see football thrive in NZ. Worrying for the Nix fan. Can see the Nix getting crushed commercially and competitively by their local rivals if they can't somehow secure new investment, seems the current owners are going to run the club on the smell of an oily rag from now on (This is not criticism by the way, they've spent/lost enough on the Nix by now that to me they should always be immune from harsh criticism).
Yes it is starting to look like the Nix will almost from the get go, become the little brother. That will immediately bring some edge to the rivalry.
I'm slowly coming to terms with Foley as it is obviously ultimately the continuity of fans that makes a club - though I think the context means that a strong fan voice is crucial.
He just strikes me as the kind of guy that really likes to put his stamp on things. Recently renamed the Nourish Group to 'Foley Hospitality' for example. The 'Black Knights' comment adds to that concern a bit.
Had a go at putting together a hypothetical men’s squad for fun.
Lewis is ambitious considering he’s contracted until 2025 and moved to Sydney partly for Narelle’s job.
If you can’t get him then you either bet on Howieson being good enough or swap the LB import for a CM (or grab an Aussie like Daniel De Silva).
IMG_5704.jpeg442.46 KBRB Wynne is the younger Ronan. AM Bayliss is Lachie from the Jets.
Couldn’t decide on reserve CBs but you’ve got the likes of Stanger, Kyle Adams, Aaryan Raj, Dino Botica, Brotherton, Mitchell and Schrijvers or a million Aussies.
I’d captain Rojas as a bit of a statement piece.
Any local players that you guys reckon should be in with a chance to make the squad?
Jeez I'd hope that Foley was more adventurous than that bunch of has beens or wannabes. By next season Rojas will be 33, bit of a risk to expect too much from him. Lewis aint leaving Aussie for another 2 years so good luck with that one and Marinovic is awful! Foley is gonna want to bring in big names to draw crowds, and he has the connections to make it happen. Wood would be a good shout as an inaugral captain.
Feel obligated to stick up for Marinovic, he was decent for us and seems like a cool guy based on his appearance on the Kiwi Football Fix. Would have much preferred him as competition for Paulsen rather than Duncan. Also has a better track record in goal for the All Whites than Sail
As much as I'd prefer him in Wellington, Chris Wood would make for a pretty cool first signing/captain announcement
Have to be a big pay packet!
He got named as Forest captain (!) for the last game he played, which I totally didn’t see coming and also suggests that he is far from done at the top level.
He's not Elite. Far from it, but he is just very passionate about the Nix, he has been there since Day 1, he's invested a lot of time and money into following the Nix and most importantly, he has the very best ever Phoenix Tattoo on his back that anyone would be proud of having.
Had a go at putting together a hypothetical men’s squad for fun.
Lewis is ambitious considering he’s contracted until 2025 and moved to Sydney partly for Narelle’s job.
If you can’t get him then you either bet on Howieson being good enough or swap the LB import for a CM (or grab an Aussie like Daniel De Silva).
IMG_5704.jpeg442.46 KBRB Wynne is the younger Ronan. AM Bayliss is Lachie from the Jets.
Couldn’t decide on reserve CBs but you’ve got the likes of Stanger, Kyle Adams, Aaryan Raj, Dino Botica, Brotherton, Mitchell and Schrijvers or a million Aussies.
I’d captain Rojas as a bit of a statement piece.
Any local players that you guys reckon should be in with a chance to make the squad?
Jeez I'd hope that Foley was more adventurous than that bunch of has beens or wannabes. By next season Rojas will be 33, bit of a risk to expect too much from him. Lewis aint leaving Aussie for another 2 years so good luck with that one and Marinovic is awful! Foley is gonna want to bring in big names to draw crowds, and he has the connections to make it happen. Wood would be a good shout as an inaugral captain.
What kiwis would you pick?
Wood won’t come to New Zealand until he’s 35 so good luck with that one.
I suspect nearly all the Imports will be ex top 5 European league players. Given Foley is an American there could even be a quality player from the MLS. They are certainly going to be a cut above the likes of Ball, Kraev & Wootton.
It's a small pool of Kiwi pro players at a decent level around the world. Most will want to stay in Europe. Agree Pijnaker is one current AW could consider a return home.
But given money won't be an issue, I reckon Aucklanders M Boxall and/or Tuiloma will be targets (designated players?) even if they have to pay a transfer fee to exit their existing MLS contracts. Charlotte maybe happy to even release Billy T on a free, he's just riding the pine there now. Boxall (36 next August) will have a new coach at Minny in 2024, for the first occasion in his time there. Who knows what that will mean.
Two to three of mid experienced 20s guys like Deklan Wynne, Adams, Bevan, Collier, Dyer, De Jong, Rogerson, Trevor Zwetsloot, Howieson, Woud will be worth a punt. Likely at least 1 will do well in the ALM.
Old, Paulsen & Pennington are all off contract with the Nix end of this season. Aucklander Old stands out as an obvious Nix target for the Black Knights. 09 lad Payne may ask to break contract (expires end of 24/25). Likewise Sam Sutton if he gets overtaken at LB by Lukas Kelly-Heald this season. He won't have enjoyed losing his spot much of last season to Marquais. Same OVH (also 24/25) if he struggles for Nix mins this season.
Then you look for hungry players from the NZ NL, and Oz NPL leagues. Given that most of the ALM clubs like the Nix are clearly reducing their player budgets, the Auckland team could easily be a top 6 contender in it's first season. Especially if it's 5 imports are high level for the current ALM.
As a massive NZ Knights fan I kind of like having the name back BUT there is so much bad karma with that name. He really needs something more relatable to casual kiwi footie fans.
AFC Auckland fits the Bournemouth motif, plus there aren’t any other AFC’s in the league so it’s unique.
Foley can always have “The Black Knights” as a silly little nickname, same as West Brom being “The Baggies”, Hull City “The Tigers”, Sunderland “The Black Cats” etc etc.
All Whites captain Chris Wood also stressed the importance of engaging and following the lead of the local football community in Auckland, which he was a part of as a kid before moving to Cambridge then on to England, where he now plays in the Premier League for Nottingham Forest.
“It's an exciting prospect,” Wood said of Foley’s backing for the new A-Leagues club. “It's only going to benefit the country, as long as they do it the right way and from what I hear they are.”
"[Foley] needs to understand the process of Kiwi culture and how Kiwis do things," Wood added when asked to expand on what he meant by “the right way”.
“He's a bright enough man and a very smart man. I'm sure he'll take time to understand that and get to know things or put people in charge that do know that.
“I don't see it going any other way than being positive, and I'm sure he wants to make a big stamp on the on the A-League and see where he can take the club.”
Only six of the 13 A-Leagues clubs have nicknames in their official names – Brisbane Roar, Central Coast Mariners, Melbourne Victory, Newcastle Jets, Perth Glory and the Phoenix.
But yeah in short if you wanna make a club 'embedded in the community,' bringing its symbolism and name in line with your own personal brand at the first opportunity is a pretty bad way to do it
Apparently it's the nickname of sports teams from West Point military academy, where Foley attended. So, yeah, about as much to do with Auckland/ Tāmaki Makaurau as calling it "Auckland American Eagles"
Apparently it's the nickname of sports teams from West Point military academy, where Foley attended. So, yeah, about as much to do with Auckland/ Tāmaki Makaurau as calling it "Auckland American Eagles"
Or for that matter … Auckland after… or Eden Park after… or Queen St after…
Apparently it's the nickname of sports teams from West Point military academy, where Foley attended. So, yeah, about as much to do with Auckland/ Tāmaki Makaurau as calling it "Auckland American Eagles"
Or for that matter … Auckland after… or Eden Park after… or Queen St after…
Your cash do what you like I guess!
The point is he said he wants it to be a community team, yet the branding won't reflect the community.
In what way would the branding not reflect the community? What branding would? Nobody would have associated Wellington with the phoenix before the Phoenix existed.
In what way would the branding not reflect the community? What branding would? Nobody would have associated Wellington with the phoenix before the Phoenix existed.
But it was a branding that told the story of the team quite vividly- Terry listening on the radio at his barber’s and bam! Let’s bring the failed team to the capital and rise again as the Wellington Phoenix! A new exciting team. A Kiwi owner. The Kiwi coach. World Cup playoffs around the corner . The gun striker who scored twice against Wales. A couple of Brazilian lads. Horse! And a bunch more Kiwis. Here we go!
Last. Loneliest. Loveliest. of my empire which stretches the Atlantic and it’s pretty good, huh, is a different story.
In what way would the branding not reflect the community? What branding would? Nobody would have associated Wellington with the phoenix before the Phoenix existed.
But it was a branding that told the story of the team quite vividly- Terry listening on the radio at his barber’s and bam! Let’s bring the failed team to the capital and rise again as the Wellington Phoenix! A new exciting team. A Kiwi owner. The Kiwi coach. World Cup playoffs around the corner . The gun striker who scored twice against Wales. A couple of Brazilian lads. Horse! And a bunch more Kiwis. Here we go!
Last. Loneliest. Loveliest. of my empire which stretches the Atlantic and it’s pretty good, huh, is a different story.
Totally agree. Us and the the Roar have names with actual meaning/connection (Queensland Roar was a play on their founding club, Brisbane Lions).
In what way would the branding not reflect the community? What branding would? Nobody would have associated Wellington with the phoenix before the Phoenix existed.
the Phoenix name came from the community. The naming process was open to the public.
In what way would the branding not reflect the community? What branding would? Nobody would have associated Wellington with the phoenix before the Phoenix existed.
the Phoenix name came from the community. The naming process was open to the public.
