Leading on from my post above and getting back on topic, another bloke I've met at a match in Christchurch in the past is Michael Cockerill, the A-League commentator and FFA website head.
It should be noted that Mike has close Kiwi connections and in fact started his journalism career in NZ, in Christchurch in fact as football reporter for the Christchurch Star (then an evening daily) 1980 - 1986.
He holidays here regularly still and keeps in touch with Kiwi journalists like Tony Smith. I'm not sure but he might be an Aussie of NZ descent.
Hence his opinion piece commissioned by the Dom Post this week on the Phoenix and their owners:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/opinion/90547321/who-...
Don't know how much of what Cockerill says is speculation but seems to make some good points on needing to get it together marketing-wise, player-wise etc.:
"Who can save the Wellington Phoenix? Not Rob Morrison, I fear. The chairman of a club which almost passed into history last season is showing few signs of learning from the bruising experience..
...So whether it's a slow death, or a quick one, the Phoenix seem to be on borrowed time in terms of the FFA's thinking. The body language, the inferences, coming out of Whitlam Square every time Wellington are mentioned reveals the truth. The FFA are still willing to kill off the club. Maybe it's simply a question of when.
So Morrison's continued unwillingness to embrace the top-end projects which could well deliver the 'metrics' the FFA is obsessed with remains his Achilles heel. There are others in the Welnix group who recognise this, principally Gareth Morgan and perhaps Henry Tait.
For whatever reason, they've been unable to get Morrison on board in matters like a genuine marquee star, a major marketing campaign, and even the boutique stadium project at Petone. Indeed it's believed they've had to fund some of Wellington's recent recruits out of their own pocket because Morrison runs such a tight budget. Then there's the question of whether a number of recent departures from the front office reflect growing frustration with the way the club is evolving..."
Interesting that Cockerill also mentions Nix chairman Morrison being part of talks going on between "a group of four club owners discussing the future of a semi-autonomous A-League with the FFA." On the English Premier League model I guess.