The stalwart, who has served at club, national and international level, relinquishes the position on October 28 – the same day Waitakere clash with fierce rivals Auckland City in the ASB Charity Cup – and feels now is the right time to walk away. He took time out from helping the club prepare for its upcoming season to provide oceanifootball.com with some insights into his colourful career.
You’ve been involved with Waitakere United for a number of years, why do you think now is the right time to step away?
This season will be Waitakere United’s ninth season in the ASB Premiership, for which I have acted as chairman for seven as well as taking on an administration role over the last two. It was always my intention to step down after this new season but with the changing of our head coach recently I felt now was a good time to make the break away, especially as my wife has just retired after 25 years at Restaurant Brands. I will now be able to concentrate on my new fishing charter venture, while Waitakere United can drive to the future with fresh blood and new ideas.
What do you see as Waitakere United’s major achievements during your tenure and how proud of these are you?
The obvious achievements of winning two O-Leagues and participating in the FIFA Club World Cup twice are high on the list, along with the four ASB Premiership championships won over the years. The time and effort Neil Emblen put towards developing and playing young talent that has seen the likes of Tim Payne being signed at Blackburn Rovers and, just recently, Luke Adams being picked up by Derby County also stand out. It’s also always nice to see players such as Allan Pearce, Tim Myers and Aaron Scott receiving their chances to impress All Whites coach Ricki Herbert.
Both Waitakere City and Waitakere United have won many titles under your chairmanship, is there one particular period or title that stands out in your memory?
I think the glory days of Waitakere City under Keith Pritchett and then Steve Cain in the early to mid-nineties stand out. Gold medals were abundant for the players with national league titles and three consecutive Chatham Cup winners’ medals in that time. The west was strong and most of the players were domiciled out there. There were All Whites galore and fierce competition from all the participating clubs.
What are your thoughts on the ASB Premiership in 2012 compared to back in 2004? How do you think the competition can be improved and developed further?
It’s a lot harder now to retain players in New Zealand. Even though we offer a good standard for an amateur competition, good young players now have more opportunities to ply their trade overseas. There is a lot of disruption with FIFA windows and the demands on players seeking national selection for the U-17 and U-20 New Zealand teams, although that’s a good thing in that those players are getting an opportunity to play on the world stage. I think it is time to expand the league but deep thought must be given to any new entrant’s sustainability and the question must be asked if we yet have the depth of players for the highest level now that we see the exodus of those playing offshore. Players can now get good money in Australia playing in semi-professional state leagues.
Waitakere United and Auckland City have been fierce rivals since the formation of the current national league, how do you feel about the relationship between the two clubs and will you miss being involved in such an intense rivalry?
I think this rivalry is what motivated me the most. I loved most parts of it, it is the rivalry to combat all rivalries and the after-match functions could be a lot of fun with everyone mixing together and patting each other on the back. It was even better when Waitakere won, which certainly wasn’t out of turn.
Who do you think are the best players to have taken the field for either Waitakere City or United during your time out west?
That’s hard because it is a team game and when you are expected to win as Waitakere is, any player that underperforms probably doesn’t get on the team sheet the following week. In the early days, we had an import playing for us at Kelston West called Mark Farrington. He had played for Norwich City and was certainly outstanding. During the nineties we had All White captain Rodger Gray, Steve Cain, Carl Jorgensen, Neil Woodhams, Tony Laus, Kevin Smith, player-coach Keith Pritchett and goalkeeper Grant Schofield to name a few. Since 2003, Keryn Jordan, Roy Krishna and Benjamin Totori, who has now been snapped up by the Wellington Phoenix, stand out as the best of the overseas players. Great players like Jake Butler, Allan Pearce and Jason Rowley have been with the club since its inception, while Neil Emblen, Michael Utting, Neil Sykes and Martin Bullock also come to mind. Ryan De Vries is a young player to watch and I have probably had the most satisfaction watching Tim Myers develop from a raw 16-year-old to playing in last month’s Olympic Games.
Are you looking for a new role within football or have you decided that 30 years of the sport is enough? If not, do you have any ideas on what you might like to focus on now?
I love the game and really it has been my life. As for a new role, I will take a deep breath first and see what eventuates. I won’t be turning my back on the game by any stretch of the imagination. As I said, I have recently built a charter fishing boat that is now operating in the Hauraki Gulf. This will take a large chunk of my time, as will constructing relationships within my family.
Was being appointed to FIFA’s Committee for Club Football a career highlight for you and what did you gain from that experience?
Being appointed to that committee came as a huge surprise. Rubbing shoulders with club chairmen from all the big name clubs around the world was awesome. Michel Platini was chairman and getting to know FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter is what dreams are made of.
Paul Marshall has been appointed as the new Waitakere coach, what do you think will be his biggest challenges and is the club in a good position to continue its recent run of success?
Paul is fresh blood and will bring new ideas. At his interview he stressed how important it was for the team to be fit and to be successful. He will have a different style than Neil Emblen and it may take some players a little time to settle in to his philosophy towards coaching and playing. He has the basis of last season’s team so the right formula is there, it’s just about putting it into practice. Everyone expects Waitakere to win or be thereabouts. Not only do we have to combat the might of Auckland City, we also have to realise that the likes of Hawke’s Bay United, Team Wellington and Canterbury United are lurking just around the corner, waiting for any opportunities. I predict Waitakere to continue its success and feel an OFC Champions League title may be beckoning.

Share