Martin deadline for new academy
New Zealand Football chief Andy Martin says a national academy must be up and running by the end of next year.
But its exact shape is yet to be determined, with costs likely to be a major factor.
New national technical director Andreas Heraf has completed his assessment of the state of the game and presented his ideas for the future to Martin and the NZ Football board this month.
Heraf headed the national academy programme in his native Austria, and setting one up here is key to his vision for the local game.
‘‘Having most of the best players of the country in one place, in one environment, with the best coaches, with the national coaches, every day on the pitch, that would be fantastic,’’ he said this week.
‘‘That would give us a big boost. I think it’s the key element for New Zealand football. A lot of big football nations have done it in the past, and we must do it as well. All the other countries are growing, they don’t sleep, and we have to continue that way.’’
Heraf is clearly going to dream big first, and consider financial and geographical realities second.
But what’s possible is the big question, especially as NZ Football is set to be constrained financially over the next four years, following the All Whites’ failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
‘‘There’s no secret that the issue here is the cost,’’ Martin said.
‘‘If you say in an ideal world you get the best kids in one environment on a full-time basis with the best coaches, schooling, football, accommodation, the works – that’s very, very expensive, and that’s