Rudan’s culture a selling point
The culture Mark Rudan has fostered at the Wellington Phoenix is set to be a selling point in negotiations with the club’s many off-contract players.
Deals for 18 players expire at the end of the current A-League season, which means the coach has plenty of room to manoeuvre should he choose to do so.
General manager David Dome said Rudan would be taking the lead in negotiations and had identified the players he wants to form the basis of his squad next season.
‘‘I think what you’ll find is there are a lot of players that will extend their contracts because Mark is the coach, but also because of the culture that’s now amongst the team and that is a culture that’s owned by the players.
‘‘It’s facilitated by the coach, but it’s owned by the players, and they’re building a very strong culture amongst that playing group and I think a lot of players will want to stick around for that.’’
The reliance on Rudan to lead the club’s recruitment drive comes at a time when he, Dome, and chairman Rob Morrison have all stopped short of saying he will be at the club next season, amid reports of interest in him from A-League newcomers West Melbourne
All three parties have pointed to Rudan’s two-year contact when asked about his future, with Morrison and Dome last week saying respectively that he is an ‘‘honourable, straight-up guy’’ and an ‘‘honourable man,’’ the implication being that he will see his contract out.
The only players contracted for next season are Kiwi teenagers Liberato Cacace and Sarpreet Singh and Polish goalkeeper Filip Kurto, who has been one of the best import signings in the club’s 12-year history.
Forward Roy Krishna is the one player Rudan has publicly stated a desire to retain and is almost certainly at the top of the coach’s list, as he provides a goalscoring threat matched by no-one else in the current squad, having scored 11 times in 18 matches this season.
The Fiji international explored a moved to Major League Soccer in the United States last January, only signing a one-year extension once it fell through, and the Phoenix are likely to face strong competition for his signature.
Of the other off-contract players, forward David Williams, wingback Louis Fenton, and midfielder Alex Rufer have been the standouts among the Australians and New Zealanders, while Spanish midfielder Mandi and English defender Steven Taylor (whose contract includes a club option to extend it) have proven they are imports who can make a difference in the A-League.
Dome is confident the Phoenix are close to securing a long-term future in the competition and told Stuff any lingering uncertainty hadn’t been a factor in contract negotiations to date.
He also said the club wasn’t working to a specific timeline as it seeks to re-sign some of its offcontract players.
‘‘It can be a bit of a delicate balance sometimes when you get agents involved and sometimes these things take time.
‘‘We’ll certainly take our time in getting the right players and the right balance as well.’’