OlyWhites players want whanau maintained

and Ben McKay

The contents of a letter from a group of OlyWhites players to NZ Football have been revealed as their wait for clarity around the team’s coaching situation drags on.

Des Buckingham was set to come off contract at the end of the Tokyo Olympics in August and the governing body has so far been unable to say whether he will stay on until the end of the rescheduled event next year.

Senior player Clayton Lewis told Stuff earlier this month that he hoped to see Buckingham retained and Newshub reported last week that a group of 24 players had written to NZ Football asking for that to happen.

Stuff was able to confirm the letter existed yet unable to obtain a copy of it, but the Australian Associated Press has now revealed some of its contents.

‘‘We have 24 NZ international age group players read and support this letter. All of whom have worked with Des and are part of the current U23 cycle,’’ the letter states.

‘‘We appreciate the 100s, if not 1000s of hours Des has put into not only creating this culture, but also developing individual players as footballers and as people. We hope a solution can be found to keep the whanau together to continue the success we have had.’’

It is not clear who the 24 players are that supported the letter and as a result it is difficult to judge how representative they are of the OlyWhites playing pool, which consists of under-23 players, those born 1997 or later.

A total of 33 players were involved in three under-23 events under Buckingham last year, while a further 17 had been to events under him at under-20 level and would also be ‘‘part of the current U23 cycle’’.

The final squad for the Olympics will consist of 18 players, including up to three over-age players, while another four will be involved as travelling reserves.

Buckingham is believed to be keen to stay on, but declined to comment on the situation to Stuff earlier this month.

NZ Football’s response to queries on the matter has been to say: ‘‘We are currently working through the situation to ensure both the Football Ferns and U-23 men have the best possible preparation ahead of the new dates for the Olympics’’.

If NZ Football does not extend Buckingham’s contract, it is likely the OlyWhites setup will be folded into that of the All Whites, coached by Danny Hay. There is already a great deal of overlap between the two teams, with nine under-23 players selected in the last All Whites squad in November.

NZ Football has combined the All Whites and OlyWhites roles since 2014, but split them up last July, when former coach Fritz Schmid departed on the eve of the Pacific Games and the organisation was forced to move quickly to find a replacement.

Buckingham was then appointed to take the under-23 team through to Tokyo, but missed out on the senior role when it was advertised separately, with Hay getting the nod. Football Ferns coach Tom Sermanni was also set to come off contract at the end of the Olympics in August.