Where are all the Kiwis?
Homegrown talent lacking at the Phoenix says Ifill
Former Wellington Phoenix star Paul Ifill is ‘‘not a fan’’ of the club’s reluctant approach to signing New Zealand players and said the proof is in the results.
The Phoenix, who sit bottom of the Hyundai A-League ladder with just one win in seven games, contributed just two players to the All Whites squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Peru, an all-time low.
New Zealanders have played just 31.5 per cent of the total playing minutes during the current Phoenix season, although there have been two occasions where the All Whites were not available because A-League does not break for international windows.
That is where the issue lies. Earlier this year, Phoenix general manager David Dome said the current arrangement of not breaking for international windows acted as ‘‘a tactic disincentive’’ for the Phoenix to pursue signing top-tier New Zealand players, ‘‘knowing their mass unavailability could jeopardise the squad’s domestic aspirations’’.
But Ifill, who played for the club during their most successful spell during the 2009-10 season, said he would like to see New Zealand’s only professional club sign more Kiwi players regardless, as a stronger squad would be capable of making up the shortfall should they drop points when the All Whites were unavailable.
‘‘I’m not a fan of it and getting guys over from the Aussie leagues that are no better than what we can get from over here. It makes no sense to me - it’d be fine if we were powering up the league and sitting in the top two or three, but we’re not,’’ Ifill said.
Ifill plays for Tasman United in the ISPS Handa Premiership and said ‘‘without naming names’’ there were New Zealand players in the national league capable of footing it in the A-League.
One player he did name was former Auckland City midfielder Clayton Lewis, who has since joined Scunthorpe in England’s third-tier.
‘‘There are certainly guys capable. Clayton Lewis was playing national league and he’s gone to Scunthorpe who are right at the top of League One, so there are guys and I think they need to look closer at that league.’’
Ifill said the Phoenix’s start to the 2017-18 season, where they have coughed up 17 goals in seven games and sit 10th on the table, has simply not been good enough.
‘‘I think they know that. I’ve got some mates down there still and they’re not happy with where they are in the league and they are not happy with how the game went on the weekend.’’
He also questioned the persistence with 18-year-old goalkeeper Keegan Smith and said Lewis Italiano should have been brought in much earlier than Saturday’s game against Central Coast Mariners.
‘‘I find it strange the manager stuck with the young goalkeeper for so long when it was clear for me that he wasn’t ready. He’s going to be a very good keeper but I just don’t think he’s ready yet.’’
‘‘You’ve got Italiano there who has got A-League experience. If he had played all of those games I don’t think they’d have been in the situation they are now.’’
With Smith not feeling well, Italiano was handed his first start in the shock 4-1 loss.
‘‘Lewis didn’t have a great game himself but you’ve just chucked him in for one game and he’s probably not in the best frame of mind anyway and only playing because the young kid is sick, so he knows he’s probably going to be out the following week.’’
"Getting guys over from the Aussie leagues that are no better than what we can get from over here ... it makes no sense to me." Paul Ifill