Veteran backs Scot to cope with ‘unique challenge’
Sarah Gregorius is backing Tom Sermanni as the right person for the unique challenge of the Football Ferns coaching job.
Gregorius, an 85-cap Fern, said she was excited by the appointment, viewing Sermanni as the ideal coach to take them through to next June’s World Cup.
‘‘I absolutely think it’s positive. If you look at where we’re at in our programme a couple of weeks out from World Cup qualifiers and within a year of the World Cup, we need someone who can hit the ground running. You look at the experience that Tom has had and you’d definitely back him to do just that.’’
Gregorius said the Ferns job would pose a ‘‘unique’’ challenge for Sermanni. ‘‘For us as a playing group, we’re now at the back end of what has been a pretty difficult time.
‘‘Obviously there is getting everything clicking on the field, but there is a huge piece around the offfield stuff too and rebuilding our identity and culture to get everyone connecting again after some pretty solid efforts to undo all of that.
‘‘It’s quite a unique challenge to have such on-field and off-field considerations in front of a new coach, but I’m pretty sure he’s the guy to hit the ground running and address both those areas.’’
Phillipa Muir’s review of New Zealand Football noted the lack of pathways for women’s coaches and the recent appointments in the elite women’s coaching positions all going to men.
That has continued with Sermanni, but Gregorius said she hoped the Scotsman would help to develop those pathways.
‘‘It’s been really interesting that the lack of a female coaching pathway in New Zealand has been thrown up as one of the contributing issues to why we got to the place where we are.
‘‘I think they really do have to look now to address that, particularly when you’ve got someone of Tom’s calibre now coming into the programme. I’m pretty sure he’ll be more than willing to help us upskill our female coaches, or anyone who wants to coach in women’s football, it’s not limited to females.’’
Sermanni will have to get quickly into his work, with the Oceania Women’s Nations Cup in New Caledonia starting on November 18.
Gregorius was happy the focus could now shift back to the on-field part of football.
‘‘I know that it’s been a really, really difficult time for a lot of players and people associated with the game, but I’m certainly optimistic enough that we can put that behind us and really embrace the next nine months. I can’t wait to see the girls and get started on the next part of the journey and put to bed what has been a difficult few months.’’