Has former captain retired?
Football Ferns defender Katie Bowen says former captain Abby Erceg is ‘‘done’’ representing her country, despite coach Jitka Klimkova´’s efforts to leave the door open for her to return.
Bowen’s claim about her recent club teammate at North Carolina Courage in the United States was made in an interview with Senz that aired yesterday.
When asked if she knew what
Erceg’s plans were regarding the Ferns, with next year’s
Fifa Women’s World Cup, to be co-hosted by New
Zealand, now less than nine months away, Bowen said:
‘‘Abby’s done’’.
‘‘From what I’ve gathered, she’s retired for the third time. I don’t think that she wants to represent the country any more. That’s her decision.
‘‘I’ve seen a couple of articles come out recently [about the uncertainty around Erceg’s availability].
‘‘I think she’s retired and we need to look forward with the players that we have and the ones that have been putting in the hard yards week-in, week-out to represent the Fern.’’
Erceg played two matches for the Ferns in February, against Iceland and the Czech Republic, but has not featured in any of their nine matches since, despite playing regularly for the Courage in the US National Women’s Soccer League.
Earlier this month, Klimkova´ said the door was still open to Erceg, who has earned 146 caps for her country since her debut in 2006, though she admitted they hadn’t spoken for a while.
NZ Football and Erceg have both been contacted for comment following the airing of Bowen’s interview.