Herbert: Coaching job share can work but it’s big task
Ricki Herbert believes another hybrid All Whites-Wellington Phoenix coaching role could work — but admits it is a complicated scenario.
Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay is a high-profile applicant for the vacant national team job, since the departure of Danny Hay last month.
Talay and the club have indicated they see the jobs as complementary and there hasn’t been any suggestion the Australian would step away from his A-League position to take on the All Whites role.
Herbert is uniquely placed to judge, having held the two positions simultaneously during 2007-13.
As foundation coach of the Wellington Phoenix, Herbert lasted five-and-a-half seasons at the helm, overseeing 154 Phoenix and 43 All Whites matches during that period.
He took New Zealand to the 2010 World Cup and also guided the Phoenix to the playoffs three times, highlighted by their run to the A-League preliminary final in 2009-10.
“It’s a different era,” Herbert told the Herald. “What is the right thing to do now? I couldn’t say 100 per cent this needs to happen, because 12 years ago, it worked . . . that’s not the conversation.
“You would need to know what’s the staffing going to be like, what are the travel requirements going to be like, what’s the time away, the windows? Maybe it could happen.”
Although it could be demanding, Herbert mostly saw his club commitments as beneficial to his All Whites role.
“Do you want to be a national team coach that coaches every window, or [one] that’s on the grass every day, honing your skills, making mistakes . . . that needs to be considered,” said Herbert. “I don’t know Ufuk personally but it stood me in good stead.
Making decisions every day, selecting teams every week. I felt I went into a national team environment better prepared.”
It was also symbiotic, with a core of Phoenix players who were international starters.
More than half of Herbert’s 2010 World Cup squad were drawn from Australasia, with eight A-League players — including five from the Phoenix — and four from the domestic league. There were only six European-based players.
The picture is different now. Hay’s 26-man squad for the World Cup intercontinental playoff against Costa Rica in June comprised 16 European professionals and two MLS players, with seven from the A-League.
Herbert used to travel to Europe at the end of every club season to spend time with players there but admits such trips would need to be lot more extensive.
“There are more players, more demands now.”
Herbert added that any future combined role would need a high level of cooperation from NZF and the Phoenix.
“In my time, everyone at the Phoenix, [owner] Terry [Serepisos], the board, sponsors were very agreeable and committed to making it work,” said Herbert. “You need the full backing, need a million per cent blessing from both entities.”
It’s expected the All Whites will play in four Fifa windows next year (March, June, October and November), with September set aside for Olympic qualifying. The following year will be busier, with the Paris Olympics, should New Zealand qualify, and increased activity as the qualification path for the 2026 World Cup in North America becomes clear.
A job share would not be considered in most other countries and would be a tough juggling act, with the fear one or both teams could be compromised.
Most importantly, the parameters of the sport have changed.
Where once a top A-League player would be a guaranteed starter in the New Zealand side, now being based in the Northern Hemisphere is almost a prerequisite for international selection.
“It has been 12 years,” Herbert said. “It’s raised now because it worked. Nobody would be talking about it if we didn’t beat Bahrain and go to the World Cup. Clearly there are some positives but people need to understand it was a while ago.”