Kilkolly joins Team Wellington
Angus Kilkolly hopes to be the best striker in the national league in the not too distant future.
That desire has seen the 21-year-old Kiwi make the move from Hawke’s Bay United to defending champions Team Wellington for the 2017-18 ISPS Handa Premiership season.
Kilkolly said the switch was more about what Wellington could offer, rather than any deficiencies with Hawke’s Bay.
‘‘The motivation really was the O-League [Oceania Champions League], the opportunity to play in that and be part of a team that has the resources to compete with Auckland City to win the league, like they’ve shown over the last couple of years.
‘‘I enjoyed every minute with Hawke’s Bay last year. Being part of the team which made the playoffs was pretty rewarding, but it was more or less about the O-League factor because Hawke’s Bay will be another contender in the national league again.’’
Kilkolly has been in spectacular form for Napier City Rovers over the winter, scoring 30 goals in 17 games; 25 in 14 in the Central League to be well clear in the Golden Boot standings with one game to go, and five in three in the Chatham Cup.
‘‘Everything I’ve hit has pretty much gone in really,’’ he said of that goalscoring form.
It has given him plenty of confidence as he prepares to make the move south, confidence he would need given he would be replacing Ben Harris in the Wellington attack.
Englishman Harris was prolific during his two seasons in the capital, netting 27 goals in 29 games to form a deadly frontline with Tom Jackson (23 goals in 28 games over that time).
‘‘Those guys have been the benchmark strikers in the league for the last couple of years,’’ Kilkolly said.
‘‘For me, it’s just about coming in and playing my own game. If I’m doing that, I’m sure goals will follow.’’
It shapes as a big couple of years for Kilkolly. He is at the stage of his career when he can either progress to bigger and better things, or continue to be a decent national league striker.
There is nothing wrong with that, but Kilkolly comes across as being more ambitious than that.
After all, working a day job as a painter, as he does in Napier, doesn’t have the same appeal as being a professional football.
‘‘It’s more or less the next couple of years that I need to kick on. I need to have a couple of big national league seasons and from there I might be able to demand a higher contract somewhere.’’
Kilkolly spent a challenging six months playing in Lithuania this time last year, in a team and city where no-one spoke English, and said he would be sticking to his home country for the foreseeable future.
‘‘I was miles out of my comfort zone. I don’t regret it, it was a challenging experience, but helped make me who I am today.
‘‘My main focus now is trying to become the top striker in the New Zealand league. If I can do that, then people will be asking questions of me.’’