Nix player ‘kept in dark’
Departing striker Logan Rogerson has criticised the Wellington Phoenix for an ‘‘unprofessional’’ lack of communication towards himself and other players.
But the club’s general manager, David Dome, refuted that claim and said Rogerson was offered a chance to return to Wellington and trial under their new coach, who would later be revealed as Mark Rudan.
Despite scoring two goals towards the end of the A-League season, the off-contract player, who has subsequently signed for a German third-tier club, said he was kept in the dark over a possible extension on his three-year deal at the Phoenix, which expired at the end of the 2017-18 campaign.
‘‘Just a phone call would have been nice but for them not to ring me or some of the other players I thought was pretty unprofessional,’’ Rogerson said. ‘‘They obviously had bigger things to worry about, their staff and the head coach, so they probably wanted to sort out contracts for them before they started looking at players.’’
‘‘Obviously I went to Hong Kong [for the Soccer Sevens] and that was my last involvement with the Phoenix. Chris Greenacre was a part of that and I got on real well with Greenie, he gave me my chances towards the end of the season. But even he couldn’t really tell me much in Hong Kong because he was in the same position as me, he wasn’t sure about his future.’’
But Dome said football operations manager Shaun Gill made contact with Rogerson twice at the beginning of June. Although they were not prepared to offer him a new contract, they had not closed the door either. Dome said the 20-year-old was invited to trial once the new coach had been hired.
‘‘The most important appointment you make as a football club is the head coach and we had to get that right and give the head coach the most flexibility to build a squad,’’ Dome said.
‘‘That’s unfortunately one of the side effects of being a professional sportsperson, you have to make your own calls and what you think is right for you at that time. We had those conversations with the player and we said none of this was hard coated in yet but keep us informed and we’ll let you know as best we can with the information we have.’’
However, instead of returning for a chance to earn himself a new deal, Rogerson decided to try his luck in Germany after landing a trial with Carl Zeiss Jena.
‘‘When the opportunity to go to Europe popped up, I had to go really. I couldn’t wait around for the Phoenix to make up their mind because it had been a month or two since the season ended and the club hadn’t contacted me,’’ Rogerson said.
Rogerson said the initial talks with Carl Zeiss Jena’s owners were encouraging and, after impressing in a pre-season game against Union Berlin, he was quickly snapped up on a two-year contract which includes an option for a third.
Although disappointed by the way his Phoenix exit played out, Rogerson remained positive about his future and he said he was looking forward to tackling a new challenge in a football-mad country.
Meanwhile, another player let go by the Phoenix, left-back James McGarry, has signed a two-year deal with Willem II in the Dutch Eredivisie. He will be joined at the club by All Whites goalkeeper Michael Woud, who has transferred from Sunderland.