‘We’re in a really good place’
Football Ferns ready to move on from troubled past
With a day at the beach, an apology, and a cup of tea, the Football Ferns have begun to move on from the tumultuous reign of former coach Andreas Heraf.
Yesterday, the players received a face-to-face apology from interim New Zealand Football chief Andrew Pragnell and four members of the governing body’s executive committee – vicepresident Johanna Wood, Mike Killick, Paul Cochrane and Rakesh Naidoo.
That followed an excursion to Muriwai beach on Auckland’s west coast on Monday, where they worked with mental skills coach Aaron Walsh to start putting the events of the past year behind them, as they prepare for the Oceania Women’s Nations Cup.
In October, Heraf was found to have engaged in ‘‘bullying behaviour’’ after a review conducted by lawyer Phillipa Muir, who said complaints from 12 players about his conduct were ‘‘genuine and largely substantiated’’. He resigned at the end of July, before the Muir review was published.
Those 12 players said they wouldn’t play for Heraf again, a courageous stand to take, but Muir found there was at least one player who wanted him to remain as coach, despite the impact he had had on her team-mates.
Ferns captain Ali Riley and senior player Sarah Gregorius wouldn’t say whether that divergent perspective had been addressed by the team, but did say work was needed to repair a fractured Ferns environment.
‘‘I would say after [Monday] we’ve turned a corner and we’re building it back,’’ said Riley, when asked how the level of trust was within the team.
‘‘Our culture, that closeness and that family feeling was something we’ve prided ourselves on for many years and I think a little bit of that did get broken, but we’re in a really good place today. You could just feel it on the field, the energy. It’s all about football now and that’s why we are here. ‘‘
Neither player would go into detail about what they did at Muriwai on Monday, but the work with Walsh clearly left an impact, one Riley hoped would last for years to come.
‘‘I think just having someone with that skillset come in, he makes us feel safe, and he’s someone who’s not a player, not from New Zealand Football, but who’s an expert in this area, who let us be vulnerable and let us talk to each other but in a framework he’s created.
‘‘I hope he can stick around as long as possible, because this is not just a one and done, this is a culture and identity we want to build.
‘‘Yes, for the World Cup, we want to make history, we want to win games, but this is something we want to create for years to come and generations to come, and this starts now. ‘‘
Riley responded to Pragnell and the executive committee members on behalf of the Ferns and said the apology had been ‘‘really positive’’.
‘‘I got a little bit emotional and they did too, but they’re committed to making a change and making sure this kind of thing never happens again.
‘‘We’re going to work together as a team with the PFA [Professional Footballers Association], who have been amazing for us, and New Zealand Football, and it’s going to be all three parties together that are going to be able to move this team forward.’’
Former Ferns captain Abby Erceg was present at Muriwai and for the apology, despite being unavailable for the Nations Cup following her retirement in May.
She had only just returned to the team after her first retirement last February – prompted by frustration at NZ Football’s level of support for the team’s domesticbased players – and later revealed she had been unhappy with the environment under Heraf.
New Ferns coach Tom Sermanni is open to Erceg returning and met with her over a cup of tea yesterday, but offered no further information on her status. The Ferns are in camp in Auckland until Friday, when they leave for New Caledonia, where they begin their Nations Cup campaign against Tonga on Monday.
‘‘We’ve turned a corner and we’re building it back.’’ Ali Riley, Football Ferns captain