Players ‘disillusioned’ with Hudson

The guy in charge isn’t doing himself any favours.

Former All Whites goalkeeper Michael Utting has joined the chorus of discontent around the performance of New Zealand coach Anthony Hudson, claiming players are ‘‘disillusioned’’ and don’t want to be part of the setup.

Utting said Hudson was ‘‘out of his depth’’ and questioned how long highly paid English-based professional Winston Reid would tolerate performing alongside ‘‘players who aren’t up to it’’.

Utting was speaking

to Trackside Radio in the wake of New Zealand’s disappointing 1-1 draw with Myanmar in Yangon on Tuesday (NZ time). That result meant the All Whites hadn’t won a game under the guidance of Hudson and have gone 11 matches without victory.

Utting’s concerns came on top of earlier criticism by former All Whites coach Kevin Fallon and New Zealand great Steve Sumner.

Utting, who played for New Zealand for a decade and appeared in professional leagues on either side of the Tasman as well as South Africa, said he wanted to speak out because others were ‘‘too scared to’’.

‘‘I have spoken to a lot of people, Phoenix players and current All Whites players. We all shared the same belief – the game’s in the worst position it’s been in for decades,’’ Utting told Trackside Radio on Thursday.

‘‘The coaching setup at the moment . . . the guy in charge isn’t doing himself any favours. He [Hudson] talks up a good game and really isn’t delivering.

‘‘He is out of his depth . . . That’s a harsh call but someone has to call it as they see it.

‘‘I think a lot of people are scared to voice their opinion. Maybe they should, otherwise things just don’t get done and that’s disappointing.’’

Asked about the feedback from current players, Utting said: ‘‘There’s a lack of belief in the systems they are trying to play, there’s a lack of belief in the coach.

‘‘There are people not involved in the setup now who have decided to take a step back because they are disillusioned with what they are seeing and they don’t want to be part of that.’’

Utting feared that Reid, the All Whites skipper who is on a massive deal with English Premier League outfit West Ham, would lose patience.

‘‘If I was Winston Reid, I’d rather be in my house in London resting for the next [West Ham] game rather than travelling to Myanmar to play on a shoddy pitch with players who aren’t up to it. He’ll only do it for a certain time.’’

Utting agreed Hudson was selecting players too liberally, saying, ‘‘he’s giving shirts away like Christmas presents’’.

‘‘These players will one day be good enough to wear the All Whites shirt but they are not good enough now,’’ he said.

‘‘That’s the disappointment I share with a lot of people – it’s the devaluing of the shirt.

‘‘When I played for the All Whites we gave blood to play for the All Whites. It was well respected and we earned those caps. Now it’s trying to blood players and giving them a chance for experience. But this isn’t where you do it.’’

Utting felt there was a lack of transparency and consistency with Hudson and he was mystified by that.

‘‘We have got the biggest pool of talent to pick from that we have ever had. But we are losing to teams we have never lost to in the past. It has to change.’’

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