Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Weekend Sport podcast with Jason Fine
from newstalk zed B.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
The show comes to you live from go Medium Mount
Smart Stadium in the Auckland suburb of Penrose. It's the
home of the Warriors during the NRL season, but will
be the home of Auckland FC during the A League
football season. Their first ever professional game kicks off at
five o'clock this afternoon against Brisbane Raw. Auckland FC director
of football is Terry mcflynn, himself the veteran of one
(00:35):
hundred and seventy eight matches across the first nine seasons
of the A League and the winner of two championships
with Sydney FC. He's popped into our mobile studio for
a check. Good to see you, Terry. How you feeling.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Yeah, I'm good, Jesson.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
You know, it's been eleven months in the making, a
lot of hard work behind the scenes.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
We've got a fantastic staff for falling off the pet
So yeah, we've been building up for this day for
a long time.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
So already let's talk about the roster y of assembled.
How do you assess it?
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Yeah, we're really happy where we've got to.
Speaker 4 (01:05):
I mean we had a real clear strategy from from
day one to build a team for the community.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
From the community.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
We had a real key focus on getting as many
Kiwi players back into professional football as we possibly could,
and I think we've learned it in a very very
positive space.
Speaker 3 (01:20):
You know, eating Kiwi Boys.
Speaker 4 (01:22):
Three Aussies and five foreigners, so the blend of youth
which is great for the club sustainability and long term
future proof and succession plannings there. But we've got enough
quality to be a challenger for the team for the
title this season.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
I want to talk about the importance of the moment,
but the Kiwi Boys, how did you go about identifying
the ones that would fit what you were after?
Speaker 3 (01:44):
Look, there's a real.
Speaker 4 (01:47):
Blend really of how we fitted well, how we find
the ones that we wanted. Obviously we went to the
very top. We tried to get as many all Waits
back as possible. You know, it's well publicized now that
Steve and myself went to Egypt in the March fifth
a window and met with all the players and discussions
whether it was right for them now this season, whether
it's next season, whether it's a season after, just to
(02:09):
let them know that what we want to do as
a football club and build a football club for New Zealand.
So yeah, look we got the boys back from the
very top and then the younger ones. We were watching
three four games football every week here in the local
league school football. There's a lot of talent in the
Northern Region Football League. There's a lot of talent in
the school football here and these kids just need an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
You could have if you wanted to stack that with Australians,
you could have done that. You've got three good ones. Galloway,
hall Burner in particular, I think will be a real
big player for you. Was there was it? Did you
ever at any time think I could use a couple
more Rossies or were always quite keen on that key
Wee strategy.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
Now look, we're always very very keen.
Speaker 4 (02:54):
I say keen King's not the right way. We're always
focused on having a KeyWe strategy. You know.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
For us, it's it's about building a football.
Speaker 4 (03:01):
Club that this city wants to get behind, that this
region wants to get behind. And I think having players
from the community, for the community, one of your own,
it's easy to back, it's easy to get behind.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
And so for us.
Speaker 4 (03:14):
It was very, very clear, and what made it even
easier Jason, to be honest, was when we saw the
talented here and not having a professional club in this city,
in this region for seventeen eighteen years. This city's crying
out for a football team, a professional team, and these
kids that want to be professional footballers need somewhere to play.
When you identify a player, I think that guy looks
(03:37):
good on the grass, then what, terry, how much due
diligence if that's the right word do you do on
the person?
Speaker 3 (03:45):
Yeah, we do loads.
Speaker 4 (03:46):
You know, we've got a clear recruitment strategy built on
character and competence. So the competence side of it, we've
got our the way we want to play. What Auckland
FC footballer looks like from a player profile point of view, technical, tactical, physical, mental.
We do a lot of due diligence in terms of
the character of the person. We were building a really
(04:07):
strong culture here of togetherness, a really strong culture of family.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
We all do this together. We're all here.
Speaker 4 (04:13):
We work hard for each other every single day, and
every single person that we've brought into the football club,
be its staff member or player, is here for the
right reasons.
Speaker 2 (04:21):
Let's talk about the imports, because there are I'm sure
literally thousands who get pitched to you, you get sent
their show real or whatever they're called these days. What
is your process around recruiting your five imports?
Speaker 3 (04:35):
Look, the imports is very very important first and foremost.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
Again, if we go back to what we want to
do long term and the sustainability and succession planning of
the club, we wanted players that have played at good levels.
We want a players that have been professionals for a
long period of time, had that durability at the top level,
which can educate the younger players in our group what
it means to be a professional both on and off
the park. So the five that we've landed on again
(05:02):
at good ages. You know Louis Fastrats twenty six to
twenty seven, you share more Mays twenty seven. Felipe Gallegos
brings a little bit more experience. Obviously, Hiroki's very experienced
at thirty four three World Cups. So for us it
was about, yes, can they perform on the park week
in week out, which we know they can bring success
(05:23):
to the city, brings success to the football club, But
longer term, can they actually educate the younger players and
what it means to be a professional.
Speaker 2 (05:29):
Hiroki Saka is a great kid as what a what
a player, what a career? How did that happen?
Speaker 4 (05:36):
In football and in life? Sometimes you just get a
bit of luck. We were very fortunate with Hiroki. You know,
he's a wonderful man, first and foremost, such a humble
human being to have done what he's done in the
game and in life, and to come in every day
and see the big smile on his face and how
he welcomes the younger players in. And it was a
(05:58):
conversation with an agent, Lustika based in Australia who brought Shin.
Speaker 3 (06:04):
Giono to the A League many years ago.
Speaker 4 (06:07):
Lore's obviously got a lot of contacts and business partners
in Japan, and we had a conversation one night and
it just sort of developed from there.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
We spoke to Hiroki. He was very open to the project.
Speaker 4 (06:17):
He wanted to be part of something new, something he
wanted to help build something, So that for us was.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Music to our ears to be honest that we had someone.
Speaker 4 (06:26):
Of that ilk in world football that wanted to come
and help us build a football club here and even
just the conversations beyond that with other players that we
had Hirokia as part of the roster was a big,
big help in the recruitment for other players.
Speaker 2 (06:40):
I be Steve Carker head coach, a guy you know, well,
what are the nature of your most common conversations with
Steve CORKA.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Look at the very.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
Start, obviously we went Nick Becker, the CEO, myself started
the club, and obviously the next appointment was going.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
To be the head coach.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
We had a really clear remit from the owner, mister
Bill Foley, that he wanted someone who knew the A League,
someone who knew the salary cap, who knew the players,
who understood what it was here in a cap system,
in a roster system, cap roster as well, but someone
who had also win won the A League. So there
was only two coaches available at that time and who
(07:24):
had won the A League and understanding of what the
A League was. And we interviewed eleven coaches in the process,
and Steve obviously, she said, Jason, we've worked together for many,
many years and we know each other inside out, so
the working relationship was already there. We've got the same
thinking and methodology in terms of football and how we
(07:44):
want to play and how we want to do things,
but also culturally the way we want the team to function,
the club to function, the culture to evolve. So yeah, look,
the conversations the early days was I think he sort
of felt a little bit he's a coach, so he
wants to be on the grass and he wants to
be coaching. And when we didn't have any players, he
didn't know players to coach, and we didn't have any balls,
(08:06):
we didn't have any cones, we didn't have any hurdles.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
We had nothing.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
So you know, we were going around watching games and
many many conversations, watching videos, watching highlight reels, cutting up clips,
doing data, and then slowly we started building player by
player by player, and I think July one we started
with nine players at North Harbor Stadium and then we
just built from there. And but now, look, Steve's he's
(08:30):
a winner and he's come here to win, as I have,
as Nick has, as.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
Everyone who's here, and we've got a really really.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
Clear vision as a football club to be the first
news Inner team to win the league.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
So how are you spend your day? You've come down
to chat to me in the mist a very busy
schedule for you. I'm sure what were the afternoon look
like for you up to kick off and during the game.
Speaker 4 (08:52):
Oh look, you know a lot of work that gets
done by the staff is unseen. So I just come
down to check on how everything was at the citium
today and catch up with Nick this morning and make
sure there's a lot of hype around today. You know,
there's been a hasn't been a professional club in this
(09:14):
city for seventeen or eighteen years, and you know we've
got a fantastic staff, beautiful beautiful people. So yeah, just
checking in with them, making sure that everything everything's going
to run smooth for them today and they.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Enjoy the moment.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
I think it's important that they sit back at some
point today and reflect on everything they've done to get
it to this point. You know, as a football club,
we started as a phone call or an email or
what's up message back in November twenty twenty three, and
to be sitting here today with a sell out crowd,
a team on the park is going to be competitive
and a real buzz around the city. It's something that
(09:47):
every every member of staff at up on their see
should be really proud of.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
Will you get the chance to do that, will you
take a moment?
Speaker 3 (09:52):
Yeah, look, there there'll be a moment today.
Speaker 4 (09:54):
Obviously, we've got to focus on winning, which is while
we're here and what we're doing. But the boys are ready,
you know, they've a trend. I think yesterday was session
sixty one as we started, so we've we're ready to go.
But I think it's important that the staff, the players,
their families actually recognized, well, this is real now you
(10:16):
know we're here, and it's it's for the long term.
It's not a flash in the pan. It's not something
that's going to come and go. It's it's it's something
that the city has been.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Crying out for.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
And yeah, look during the game, you know, I'll be
what an only do game today is? I mean they
changeing with the boys beforehand, just making sure they're relaxed,
making sure the coaches are relaxed, everything's in place.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Obviously, get through the first.
Speaker 4 (10:38):
Half, halftime again, just reassess, keep the emotional levels level,
keep everything sort of in check, and then yeah, what's
the second half?
Speaker 3 (10:48):
And then we go again.
Speaker 4 (10:49):
And but I think that the most important thing really
for us is it's it's a journey, you know, it's
a are we're going to get everything right day one. No,
we're definitely know we're gonna make mistakes and we're gonna
learn from them. We're gonna grow as a football club and.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
As a as a staff.
Speaker 4 (11:03):
And but yeah, it's all about working together. As I
said before that the people we've brought in, there's a
real togetherness, there's a real unity behind what we want
to achieve and they said that vision is clear to
be the first new Gill intend to win the.
Speaker 2 (11:14):
Early Congrats on getting Auckland FC to the start line, Terry.
It's an exciting day for you, for your fan base,
for the owners, everybody are connected to the club. Great
to see you mate, Thanks for stopping a fro. Thank you, no,
thank you, Terry. Terry mcflynn there, director of football here
at Auckland f C. We're broadcasting from Mount Smart today
until three o'clock five o'clock kick off or just after
(11:34):
for Auckland FC's first game in this competition against Brisbane Raw.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
For more from Weekend Sport with Jason Fine, listen live
to News Talk sed B weekends from midday or follow
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