All posts by easternsuburbsafc

Eastern Suburbs 5 v Hamilton Wanderers 2

MATCH REPORT | #Lilywhites 5 v Hamilton Wanderers 2
Eastern Suburbs won this entertaining encounter courtesy of a well taken hatrick from Jade Parris and two goals from Hannah Pilley. Suburbs never really looked like losing this after scoring a couple of early goals, although Hamilton came back strongly in the second half and caused some panic in the suburbs back line.

Heavy rain fell on Madills Farm just before kick off and continued for much of the first half making the pitch slippery and fast. This may have contributed to some early mistakes from the Hamilton team and they also seemed slow to get going, perhaps feeling the effects of their long bus journey. After just 26 seconds, the Hamilton defence failed to deal with Amber Whitley’s cross and in the resulting confusion Jade Parris poked the ball past the keeper.

Suburbs maintained the pressure and continued to benefit from some loose Hamilton play, and within 8 minutes of the start they were 2-0 up after Jade Parris threaded a ball through to Hannah Pilley who finished calmly into the bottom left corner of the net.

Hamilton launched some attacks of their own but the suburbs back line of Rebekah van Dort, Kate Carlton and Leah Mettam coped well and, when in possession, they stroked the ball around nicely. Kate Seater occupied the space between defence and midfield and coordinated most of the suburbs creative play in the first half.

The third goal came as Jade Parris again found herself in space just outside the box and fired a firmly hit shot past the outstretched keeper.

3-0 down at half time, the Hamilton coach looked frustrated and whatever he said during his half time talk, it certainly seemed to fire up the Hamilton girls. They looked much more organised and energetic in the second half and they had soon reduced the deficit to two goals when their centre forward turned neatly at the top of the penalty area and unleashed an unstoppable shot past Corina Brown in the suburbs goal.

Hamilton were looking dangerous and they were also benefiting from a strengthening wind at their backs. This helped them keep possession in the suburbs half for long periods but it also left them vulnerable to quick breaks by the fast eastern suburbs forward line. This is exactly what happened mid way through the second half when Hannah Pilley broke away at speed, her initial effort being saved by the keeper. Fortunately, Amber Whitley was following up and fired a shot against the post which rebounded back to Pilley who buried it into the top of the net. Another quick break lead to the fifth goal (and Jade Parris’s hatrick).

This should have made the last 20 minutes relatively comfortable for suburbs but they lost some concentration and conceded a goal straight from the kick off as the Hamilton forwards ploughed straight through with minimal resistance.

From then on it was a matter of suburbs holding on against wave after wave of Hamilton attack. Fortunately they did this but not without some heart-stopping moments and some problems clearing the ball against the strong wind.

This was a good result for suburbs against a Hamilton team which has been difficult to beat all season. The Hamilton girls had a long journey home to reflect on how different it may have been if they hadn’t conceded those two early goals.

Eastern Suburbs 0 v Glenfield Rovers AFC 2

The #Lilywhites came out second best in this top of the table clash with Glenfield Rovers on a cold and wet afternoon at Madills Farm. Despite a high work rate in midfield and plenty of possession, Suburbs just couldn’t break down the well organised Glenfield and they succumbed to two well executed goals in the first half.

Suburbs dominated possession for the first twenty minutes and had a couple of decent chances but failed to capitalise. Glenfield then showed what they can do by breaking out of defence and flowing forward in a coordinated move along the left wing which culminated in Geena Gross squeezing the ball home from a tight angle.

The second goal came in similar circumstances 10 minutes later, this time a fast break away catching Suburbs by surprise and a well weighted cross was headed in firmly by Dayna Stevens.
The second half followed a similar story with suburbs working hard but Glenfield dealing with the threat with relative ease. Glenfield players are all fast and fit and they use this to their advantage by pressurising opponents into making mistakes and then breaking away with speed.

Glenfield looked dangerous in attack and created some chances in the second half but player of the day, Rebekah van Dort, and her defence coped well with the threat.

The suburbs midfield of Jeongwon Shin, Molly Bryans and Lucy Carter worked tirelessly but found themselves closed down very quickly and unable to release the ball forward.

The rain started to fall heavier as the second half wore on and this seemed to weigh on suburbs as they failed to make a significant impact on the Glenfield goal.

These two teams are battling it out for top spot in the league and the matches between them are always keenly contested. Unfortunately for suburbs it was Glenfield who came out on top today but they remain in contention and they will be keen to ensure they stay on the shoulder of the league leaders over the next few weeks.

Eastern Suburbs 1 v Papakura City 0

Eastern Suburbs eventually edged this tight contest by one goal to progress to the quarter final stage of the Kate Sheppard cup. These two teams know each other pretty well having played just six days ago in the league although suburbs made a few changes to their starting line- up. Coach, Mauro Donoso, had the rare luxury of being able to select from an almost full squad with the NZ representative squad players being available for this Saturday game.

Despite the quality of players on show, suburbs struggled to play flowing football as Papakura closed them down tightly in midfield and did not give them any space up front. There were very few clear cut chances in the match, although Papakura’s goalkeeper was the busier of the keepers.

Papakura have a highly experienced and well organised back line and a goal keeper who always seems to be in the right place at the right time. Suburbs were restricted to some long range efforts in the first half and the keeper dealt with these easily.

Papakura were having similar problems in finding the final ball through to the forwards and much of the first half action was confined to the congested midfield. But around 5 minutes before half time they forced their way through the suburbs midfield and managed a break away which looked promising until Kate Seatter clipped the ankles of the flying forward and was shown a yellow card. Fortunately for suburbs the resulting free kick sailed over the bar.

The second half started more positively for suburbs as Grace Jale began to find a bit of space just behind the forward line and she combined well with Jeongwon Shin make some good runs and penetrating passes. Jale, Jacqui Hand, Hannah Pilley and Jade Parris all had efforts at goal but the Papakura keeper was equal to them.

Papakura also managed to create a few chances as the game began to open up a bit, the best of which saw a cross to one of their players in plenty of space in front of goal. Fortunately for suburbs, in the heat of the moment, she didn’t connect with the ball and it went harmlessly out of play.

Suburbs made a few changes as players began to tire in the high tempo second half. The additional energy of the substitutes helped suburbs mount a number of attacks towards the end of the game.

The goal finally came in the final five minutes and the free kick that lead to it was the result of an unfortunate error by the Papakura goalkeeper which was cruel considering she had played a perfect game up until that point. She had collected the ball from another eastern suburbs attack and was about to deliver it forward when she dropped it. Unfortunately for her she made the decision to pick it up again and the referee ruled that, as she had lost control of the ball and then picked it up, an indirect free kick should be awarded on the edge of the penalty box.
Suburbs took full advantage of this in a clever and stylish way with Grace Jale taking a short tap to Jade Parris who floated a superbly placed shot over the wall and into the top right of the net leaving the unfortunate goal keeper no chance.

Papakura will consider themselves unlucky to come away from Madills farm with nothing to show for their efforts twice in one week and they have certainly made it difficult for suburbs during both of those games, but the Lilywhites have a good record at home and, on the balance of play, they just about deserved it.

Eastern Suburbs 3 v Papakura City 2

Eastern Suburbs won a hard fought battle against a physical Papakura side in a tense premier league match on Sunday. The Lilywhites were missing a number of players through NZ development squad duty and they also lost two of their key players during this match to injury, but they showed great character and resilience to grind out a win.

Conditions were perfect for football as warm sunshine shone down on a very well prepared Madills Farm number 1 pitch. Eastern Suburbs were the first to settle into their rhythm, playing some nice first touch football with crisp passes and good movement off the ball. This was rewarded after 12 minutes when the pressure on Papakura’s back line lead to a corner. This was well delivered into the danger area by Leah Mettam and, as both teams fought to get a head to the ball, it glanced off a Papakura defender, leaving the goalkeeper unable to reach it.

The own goal seemed to shock the visitors into action and from then on the first half was much more evenly contested as Papakura started to assert their physical style of play and began winning many of the midfield battles. Kate Carlton left the pitch with a leg injury mid way through the first half and suburbs were forced to defend deeper and deeper. Papakura created a number of chances including a superb strike from 25 yards out which was heading for the top right of the net until Corina Brown tipped it past the post with an excellent diving save. This was Browns first game back in goal since breaking her wrist in the first game of the season and she made it look like she had never been away, with some great diving stretches and some brave goal mouth scrambles.

The second half started in similar fashion to the first with Eastern Suburbs playing some nice football, creating some good chances but just lacking the final ball. Unfortunately, suburbs central defender and skipper, Rebekah von Dort was forced to leave the field with a leg injury within a few minutes but the rest of the team adjusted to this set back well and they all stepped up to match Papakuras’ physicality. 20 minutes after the break they were awarded a free kick in a dangerous position on the left. The free kick was whipped in by Jade Parris and met well by Molly Bryans to claim her first goal of the season for suburbs.

Eastern suburbs continued to press the opposition and in the 69th minute Jade Paris played a through ball for Hannah Pilley. The Papkura goalkeeper took the opportunity to rush out of her penalty area and attempt to clear but Pilley had continued her run and managed to block the keepers clearance, the ball ricocheting into the goal to put suburbs 3-0 up.

All credit to Papakura for not letting their heads go down at this stage. In fact they came out fighting and found a second wind. They again began to dominate the midfield and eventually found some space wide on the right. A firm cross from the right was finished nicely from close range by Chloe Marthe to give the visitors some hope with 15 minutes still to play. The momentum was with Papakura and they produced an almost identical move a few minutes later , this time the cross from the right wing forcing a own goal.

This lead to a very tense last 10 minutes with Papakura determined to get something out of the match and forcing some further saves from Brown and her defenders as suburbs scrambled to keep the ball out.
As the clock ran down to full time, suburbs had a chance to make it 4 from another well struck free kick by Jade Paris but the Papakura goal keeper made a great save.

Suburbs breathed a sigh of relief as the final whistle blew and they certainly knew they had been in a hard fought match.

These two teams will battle it out again next Saturday in the Kate Shepherd Cup. Judging by this match it should be an exciting contest.

Lilywhites Development and Pathways strategy key to great start in Championship

INTERVIEW | Championship player Jodel Liberty Shai is enjoying the #Lilywhites great start to the league campaign and confident the team can continue to thrive and develop throughout the season under the leadership of coach Jesus Bueno

Jodel said “The transformation from last season has been amazing and I put this down to the clubs #development and #pathways strategy. There are several girls from our Grade 16 Prems team and some fantastic players amongst them!”

“There is no doubt in my mind that the majority will push on to play Lotto NRFL Prems football and I suspect there are a few future Football Ferns as well.”
Talking about her own football journey Jodel said “I started playing football in England for Ossett Albion FC (now Ossett United FC) in 2006 and also represented my local County Football Association (West Riding County Football Association) for a couple of seasons, playing against other regional academy teams such as Leeds United, Newcastle United and Middlesbrough before moving to New Zealand in 2011.

Since arriving in Auckland Jodel added “I had the dream start and won the AFF Grade 14 Prems Division during my first season. I also played several representative games for Auckland Football Federation and in 2015 joined Papatoetoe AFC.”

After a solid season in the Reserves, Jodel seemed destined to make the step up to Prems before an ankle injury and subsequent operation kept her out for a year. “It was gut wrenching and I was devastated. To make it worse upon my return I really struggled with the impact training and matches had on my ankle. It probably took me another year or so to get over it both mentally and physically. In hindsight I probably returned too quickly, but was desperate to get back on the pitch and play again!”

“Having said that my time off the field turned out to be very constructive and during that period I attended the Auckland Football Federation Club Based Referee course, completed my New Zealand Football Level 2 Junior Coaching Award and coached on the AFF Holiday & Schools Programme. I found coaching a great experience, very rewarding and am keen to return, but probably not until my playing days are over and I can give it my full attention as juggling the two is tricky.

Joining Eastern Suburbs in the Championship felt like and turned out to be the perfect fit for me, it’s a great club with awesome coaches and great facilities.
Since my return and joining the #Lilywhites I certainly appreciate playing football more and don’t take it for granted. This has led to a slightly more relaxed approach to football, which I’m not sure is a good or bad thing, but it works for me and like millions of others I enjoy taking to the field each week and giving it my all!

When the Phoenix came to town

By Sam Jeffery

On any given Friday around 3pm many of us will generally be winding down from professional servitude and beginning to ramp up for the impending weekend frivolities. However on this Friday just past, patrons of the Eastern Suburbs were treated to a spectacular pre-weekend treat as Madills Farm hosted Ernie Merrick and his Wellington Phoenix to train in front a throng of excited football fans of all ages.

As part of their Football United 2014 tour, that will see Premiership sides Newcastle and West Ham head to New Zealand, the Phoenix were in Auckland and made the home of Eastern Suburbs their own for the afternoon. Two Suburbs first team players, Ernest Wong and Haidar Jabir, were also lucky enough to get the opportunity to train with the players, whilst the generous swell of fans were able to have their photos taken and shirts signed once the session came to its conclusion.

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Having trained earlier that morning the session was a relatively light affair but was equally an excellent opportunity to observe the showcase of talent that the Phoenix have. Stars such Tyler Boyd, Kevin Durante and Matt Ridenton could be seen caressing the ball around Madills with aplomb, under the watchful eye of Ernie Merrick, whilst the Lilywhites own Jabir fitted in with pleasing ease.

Suburbs keeper Wong worked separately under the guidance of former Celtic and Scotland keeper Jonathan Gould, now Phoenix GK coach, and was thrilled at getting the chance.

“It was great to play with professional players and get the chance to be coached by someone like Jonathan Gould. I really enjoyed it, particularly as it was at Madills and the club I play for.”

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Whilst only two Suburbs players were lucky enough to get the chance to actually train with the Phoenix, hundreds of young fans got the opportunity to interact with the players once the session was over and it is to their great credit that not one fan would have been left disappointed with the time the players took to sign and be photographed with.

Suburbs Chairman Chris Ruffell, responsible for orchestrating the successful event, was left satisfied by what was achieved.

“I think it was a good day all round, we had a big crowd which is great and I thought the Phoenix were certainly very approachable and interacted very well. Overall it’s been very worthwhile and we thank them for their efforts and would love to welcome them back anytime”.

It was a sentiment echoed by the Phoenix hierarchy.

“It’s been a great day”, Coach Merrick commented, “both the Suburbs boys are clearly very talented, and this really is what it’s all about [regarding the swarms of jubilant youngsters running around]”.

It would be impossible to disagree with the affable and thoroughly likeable Merrick, and with the sun beginning to set late on Friday it was with great thanks that Eastern Suburbs bade a fond farewell to its guests.

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The Phoenix return to Auckland next month to take on West Ham at Eden Park, and it would be a shock should there not be a whole host of young Suburbs players present, clad in the shirts signed by their heroes. The tour is dubbed Football United, and anyone present on Friday would not testify to a more appropriate title.

An Open Letter from Chairman Chris Ruffell

What are we trying to achieve?

I was asked recently by a coach/parent of a 9-year-old Suburbs player, “what are we trying to achieve at Eastern Suburbs?” This was in reference to the Junior/Youth training and playing program at the club. My answer was simple – we want all players to enjoy their time at Eastern Suburbs whilst giving them the best possible opportunity to reach their potential as a player.

From an enjoyment perspective we attempt to arrange many teams based on friends requests and try and arrange competitions that are as even as possible so everyone can experience winning and losing. There will always of course be the strongest and the weakest team(s), such is sport. From a development perspective we offer many coaching programs, coach education, and extra competition for the elite and a variety of other things to assist players reaching their potential. One of the biggest obstacles to player development sadly can be the game itself, and the perception from parents around the measurement of improvement. It can also be one of the best development tools. Let me explain.

Football like most things is a learned activity. With regards to development we measure a person in regards to what he or she can do in relation to the best. For example, the measure of IQ is an intelligence measurement in relation to your age and the mental ability of other humans. Many of you will have had children at school that undertake NSW testing that show they have a reading age of an “X” year old. We measure the ability of a pianist on how well he or she can play and have a grading system to work through which gets progressively more difficult. What we as humans seem to do instinctively is try and encourage our children to learn an activity as quickly as possible and get great satisfaction when our kids excel at something and become significantly better than their peers at the same age. My experience however is that irrespective of where your child fits into the evolutionary scale of whatever activity they are undertaking, we as parents enjoy seeing them improve. I also believe the children get more enjoyment when they are learning.

The involvement in team sports is a very “kiwi” thing to do. There are so many positive aspects that many of us probably don’t fully appreciate. We understand the physical aspect around healthy living, and starting this at a young age is very good. Being “part of a team” and not letting your team mates down by being reliable/punctual. Giving your best for the team. Understanding and dealing with winning and losing. It is also a family activity with Mum and Dad, often sisters and/or brothers on the sideline all supporting the participant as well as the rest of the team. This is genuinely “quality time” in a forever more fast paced “online” life that we now live.

The problem is how do we measure progress? It is easy to measure enjoyment; the kids are either happy or sad. They either want to play or they don’t. Obviously we as parents can impact this as well. Shouting on the sideline or telling your child all the things they did wrong during the game will naturally have a negative influence. Fortunately I don’t think this happens too often (but does happen). But from a progress perspective what we would like to see is no different to any other activity and that is for player’s to display traits that you would expect from players older and better than themselves. So what are those traits?

Before I answer that I would like you to ask yourself as a parent whether you know the answer to that question.

For many parents the major measurement devices they recognise in relation to football are:
• Goals scored/shots
• Goals conceded/saves
• Won/Lost
• Tackles made

Sadly, these things have no bearing on whether your child is improving or not. Although it is of course a team game, in the developmental Junior and younger Youth years we focus on teaching the individual skills required to master the ball, and introduce the tactical appreciation required as they acquire these skills. The difficulty is of course that during the process of learning these skills, many mistakes are made. The consequence of these mistakes and where on the field they are made, can impact greatly on the result of the game.

This leaves us with two choices:

1. Focus on instructing the children in games to avoid risking use of underdeveloped skills that could cause mistakes, and greatly increasing their chances of winning or;
2. Encouraging them to try their underdeveloped skills in the game as well as training and accept willingly the consequence that losing will / may be a by product in the immediate term.

At Eastern Suburbs, in an attempt to achieve our goal of having our players reach their potential, we are choosing the second option. If every team did the same thing then the winning/losing by-product would in fact be nullified. And if winning is a large component of the enjoyment factor (I don’t necessarily think it is, it is more related to the environment created within the team) then this also should balance if everyone takes on board the same philosophy.

So as a parent if I am not to judge the players improvement or progress by goals scored/conceded, games won/lost, tackles made shots saved, then what do I judge it on? Here are some of the things that we like to look out for at a young age (not in any particular order).

First touch, technique whether passing, or shooting, ability to use both feet, composure on the ball, movement with or without the ball, athleticism, close control / dribbling, coordination, “tricks”, decision making, accuracy, playing with head up, recognition and utilisation of space, speed, confidence on the ball. There are many more.

For many parents not brought up on the game of Football, the ability to recognise some or all of these attributes is near on impossible. It is in its own unique way like a different language you hear but occasionally recognise individual words. The tendency is to think when a team wins they played well, and when they lose they didn’t play well. But within that win or loss there will have been skills displayed as listed above that were performed very well at times, and others performed poorly, by both teams. Focusing your praise on the important skills and attributes displayed well (win or lose) is far more important than recognising either the result or trying to avoid mistakes that may impact the result. If you don’t have the knowledge or experience to recognise these attributes, you are much better saying nothing as you may well be unwittingly applauding actions which are detrimental to the progress of your player.

Let me give you an example which I see all the time. The ball comes to a player in defence with very little pressure on him/her, and the ball is kicked a great distance forward. Parents clap, danger is gone because the ball is further from the defenders goal and occasionally the ball goes directly to a striker on the same team who is now in a goal scoring position. If I relate that to how the game should be played based on how the best players play the game (and remember we are trying to develop our players by emulating what good players do) what do I want to see? Firstly the player controls the ball. Secondly he/she then makes a conscious decision to dribble or pass based on the space and players around. Once the ball has been accurately released he/she makes a run to support that player.

Unfortunately taking this course of action gives the player several opportunities to make a mistake and give the ball away in a dangerous area. And when that mistake occurs it could well be costly for the team. However if the parents on the sideline applaud when he/she belts the ball down the field, the next time they are in the same position they will do exactly the same thing because he/she enjoys the adulation received as a result of the action. From a development perspective an opportunity is missed to undertake a course of actions that will require several different skills which when mastered will make him/her a significantly better player than one that can only kick the ball a long way. This is one example.

So as a parent what should you do? Firstly recognise in its most basic form, football is a game where you try and keep the ball. I don’t mean the individual keeps the ball, but the team keeps the ball. This is done by either passing or dribbling around and through the opposition. From a development perspective it is better to lose ground and keep the ball, than gain ground and lose it. One of the problems with the game from a development perspective is that the goal is like a giant magnet. Players for some reason come hell or high water need to get the ball towards the opposition goal preferably through the shortest possible route. If this involves somehow going directly through opposition player’s bodies then so be it. When you watch the top players playing they look to work their way around the opposition, creating gaps to play through by clever manipulation of the ball player movement and speed. If something is not working they retreat and then start again looking to probe and puncture until something opens up which can be exploited. These top players have developed the attributes required through many thousands of hours of practise and countless mistakes and failures. But they eventually learnt from those mistakes and good coaching.

In most top football academies around the world the parents if allowed at games are required to remain silent. The parents watch quietly, just as they would if they went to their child’s school to observe them learning in the classroom or playing in the orchestra. We are not a top academy, but recognise that if we want our players to reach their potential we too might emulate some of the things that organisations better than us undertake. So what we’d like Eastern Suburbs parents to do is come to your child’s game, enjoy a coffee and a chat, and just let the kids do their thing. Remember, they’re not there for your entertainment, they’re there for theirs.

If they can be left alone and applauded for the right reasons, the game can become one of the best development tools of all.

Thank you,
Chris Ruffell

Will Richardson – World Cup bound

The phrase “you’ve gotta be in it to win” is an often overused cliché that’s generally spouted by some sort of gameshow host or salesman. Equally, “once in a lifetime” can be a bit of an exaggeration. In the case of Eastern Suburbs’ very own Will Richardson, both sayings could not be more apt. Because this young Kiwi is getting the chance to do what every football fan across the globe dreams of doing, walking out on the biggest stage in international football, the World Cup Final.

Will, who plays for the ESAFC 10th grade Yellow Team, was one of over 1000 youngsters aged between 6-10 who entered a McDonalds Skills Zone Day on the Auckland Domain. His mum Victoria explained how it all came about.

“We were sent an email through from the club about the McDonalds Day and we took both Will and his sister down to have a go. We didn’t hear anything else about it until two weeks later when a PR guy from McDonalds called”.

It was then that Victoria was asked several questions relating to Will’s suitability, age and, tellingly, passport. Finally as the conversation neared a close it was revealed that Will had in fact won, and his mum was given the unenviable task of having to keep it a secret.

“I was told not to tell Will so that we could surprise him at training!”

Thus following a full three days of blissful unawareness the surprise was finally sprung on Will by All Whites Tim Payne and Matt Ridenton amidst something a media frenzy.

Will - World Cup

“Will was absolutely speechless”, Victoria revealed, “it really is once in a lifetime”.

Victoria is not wrong, of course. Not only will Will and his mum get the chance to soak up the atmosphere and drama of this most prestigious of international tournaments, they get to do so in one of the World’s great cities.
As part of the prize for winning, the Richardson’s will be housed in the shadow of Sugarloaf Mountain and Christ the Redeemer, on Ipanema Beach.

Will also gets the opportunity to play against the other 21 lucky winners, tour some of Rio and sneak an early look at the spiritual home of football that plays host to the final, the Maracana.

Asked who he’d like to accompany onto the pitch and who he’d like to win, there is little surprise to his answer:
“Messi – I’d like Argentina to win”.

Time will tell who the eventual tournament winner will be, but for Will Richardson, he’s already a victor in the eyes of every football fan across the country. For following the rather ignominious defeat to Mexico in the Playoffs it seemed inevitable that there would be no New Zealand representative at this year’s World Cup.
Not anymore.

Time for a Healthy Dose of Footballing Medicine

By Sam Jeffery

It’s that time again. Fever has struck and frankly with each passing day it becomes more and more of an epidemic. We should’ve been prepared, we all knew it was coming of course. One of those cyclical diseases that strikes every 4 years – same time, same symptoms, same outcome. But the cure isn’t housed in some doctoral encyclopaedia, nor is it ingested via pill or syringe. The antidote comes in that most pleasurable form – International football and in the most lavish amounts possible. For what we all suffer from is World Cup Fever.

June of a “World Cup year” is the culmination of 47 long months of arduous torture and longing. In the immediate aftermath of a World Cup there are the initial early stages of major football-withdrawal symptoms; tears, tantrums and transfer-talk. Luckily the Premiership season swings into life just when it would appear that life no longer required living. The eager football fan is appeased and gorges on league, cup and Champions League delicacies all the while blocking out thoughts of Jules Rimet and that glistening golden trophy.

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The Euros, Copa Americas and African Cup of Nations – inferior brothers to their loftier kin – of course present a large degree of comfort to us football fanatics. But then the ripples begin, and ripples soon become waves. The qualifiers start. Excitement surges through the veins of all the hopeful nations. It’s just a teaser though, we’re being mocked once again because we’re still a full 2 years away from the main event.

As an Englishman (yet to experience a qualifying campaign here in Aotearoa) qualifiers involve a blundering, painful struggle against a variety of lowly Baltic states and principalities – Macedonia and San Marino are staple opponents – and the boredom generated by such affairs makes the shining lights of Rio seem far off.

But as qualification begins to loom tantalisingly on the horizon, and the spotlight start to veer towards the World Cup destination so the excitement begins its now seemingly endless rise.

Brazil has been plagued with demonstrations, destruction and even deaths. Do the football fans around the world really care? Harsh to say but probably not. Morally we do; in reality it’s all about the football now. It’s so close and we all know that Brazil are going to put on one hell of a show.

Squads are announced, wallcharts are printed or purchased, sweepstakes are completed. Twitter, Facebook, and all across the web armchair pundits offer their opinions. Pub discussions rocket and excuses are already being planned for late arrivals to work, early exits or just plain “sickness”.

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And then finally, finally after all those long, dark World Cup-less days the moment is finally due to arrive. A feast of football from the finest banquet the world can offer. Fans from all nations descend upon Brazil ready to party in sporting paradise. There’s a hint of envy (well, jealousy, let’s face it) at those that can afford time and money to make the pilgrimage but our consolation is epic.

The greatest players, 3 matches a day, four and half hours of sensational football. And it’s not just the games of course, we’ve got build-up, analysis, post-match reaction, highlights. By the end of the day we’ve known every moment of each match in gooey detail, and back to our mundane lives we go, for a few fleeting hours.

And then the cycle starts again. Hour after hour, day after day, for 4 glorious weeks. It doesn’t get any better. Whether we’re watching one of the favoured South Americans or one of the no-hopers, it doesn’t really matter. The possibility of a stunning strike, silky team goal or scandalous sending off, the excitement never dims.

A mere 2 weeks from now the eyes of the world descend on the spiritual home of football. It’s a worldwide pandemic – World Cup Fever has struck.

‘Fast Freddy’ – New Zealand’s one and only Speed Endurance coach

By Sam Jeffery

“Sprinting is like learning a language. There’s only one way to do it – the technique must be correct and it’s all about repetition”. This is the straightforward logic that Freddy Farmer preaches to his pupils day in day out as he steers them towards upper and lower body co-ordination. Farmer is New Zealand’s only recognised Speed Endurance coach, and he imparts his years of wisdom week after week on the up-and-coming youngsters at the Eastern Suburbs Academy. In this week’s blog we meet the man dubbed “Fast Freddy”.

Freddy Farmer arrived in New Zealand at the ripe old age of 60; the profession on his visa application read “Speed Endurance coach”. In what must surely be the very definition of “no-brainer”, Immigration were quick to grant Freddy his visa, given that there is not one other of his coaching kind in all of New Zealand. Freddy has learnt his trade from Margot Wells, widely respected around the world as a pioneer in Speed Endurance, and coach (and wife) to 1980s Olympic 100m Gold and 200m Silver Medalist Alan Wells.

“I was always a rugby boy back in England”, Freddy proclaims, “scrum-half, then to centre and wing. I was always into my sprinting so it was only natural really”.

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As captain of his club, Surrey-based Effingham, Freddy was responsible for everything, including coaching. It was here that he began to implement some of his passion for sprinting and sprint endurance.

“I’d always been interested in how the body works – why can some people move quicker than others? Sprinters always look neat and tidy when they run, their body movement and so on. I’d always thought about it and I used to bring this sort of stuff into my rugby training”.

So focused with Farmer on implementing his philosophies into training that one team even had t-shirts made that read “Freddy makes me sick”. His focus and passion for speed endurance would eventually bring him to where he is today – a professional coach – and it fits in with the fabled ‘School of Speed’ creator Margot Wells.

In brief summary, fearful as I am that majority of Kiwis will not be well-learned in the Wells family history, Margot was herself a Scottish sprinter of some ability, but gave up her ambition to compete in order to train her husband Alan Wells. Wells, in the late 70s, was a second rate long jumper, however thanks to the intricate coaching techniques employed by his wife would go on to claim 100m Gold at the Moscow Olympics (along with 200m Silver) and various other Grand Prix victories.

Margot Wells now runs her own company – “Well Fast – School of Speed” – and is universally recognised as the defining voice on Speed Endurance. Her client list is vast and includes various international sportsmen, England rugby stars Danny Cipriani, James Haskell and Mike Brown to name but a few. In 2007 Freddy Farmer took his chance to meet and be tutored by Wells, and learn the skills and add the valuable credentials required to succeed.

“She’s a brilliant lady, a really smashing lady. She’s changed everything, all with simple logic. Even 10 years ago coaches would be getting to pull sledges and parachutes to get quicker; Margot argued this was rubbish – why would you teach the brain that?

There’s no International Federation of Speed, or some such qualification. She is the Federation of Speed, she’s the most respected there is.”

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When Freddy and his family decided to make the move to New Zealand he brought with him his credentials as a graduate from the Wells School of Speed. There weren’t many takers – “lots of places are pretty old school, they haven’t got a clue really” – until our own pioneer Chris Ruffell made contact with Freddy and invited him for a meeting. Before long ‘Fast Freddy’ was signed up at Madills Farm.

Embarrassingly naive to the whole concept, I then asked Freddy what exactly Speed Endurance actually is.

“The premise is based on upper and lower body co-ordination. To get quicker and to “get speed” you must move vertically and horizontally strong. It’s about repetition.”

Freddy will often be seen on weeknights at Madills putting the youngsters through their paces. Whether it’s frog jumps, hurdles or jumping from one ring to the next, the core logic is simple.

“I always say to a new group – you’re here to learn how to sprint, not how to run as fast as you can. It’s about the technique, it must be correct. Sprinters aren’t simply born with ‘it’ – that’s cobblers. You can create them”.

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Fast Freddy is helping create speedy footballers for the Eastern Suburbs. Having initially started in a more advisory role, Freddy has been given license and budget to expand his program and now runs sessions for large groups of youngsters and the ESAFC Academy. Some of his graduates, people like Jonty Thompson and Ben Allan, now grace the Mens Premiers and Reserves on a regular basis. He also trains Alice Tilley, who’ll be representing New Zealand at the Junior World Orienteering Championships in Bulgaria.

What’s abundantly clear from talking with Freddy is his passion for what he does. He lives and breathes Speed Endurance and he’s equally as passionate about teaching it to the future stars of the Eastern Suburbs.

“The club has been brilliant in buying into this and moving it forward. No other club can offer this program, no other club can offer what Eastern Suburbs has got”.

And that’s because no other club has Fast Freddy – the only Speed Endurance coach in the country.