Latest news with #GuillermoMay
NZ Herald
2 days ago
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Auckland FC set to sign English striker Sam Cosgrove for upcoming A-League season
It appears Auckland FC have found their new striker to partner Guillermo May for the upcoming A-League season. Newstalk ZB understands Englishman Sam Cosgrove will join the Black Knights as a replacement for All Whites forward Max Mata, who was on loan last season from English League Two side Shrewsbury
RNZ News
10-08-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Football: Plenty to play for in Auckland FC clash with A-League hopefuls
Auckland FC's Guillermo May will face a different challenge against South Melbourne in the Australia Cup. Photo: Mark Evans / Auckland FC's Australia Cup clash with South Melbourne on Wednesday takes on a different tone given the current state of the A-League. With Western United having their A-League licence revoked last week for financial reasons, pending appeal, South Melbourne will have even more motivation to knock over an A-League opponent. South Melbourne have been vying for a place in the A-League for years. The club has had a bids for an A-League licence turned down more than once - most recently 2018, when they lost out to Western United - and despite currently contesting the National Premier Leagues Victoria, they have ambitions of playing in a different competition. Western United are on the brink of expulsion from the A-League. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/ Based in Albert Park, South Melbourne is one of 24 clubs to register an interest in playing in the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) Professional League and is also part of the Australian Championship, a second-tier national competition kicking off in October. Auckland FC will be South Melbourne's third A-League opponent in the Australia Cup in 12 months. Last year South Melbourne defeated Wellington Phoenix 1-0 in the round of 32, before falling to Macarthur FC 1-0 in the semifinals. South Melbourne head into the game against Auckland with a short turnaround, after winning the Dockerty Cup final on Saturday. Auckland coach Steve Corica has done his homework on them. "Normally, the Melbourne teams are quite tough. They're good teams, I've seen that in the past, so we treat them with respect. "[South Melbourne] are a big club, so it's going to be another tough test for us and a good challenge as well. They're a good team, they started off very slowly this season, but they've changed coaches and they've become a lot stronger since the new coach has come in. "We've just got to turn up and make sure we're fully ready for that opportunity, and hopefully we get through." If Auckland FC beat South Melbourne, they will play a quarterfinal tie against either Sydney United 58 or A-League rivals Sydney FC. Wellington Phoenix play Nunawading City on Sunday for a place in the quarterfinals of the Australia Cup. Nunawading City are the lowest-ranked team remaining in the Cup. They play in VPL 2, the third division of men's football in Victoria. Wellington Phoenix coach Giancarlo Italiano said his side were not thinking it would be an "easy game". "They're going to be pumped for the game. The fact is, if they get a goal early or we get a player sent off, it changes the dynamic. "Cup competition always throws up upsets, so that's something we have to be mindful of." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Auckland FC dominate A-League Team of the Season
Auckland FC's Alex Paulsen. Photo: Shane Wenzlick / Auckland FC missed out on the A-League Grand Final but six players and the coach have been recognised in the annual player-voted Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) A-League Men Team of the Season. The squad is made up of 18 players, with Premiers Plate winners Auckland FC having the most representatives of any club. Auckland FC goalkeeper Alex Paulsen will captain the side, for the second consecutive season, after he received the most votes of any player. Paulsen, who was on loan to Auckland FC from English Premier League side Bournemouth, will move on from the A-League next season. He could not believe he was named captain. "I'm still taking it in to be honest. "I'm thankful to everyone who voted for me, it means so much. I want to thank my teammates, the coaching staff and my family who have all supported me over this past year and encouraged me to become a better person and a better goalkeeper. "It is a huge honour and privilege to be represented on behalf of Auckland FC." Joining Paulsen in the PFA team are Auckland's Francis de Vries, Hiroki Sakai, Louis Verstraete, Guillermo May and Nando Pijnaker. Guillermo May of Auckland FC. Photo: Mark Evans / Steve Corica has been voted as coach. Only five players from the two A-League Grand Finalists were included. Melbourne City have four players in the squad, including two starters in defence with Kai Trewin and Nathaniel Atkinson voted in the back four, while Aziz Behich and Marco Tilio are among the substitutes. Melbourne Victory have only one player, midfielder Ryan Teague. The team is comprised of a 4-3-3 formation, with seven substitutes on the bench. All selected players received the most votes among their peers by PFA A-League Men members at the conclusion of the regular season. The members also voted on their coach of the season. Goalkeeper: Alex Paulsen (Auckland FC) Defenders: Francis De Vries (Auckland FC), Kai Trewin (Melbourne City), Nathaniel Atkinson (Melbourne City FC), Hiroki Sakai (Auckland FC) Midfielders: Angus Thurgate (Western United), Ryan Teague (Melbourne Victory), Louis Verstraete (Auckland FC) Forwards: Adrian Segecic (Sydney FC), Archie Goodwin (Adelaide United), Nicholas Milanovic (Western Sydney Wanderers) Substitutes: Lawrence Thomas (Western Sydney Wanderers), Aziz Behich (Melbourne City), Nando Pijnaker (Auckland FC), Anthony Caceres (Sydney FC), Guillermo May (Auckland FC), Marco Tilio (Melbourne City), Noah Botic (Western United) Captain: Alex Paulsen (Auckland FC) Coach: Steve Corica (Auckland FC) Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Football: Disallowed Auckland FC goal 'doesn't sit well' with Steve Corica
Cam Howieson of Auckland FC holds his face in dejection as Melbourne Victory players celebrate their 2-0 win, A-League semi-final, 2025. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/ The disappointment for Auckland FC and coach Steve Corica is going to linger for a long time. The A-League men's premiership winners fell at the season's penultimate hurdle on Saturday night, when they lost 2-0 to Melbourne Victory before 29,000 fans at Mt Smart Stadium in the second leg of their semifinal tie. Auckland FC just needed a draw to go through, but it is the Victory - with a 2-1 aggregate score - who will play Melbourne City in the grand final this Saturday. Corica railed after the game about [ a ruling that denied them a goal after Logan Rogerson headed a Guillermo May high cross into the net in the 69th minute. It appeared that the linesman had judged that May's cross had drifted out of play before the goal. "The referees made a bad decision -the linesman has and so has the VAR, whoever is in charge up there because that would have obviously helped us get back into the game," Corica said. His attitude had not changed when he spoke to RNZ's Morning Report on Monday. "Pretty disappointed still, just the way the game finished with the disallowed goal. For us, it probably would have changed the game. "I think it would have helped us. Obviously goals change the momentum of games and also if we scored that, the game would have gone to extra time and I think we were looking the stronger of the teams to finish well.'' That said, he acknowledged Victory's performance. "Melbourne were a good team, they obviously deserve to be in the final now. It's just a little bit disappointing with that disallowed goal, it doesn't sit too well for me. "It's going to be a long off-season I suppose, thinking about that too much. Auckland FC's head coach Steve Corica during the A-League men's second leg semifinal against Melbourne Victory. Photo: Shane Wenzlick / "Overall I am really proud of the players and all the staff, it's been an incredible season for us winning the premiership in our first year. But we probably finished one game short, I think." Corica did not feel that just needing a draw to make the grand final affected the players' thinking. "I don't think so, that wasn't our mindset going into the game. I don't think we were at our very best, I think they changed a little bit, their structure, which they hadn't done all season. I think that was a little bit harder for us to break them down - they went more defensive, so they were quite solid, and we were finding it tough to get into good areas and create a lot of chances. "That is why that disallowed goal would have been so important for us - because it would have helped us and momentum would have changed, and we would have had a very good opportunity to move forward into a grand final. "But that's in hindsight now. It is hard to take but I suppose that is football, sometimes you get the luck go your way and sometimes you don't. Despite the disappointment, the club had plenty to celebrate in its inaugural season. "We've broken a lot of records, won the premiership in our first season, we have had over 200,000 supporters come through the gates, that's amazing really, I think we are the highest crowd in the A-League," Corica said. "The derbies have been amazing as well this season. And I have told the players and the staff that I am really proud of what they have achieved in their first year. It's never easy to build a squad and win a premiership in your first year. "Our aim was to get into the grand final and win that as well - that is going to have to be on hold until next year. "Maybe that is a real motivation to go one better next year." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
23-05-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Auckland FC v Melbourne Victory, A-League semi-final: What you need to know
Photo: RNZ Auckland FC v Melbourne Victory Kick-off: 6pm Saturday, 24 May Go Media Mt Smart Stadium Live blog updates on RNZ Sport Auckland FC are one win or draw away from hosting the biggest football event the city has seen in years. Auckland have the advantage going into the second A-League semi-final against Melbourne Victory and success in front of their home fans will secure a place in the Grand Final. Finals football comes with nerves and tension but Auckland coach Steve Corica said his side were ready for the pressure of playing at home. "The boys have worked it out now how intense the finals are but I think our players did rise to the level that we expect of finals and we're going to have to go a little bit better than that this weekend and if we get the job done this weekend the final is even more immense." As the goal-scorer in the first semi-final, Logan Rogerson said 1-0 is a "niggly scoreline". "It's over two legs they could get right back into it so we need to be fully focussed and hopefully we can score early and see how the game plays out." Guillermo May of Auckland FC Photo: AAP / Joint leading goal-scorer Guillermo May has been nursing a knee injury and has been on limited training since the start of the playoffs but the Uruguayan said he was "never" going to miss the return leg of the semi-finals. Max Mata did not travel for the first semi-final due to a hamstring concern. Corica said he was "touch and go" ahead of the second semi-final. Corica made clear not much would change tactically in the second semi-final - despite his side being called one-dimensional by Victory player Daniel Arzani after the last game. But he said the team had learnt from the slow start in the first semi-final. "We want to start the opposite now, we want to start on the front foot, we're at home we want to take it to them straight away and hopefully get another goal." Victory have not scored against Auckland in more the 270 minutes of football this season and Corica said Auckland were prepared should Victory finally break the goal drought. "We've spoken about if that happens, they've got to go back to being positive and a draw is not the worst for us. If we can get a draw we go through but if they score and we go down it's just about getting a goal and moving forward, getting good numbers forward, getting balls into the box like we do and creating problems for them." Corica expected physicality to be let go by the referees like it was last week. "I don't think there was any bad fouls it was just physical. It's a tough game sometimes and we'll be up for it and I know they'll be up for it. Goalkeepers: Alex Paulsen, Michael Woud; Defenders: Hiroki Sakai, Nando Pijnaker, Dan Hall, Tommy Smith, Francis de Vries, Callan Elliot; Midfielders: Louis Verstraete, Cameron Howieson, Luis Toomey, Jake Brimmer, Felipe Gallegos; Attackers: Max Mata, Guillermo May, Jesse Randall, Logan Rogerson, Neyder Moreno, Marlee Francois, Liam Gillion (two to be omitted). Lachlan Jackson of Victory Photo: AAP / Photosport Victory have been hit by injuries to several of their defensive players. Captain Roderick Miranda was a late withdrawl from the first semi-final and his replacement in the backline, Brendan Hamill, suffered a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury during the game. Victory coach Arthur Diles said Miranda had returned to training this week but a decision on whether he would travel would be left as late as possible. Diles said they did not fear the task ahead of them against the Premiers. "It's our job to try and knock them off their perch, it's backs to the wall for us guaranteed but there is a big party waiting there to be spoiled and we've got to do everything we can to spoil that party." In a must-win match Diles said he wanted more "purpose and intent higher up the park". "They're very well organised defensively and they make things really difficult for you. "We've got to be willing to be patient, not lose structure, stick to the process and eventually you can break them down. They were probably more disciplined and patient than we were last week for 100 percent of the game and we were for 97 percent of the game and in the end that's probably the difference and in these matches it's those small details that make a big difference." Goalkeepers: Jack Duncan, Daniel Graskoski; Defenders: Lachlan Jackson, Roderick Miranda, Joshua Inserra, Joshua Rawlins, Kasey Bos; Midfielders: Ryan Teague, Zinedine Machach, Jordi Valadon, Fabian Monge, Reno Piscopo; Forwards: Daniel Arzani, Nikolaos Vergos, Bruno Fornaroli, Clerismario Santos Rodrigues, Nishan Velupillay, Jing Reec, Alexander Badolato. Auckland FC fans and supporters celebrate a goal by Neyder Moreno. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/ A-League players have this week voted Mt Smart Stadium as having the best atmosphere of any stadium in the competition. In the club's first season, Auckland averaged the highest attendance's across the league (18,101) with another sell-out crowd, the fifth of the season, expected for Saturday's semi-final. Additional seating has been put into the north end of the stadium to accommodate demand. Auckland FC CEO Nick Becker paid tribute to the club's fans for making the stadium a "fortress". "They have brought the noise, the atmosphere and created an environment that the team love being a part of. We have the best average attendance in the league, the best fans in the league and now officially the best atmosphere to go with it." Corica said people stopped him in the streets to thank him for what the club was doing for football in the city. "That makes me really proud, obviously the boys have done a fantastic job on the field, marketing off the field as well, but they've really got behind us, the supporters, from the moment we kicked off. The Port's been amazing it's growing all the time and they're going to bring the noise and that's what we want. "All of Auckland have got right behind us and we appreciate it ... that's what footballers are all about playing in front of big crowds and we've been lucky enough to play in front of sell-out crowds so it is amazing." The A-League winners trophy Photo: David Woodley To reach the Grand Final, Auckland can win or draw. Victory must win by two goals. If the aggregate goals are the same between both teams at full time the game will go to extra time. Should the game need to go to penalties, both sides said they had been preparing. Auckland had not taken a penalty all season, something which May said was "strange" and Corica said he hoped "we won't have to" take penalties to decide the outcome. In the other semi-final, Melbourne City have a three goal advantage over Western United ahead of the second leg of the tie and are favourites to move on to next week's showpiece event. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
