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NZ Herald
a day ago
- Business
- NZ Herald
On The Up: Inside the provincial football team taking on and beating cashed-up big city clubs
And they certainly don't have a playing roster featuring some players who are paid enough by their respective football clubs to coach junior players so they can forget about having to do a day job. Napier City Rovers' playing stocks include two painters, two ice truck drivers, a plumber, a builder, an outdoor pursuits trainer, and several teacher aides. What they also have is a record of making the most of what they have and defying the odds in taking on their big-city rivals. Since 2022 – when they ended a 20-year absence from New Zealand Football's (NZF) National League – they have been the only provincial-based club to make the top-tier domestic football competition. From 2022-24, the Jim Hoyle-captained team is one of only five clubs to have made the 10-team league over the three successive seasons. Napier City Rovers head coach Bill Robertson, (left), and the side's goalkeeping coach Kyle Baxter. Photo / Neil Reid The National League during that period has been made up of: the top four finishers in the Northern League; the Wellington Phoenix Reserves and the top three from the Central League; and the Southern League's top two sides. To make Napier City Rovers' achievement even more profound, one of the five other clubs – the Wellington Phoenix Reserves – are guaranteed a National League spot regardless of where they finish in the Central League via their participation agreement with NZF. Napier City Rovers captain Jim Hoyle has had another strong year with the football club he's called home since 2015. Photo / Neil Reid As Napier City Rovers hunt a hoped-for fourth successive qualification to the competition, coach Bill Robertson has opened up on how his side has bucked the otherwise big-city domination of the league spots. 'There's a lot of hard work that goes into our success,' he said. 'There's no stone unturned in terms of how we train, how we prepare for oppositions, and how we travel. Don't forget the amount of travel we have to do. Impressive Napier City Rovers players Cameron Emerson and George Andrew shake hands after their side's Central League win over Miramar Rangers at Bluewater Stadium. Photo / Neil Reid 'We've looked at how we make sure we have the best preparation we can for the players so we're able to get the results on the road.' The travel factor is huge for Napier City Rovers. As the only non-Wellington-based team in the Central League, the side face almost 6000km of mini-van travel to and from away games in the capital every second weekend. Before the 2023 season, the team used to travel both ways on game day to Wellington. For the past two years, the side have driven south the night before game day. The club's investment in hotel accommodation has paid off with consistently strong results on the road. Napier City Rovers' hard work in getting ready for 2025 has included training sessions as dawn breaks in the city. Photo / Neil Reid Using precious dollars wisely is a must at Napier City Rovers. While the history of the club is rich – having previously won five Chatham Cups and four National League titles – financially some of the other teams they face in the Central and National leagues are in a different ballpark. Auckland City pull in around $1 million solely from gaming trusts; a figure further increased by sponsorship deals. Napier City Rovers' entire first-team season budget is less than 10% of the gaming trust sum received by the national champions. NZF regulations cap weekly player payments to $150 a game. But some sides offer their top players high six-figure contracts as youth coaches; some of those deals are also richer than the budget Napier City Rovers' entire side operates with. Napier City Rovers don't complain about the at-times uneven playing field they're faced with. In some ways, it has added to a strong resolve and culture that has grown in strength in recent seasons. That culture is paramount when it comes to Robertson recruiting players from outside the region. The camaraderie and positive culture that has been developed within Napier City Rovers' first team is infectious. Photo / Neil Reid 'We haven't got a huge budget like some other clubs have to sign any player I want. We have to be strategic with our recruitment,' he said. 'We've got a good track record of bringing in good players and, most importantly, good people that buy into what we're trying to achieve here. It's not an easy task, but we've got a model here that seems to be working well for us.' Napier City Rovers hope to take another step towards the hoped-for fourth successive National League qualification on Sunday when they host Wellington team Western Suburbs in round-10 Central League action. Robertson's team go into the match in fourth place, two competition points ahead of their weekend rivals. The coach is after his team to concentrate on their 'processes' rather than the points table; saying if they do that successfully, the results will follow. Napier City Rovers coach Bill Robertson wants his players to concentrate on their processes, not the Central League points table. Photo / Neil Reid But there's no mistaking the burning desire throughout the coaching, management, and playing group to again reach the National League. 'That would be an incredible achievement,' Robertson said. 'The consistency we've shown to perform at a high level and secure the results we need to qualify for the past three years is fantastic. We're obviously trying to do that again. 'We're in the hunt.' The side's achievements over the past three seasons have helped financially. Billboards of returning and new sponsors surround the playing arena at Bluewater Stadium. Crowds have also been dramatically on the up, especially over the past two seasons. Game day at Bluewater Stadium is now a 'must-do' day out on a Sunday for a growing number of families, including hundreds of kids decked out in Napier City Rovers replica kit. Mason Johnson signing autographs at Bluewater Stadium post-match. Photo / Neil Reid And the scenes that happen post-match at the venue are a throwback to the amateur era of sport in New Zealand, where crowds are welcome to flock on to the pitch and a line of autograph hunters stretching dozens of metres await the players before they can head to the changing rooms. 'We always speak about the players being role models in the region and trying to inspire the future generations of young players,' Robertson said. 'It's absolutely fantastic to see the crowds and the number of kids here that are at games watching. At the end of the game, when you see the kids lining up for autographs with their heroes, it is a really powerful sight.' It was another big crowd that flocked to Bluewater Stadium last Sunday to watch the side claim a deserved 3-1 win over the Wellington Phoenix Reserves in the second round of the knockout Chatham Cup. Sam Lack has been there every step of the way since Napier City Rovers' return to the National League in 2022 and has scored six goals in 10 games in 2025. Photo / Neil Reid The goals came via a double to Jordan Annear, while another from Sam Lack takes his 2025 tally to six from 10 games. Robertson took the chance to rotate his squad. The changes included captain Jim Hoyle, fellow defensive rock Matt Jones and impressive English import Mason Johnson starting the match from the substitutes bench. Striker Jordan Annear - pictured having a break after a training session - was outstanding in Napier City Rovers' Chatham Cup second round win over the Wellington Phoenix Reserves. Photo / Neil Reid In came Annear – later rightly judged man of the match after a storming performance – Kaeden Atkins, and Jack Albertini. Like Annear, Atkins and Albertini also took their chance to remind Robertson of just how well they can contribute. 'The boys that came in did well,' Robertson said. 'There's good depth in the squad and we need that. 'All the other games we've played, aside from the Central League loss to the Wellington Phoenix, we've been very competitive. 'And I think we can improve in the second half of the season which is a positive. There's definitely more to see from us in the second half of the season.' >> Inside the Rovers video series: Episode 1: Match Fit Episode 2: Teen's Dream Episode 3: New Beginnings Episode 4: For Keeps Episode 5: Kiwi Steve Episode 6: Capital Punishment Episode 7: Bouncing back Episode 8: The Centurion Episode 9: The Running Man Neil Reid is a Napier-based senior reporter who covers general news, features and sport. He joined the Herald in 2014 and has 33 years of newsroom experience. Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
NZ Herald
28-05-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
On The Up: Former age-grade New Zealand cricket rep's rapid rise to football's National League
When Christian Leopard emailed Napier City Rovers to see if any social teams needed an extra player, he couldn't have imagined the rapid trajectory his football career was about to go on. Leopard emailed the club – who host the Wellington Phoenix Reserves in second-round Chatham Cup action on Sunday
NZ Herald
21-05-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
On The Up: Footballer's courage and determination to break 100-game barrier in domestic top-flight
Given the all-in style of play from the athletic and strong player, he's spilt plenty of blood, been concussed and had a wrist left in a plaster cast after on-field tangles. He also suffered a transient ischaemic attack – known as a mini-stroke – during an aftermatch function in 2021, which temporarily left the right side of his body 'paralysed'. But it was both his love for football and the mates he plays alongside that helped him with his recovery and binned any thoughts of walking away from playing at the top-level of domestic football. 'There were moments where I thought, 'Oh, maybe for my health and thinking the future, maybe I should maybe take a step back',' Emerson said. 'But I guess just the love of football and just missing the trainings and being around the boys, getting back into that environment kind of helped me push it aside. 'I haven't really had any other issues since then. But it does make you sit back and reflect a little bit. And when you push through those barriers, the benefits are on the other side are great.' Napier City Rovers finish round one of the 2025 Central League against table-topping Wellington Olympic at Bluewater Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Last weekend's eventual 3-3 draw against Wellington-based team Petone FC – Emerson's 100th appearance – mean Emerson and his teammates go into the match in fourth spot on the points table, a one-point lead over fifth-placed Western Suburbs. This season, Emerson has formed an outstanding combination in the midfield with Liam Schofield – who is closing in on 150 appearances. They again impressed in the draw, including Emerson unleashing on a 60m run, dribbling upfield to feed Adam Hewson for his second-half goal. Post-match, though, it was impossible to miss the sense of disappointment after Napier City Rovers conceded two late goals after leading 3-1 in the dying minutes. Earlier in the day, Emerson had fielded phone calls from his proud parents and sister congratulating him on reaching the 100-game milestone, an achievement he described as 'very special' to him. 'I was playing for reserves [for the club] in high school and then went away for a few years and then came back and settled back in the Bay and to be around family a bit more. 'I got back into Napier City Rovers and have just enjoyed every minute of it since and stuck around. It's a great club. 'There are cool memories in there, like certain games and goals, and being around the boys. It kind of blends into one. I can't really say a bad word about all my years and experiences here.' He's never seriously considered playing for another Kiwi club since returning to Napier City Rovers in 2020 after finishing his university studies in America, saying the culture successive teams had generated was infectious. 'It makes it enjoyable to show up,' Emerson said. 'Whether it's around football, doing team events, 10 of us getting together and doing a pizza night, or whether it's just a few of us catching up for a coffee every now and then ... you want to be involved in a team where the environment is infectious. 'You want to go there, you want to show up, and you want to do your best for the brothers around you.' Aged 29, Emerson says there's still plenty of football left in him after reaching the 100-game milestone. He has joined captain Jim Hoyle (who recently played his 200th match), Fergus Neil (another member of the 200-game club), Kaeden Atkins and Schofield as 2025 squad members who have reached triple figures. 'I have got to catch up to Jim,' he said with a smile. 'We've got a group of mates from high school, and I think I seem to be the only one that's still kicking about. Yeah, I've got a few more years in the tank I'd say.' >> Inside the Rovers video series: Episode 1: Match Fit Episode 2: Teen's Dream Episode 3: New Beginnings Advertisement Advertise with NZME. Episode 4: For Keeps Episode 5: Kiwi Steve Episode 6: Capital Punishment
NZ Herald
14-05-2025
- Politics
- NZ Herald
Watch live: The 2025 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards
NZ drug markets shift online, Covid-born kids face school challenges, and Trump meets Saudi leaders on visit to Middle East. Reporter Marii is at the World Dance Crew Championships, where hip hop duos from all around the world, including Auckland's En-Locked, are battling for medals and cash. Reporter Marii is at the World Dance Crew Championships, where hip hop duos from all around the world, including Auckland's En-Locked, are battling for medals and cash. Released by second-tier English club Hull City, Mason Johnson has now made Napier City Rovers his home. Video / Neil Reid Police forensics team and detectives continue to comb Onekawa properties in the hunt for Kaea Karauria's killer. Video / Neil Reid National and Labour accuse each other of lying over pay equity claims. Video / Mark Mitchell A trailer unit rolled outside Christchurch this morning, spilling hundreds of chickens across the road. Video / George Heard Principals question $100m maths spend, ex-cop faces porn probe, US and China agree to major tariff reductions. Chris Hipkins delivers pre-Budget speech at the Wellington Chamber of Commerce. Video / NZ Herald Reporter Carter is in Whangamatā where car collector Billy reveals what it took to get this custom 2-door 1950 Cadillac back on the road. Black Power members perform a farewell haka for Manurewa homicide victim Selwyn Robson. Video / Supplied Education Minister Erica Stanford announcing measures to improve mathematics in schools. Video / Mark Mitchell Christopher Luxon answers a question on the resignation of the Police Deputy Commissioner With the countries current vaccination rates, an expert warns New Zealand is at risk of a measles epidemic. Video / Dean Purcell / Katie Oliver / Ben Dickens
NZ Herald
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
The PM dismisses the Green party alternative budget
Released by second-tier English club Hull City, Mason Johnson has now made Napier City Rovers his home. Video / Neil Reid Reporter Marii is at the World Dance Crew Championships, where hip hop duos from all around the world, including Auckland's En-Locked, are battling for medals and cash. Police forensics team and detectives continue to comb Onekawa properties in the hunt for Kaea Karauria's killer. Video / Neil Reid National and Labour accuse each other of lying over pay equity claims. Video / Mark Mitchell A trailer unit rolled outside Christchurch this morning, spilling hundreds of chickens across the road. Video / George Heard Principals question $100m maths spend, ex-cop faces porn probe, US and China agree to major tariff reductions. Chris Hipkins delivers pre-Budget speech at the Wellington Chamber of Commerce. Video / NZ Herald Reporter Carter is in Whangamatā where car collector Billy reveals what it took to get this custom 2-door 1950 Cadillac back on the road. Black Power members perform a farewell haka for Manurewa homicide victim Selwyn Robson. Video / Supplied Education Minister Erica Stanford announcing measures to improve mathematics in schools. Video / Mark Mitchell Christopher Luxon answers a question on the resignation of the Police Deputy Commissioner With the countries current vaccination rates, an expert warns New Zealand is at risk of a measles epidemic. Video / Dean Purcell / Katie Oliver / Ben Dickens Christopher Luxon holds a post-Cabinet press conference Gypsy Rose Blanchard stars in season 2 of the Lifetime series Life After Lock Up, streaming on TVNZ+ in New Zealand. Video / TVNZ
