November 2006

NELSEN ONCE AGAIN SCOOPS SUPREME AWARD

Blackburn Rovers defender Ryan Nelsen won the supreme men’s award for the second successive year at New Zealand Soccer’s Annual Dinner in Auckland on Thursday night.

Nelsen was named Nike International Men’s Player of the Year after helping Blackburn qualify for this season’s Uefa Cup with a series of eye-catching displays in the English premiership.

New Zealand U-20s winger Ali Riley scooped both the Nike Young and Senior Women’s International Player of the Year titles. The Stanford University ‘freshman’ scored in every match as New Zealand captured the Oceania U-20 Women’s Championship in April with a 33-1 goal count before being named player of the match against hosts Russia at August’s FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

Riley’s New Zealand U-20s coach John Herdman was named coach of the year, beating off All Whites boss Ricki Herbert and former Auckland City manager Allan Jones.

Ricki Herbert’s All Whites were named New Zealand Soccer Team of the Year after their historic victory over Georgia in May, heading off Auckland City and the NZ U-20 Women in a new category this year.

Fulham FC midfielder Chris James was named Nike International Men’s Young Player of the Year after a series of increasingly mature performances for the All Whites following his dream debut against Brazil in June.

South African marksman Grant Young was named New Zealand Community Trust Football Championship Player of the Year for the second successive season after guiding Auckland City to back-to-back domestic titles.

Auckland’s Neil Fox was named referee of the year with Dunedin’s Brent Best awarded the assistant referee title.

Injury prevented Nelsen from playing the June 4 match against Brazil and, ironically, against Blackburn when the All Whites lost to the English premier leaguers at Ewood Park in August.

However, the central defender – consistently regarded among the premiership’s top defenders in 2005-06 – has pledged his commitment to New Zealand’s World Cup campaign which beings late next year.

Nelsen, who acknowledged his win via a telephone hook-up, hopes to be back playing in January after hamstring surgery.

“It’s been frustrating because I broke my leg and had this hamstring problem. But I’ve made peace with it and I’m determined to come back stronger, bigger and faster,” Nelsen said.

“I’m way ahead of schedule but I have to wait 16 weeks [after the operation] before I can play. I’m doing pretty much everything in training, running, working with the ball. It’s just the real sprint stuff…but I’m pretty close.”

NEW ZEALAND SOCCER 2006 AWARD WINNERS
(Winners in bold)

Nike International Men’s Player of the Year

Chris Killen (Hibernian)
Ryan Nelsen (Blackburn Rovers)
Ivan Vicelich (RKC Waalwijk)

Nike International Men’s Young Player of the Year

Jeremy Brockie (Sydney FC)
Chris James (Fulham FC)
Steven Old (Newcastle Jets)

Nike International Women’s Player of the Year

Maia Jackman (Three Kings United)
Ali Riley (Standford University)
Rebecca Smith (Sunnana SK/Sweden)

Nike International Women’s Young Player of the Year

Abby Erceg (New Zealand U-18 Development Squad/Three Kings)
Ria Percival (New Zealand U-18 Development Squad/Lynn Avon)
Ali Riley (Standford University)

New Zealand Soccer Team of the Year

All Whites
Auckland City
New Zealand U-20 Women

Coach of the Year

Allan Jones (Auckland City)
Ricki Herbert (All Whites)
John Herdman (New Zealand U-20 Women)

New Zealand Community Trust Football Championship Player of the Year

Andy Barron (Team Wellington)
Keryn Jordan (Auckland City)
Grant Young (Auckland City)

NZFC Golden Boot

Keryn Jordan (Auckland City) - 21 goals

Referee of the Year

Neil Fox (Auckland)
Peter O'Leary (Raglan)
Kevin Stoltenkamp (Auckland)

Assistant Referee of the Year

Brent Best (Dunedin)
Stephen Budai (Auckland)
Paul Dunham (Wellington)

Small Whites Coach of the Year

Chris Sym (Taka Olympic 7^th Grade – Takapuna)

Media Awards

NZ Soccer Writer of the Year

Hamish Bidwell (Hawke’s Bay Today)
Michael Brown (Herald on Sunday)
Fred Woodcock (The Dominion Post)

NZ Soccer Photographer of the Year

Andrew Cornaga (Photosport)
Hannah Johnson (Photosport)
Shane Wenzlick (Phototek)

NZ Soccer Radio Journalist of the Year

Reuben Bradley (The Radio Network)
Andrew Dewhurst (Freelance)

NZ Soccer Television Journalist of the Year

Andrew Gourdie (TV3)
Sa’id Milton (NZFC Highlights Show)

PLEASE NOTE:Awards for Player of the Year and Golden Boot will be made after the conclusion of the 2006 Lion Foundation Women’s National League on December 3.