SOCCER: Celtic imports say locals as warm as Bay weather

HAMISH BIDWELL
Firstly the apologies.
No matter how often you play back the tape, it's impossible to catch everything Lee Mudd and Graham Fyfe are saying.
With their thick Irish and Scottish accents and mile-a-minute delivery, Hawke's Bay United's newest recruits are likely to baffle more than the odd person during the New Zealand Football Championhsip season.
The dynamic midfield duo have been in town for a couple of weeks now and all indications are that they will be of huge value to the franchise this season. Hawke's Bay Today caught up with the pair to talk about their decision to come out to New Zealand, playing backgrounds and aspirations for the summer ahead.
Here's what we think they said:
"I had plenty of teams that I could have played for in Scotland but I'm only 22 and I thought if I'm come out here till I'm 23, I'll be in the same boat when I go back home anyway," said Fyfe.
"I might not ever get the chance again, so I thought I'm come out and see how it goes, and you never know, it could be a stepping stone. Jonathan Gould was out there when he was young and he ended up doing alright for himself."
"I first got approached about a year ago," Mudd said.
"Colin Stone had been in touch with the PFA and they rang me, basically saying 'would I be interested?' I didn't think much of it and then I got talking to Colin and got a bit more into it and I thought 'yeah, why not'."
But did either of them have any real idea where they were going?
"I didn't know much about New Zealand before I left, although I knew where it was roughly," said Mudd.
"I just knew it was the farthest place away. I knew it was beside nothing and you had to get on the longest flight ever," joked Fyfe.
As the hired guns, both realise all eyes will be on them as people form opinions on whether they're worth the money. But being competitive lads, they only see that as a challenge.
"I suppose there's a bit of pressure because we've been brought in, I'm mean it's not like we live round the corner and we're just playing for fun," said Mudd.
"But it brings out the best in you, a bit of pressure," added Fyfe.
Fyfe especially remains hugely ambitious and says the only way anyone can progress in the game is if they embrace the team culture and give everything for each other on the field. And with the teammates they've inherited in Hawke's Bay, Mudd says that won't be a problem.
"It's much different over in the UK," said the 24-year old. "The players over there are kind of stand-offish but we've come in here and straight away everyone wants to know how we're going and are we settling in alright. You don't really get that anywhere else."
"That's true," says Fyfe.
"You get a lot cliques back home but over here everyone's really good with each other."
Neither Mudd, who's had spells at Brighton and Hove Albion, Bolton Wanderers and Olympique Lyon, nor Fyfe, who has seven years at Celtic looming large on his CV, say they regard coming to New Zealand as a step down. The only thing they're not happy with is the thought of the summer heat.
"The last couple of weeks have been like summer back home and everyone's like 'oh, it's freezing'," said Mudd.
"Yeah, everyone's wearing trousers and jeans and that and I've had my speedos on every day and been lying out all covered in oil. I can't believe it," said Fyfe.
Local fans get their first chance to give the new boys the once over at Guthrie Park on Saturday, when the team plays Waikato FC in their latest pre-season match.
Havelock North Wanderers stars Dion Adams, Ben Murphy and Nick Lucas are all scheduled to start the match as the franchise tries to make good on its promise to be a truly Hawke's Bay team this season.