New NZ Football high performance boss' lack of football experience may raise some eyebrows. Photo / Photosport
New NZ Football high performance boss' lack of football experience may raise some eyebrows. Photo / Photosport
New Zealand Football have gone on a different tangent to find their new high performance boss, appointing a senior staff member from Netball New Zealand.
NZF announced on Monday that Keir Hansen — currently the head of high performance at Netball NZ — would oversee the organisation’s national teams andelite programmes.
Hansen has been at Netball NZ since November 2016 and was previously a national strength and conditioning manager with High Performance Sport New Zealand.
Hansen’s considerable sporting background also includes five year stints at the Warriors and Worcester Rugby, both in physical performance roles.
Still, Hansen’s lack of football experience may raise some eyebrows.
While there are a lot of generic elements to high performance — and many transferable skills across different sports — it would be hard to find many other national federations that have a such a position filled by someone with a limited football background.
There are also few obvious parallels between netball and football, especially given the contrast in the depth of competition and global reach.
And while all the Silver Ferns are all based in New Zealand, the vast majority of Kiwi professional footballers ply their trade overseas.
But Hansen is highly respected locally and his appointment has been generally well received in local football circles.
It marks a departure from recent names like Andreas Heraf and Gareth Jennings, who arrived from Europe with ambitious ideas that were often unrealistic.
Hansen will bring a solid understanding of the New Zealand sporting landscape and strong connections across the sphere.
“Keir brings a wealth of experience to the position from other leading New Zealand sporting organisations,” said NZF chief executive Andrew Pragnell in a statement. “We have an ambitious programme lined up for our national teams and we believe Keir is perfectly placed to bring it to fruition.”
Newly announced NZ Football high performance boss Keir Hansen (right) moves from netball to football. Photo / Photosport
Hansen replaces Englishman Jennings, who resigned in July after less than a year in the role. No reason was given for his departure.
Hansen will start his new position in March.
Parallel to the Hansen appointment, NZF announced that Ryan Nelsen and Kirsty Yallop will join the high performance and player welfare committee.
Nelsen, who captained the All Whites at the 2010 Fifa World Cup and made 49 appearances for the national team, is a respected voice in football here and retains close connections with several current All Whites.
He was close to former All Whites coach Danny Hay, joining the team in camp on a couple of occasions and is also influential in Fifa circles.
Nelsen’s involvement in a formal capacity with NZF is a boost and long overdue, given his gravitas in the sport.
Yallop is also highly respected.
She made 104 appearances for the Football Ferns, playing in two Fifa Women’s World Cups and three Olympic Games.
Yallop has also worked for FIFA as a consultant.
“As an organisation, we have been very keen to take advantage of the wealth of experience our former national team players have so we are really pleased to appoint Kirsty and Ryan,” said Pragnell. “The committee plays a crucial role in guiding what we do in the high performance space and Kirsty and Ryan’s knowledge and lived experience here will be invaluable.”
