Soccer: Father tough act to follow

Caleb Rufer training for SV Wehen Wiesbaden. Photo / Supplied

Caleb Rufer's nickname at his German football club is Kiwi.

On first inspection, it might not seem that significant and certainly not that original for a New Zealander in a non-English speaking country but it was the nickname given to his father when he was playing in Germany nearly 20 years ago.

Rufer hopes the similarities don't start and end there.

His dad just happens to be Wynton Rufer, Oceania Player of the Century, scorer in Werder Bremen's 2-0 win over Monaco to lift the 1992 European Cup Winners' Cup, two-time winner of the German Cup (1991, 1994), as well as winner of the Bundesliga (1993), the German Super Cup (1994) and Swiss Cup (with Grasshoppers, 1989).

Oh, and he scored the crucial goal against China to help the All Whites qualify for the 1982 World Cup, where he played in all three games.

Now his oldest son, Caleb, is embarking on his own professional career in Germany, having signed for SV Wehen Wiesbaden.

He's found people there have long memories. German media have already tapped into his story, especially as he's also a striker.

"Wherever I play, like today when I scored a goal [in a pre-season match], people come up and say, 'just like your dad'. Everyone more or less knows who my father was."

The 17-year-old was born in Bremen at the height of his father's career but grew up largely anonymous in New Zealand. He left this country late last year for trials in Japan, where his dad played a season in the J-League, before others in Germany with Hanover 96, Borussia Moenchengladbach and, of course, Werder Bremen.

"Werder Bremen was quite an experience," Caleb says with a chuckle.

"Most of the coaches were former players from my dad's time. They said, 'you will have to play like your dad'. There are expectations and pressures but it's not too bad. In New Zealand, I never felt any pressure."

In New Zealand, he grew up in the Wynrs bubble, the academy programme established by his father for aspiring footballers.

Wynton has had an occasionally uneasy relationship with New Zealand Football and some Wynrs players have been overlooked by the national body or not really known until they pop up at a club overseas.

Whatever the politics from both sides, there's little doubt a handful of talented players have come through the programme. The best travel to Japan and Europe each year for trials arranged purely because of the Rufer name.

Chris Wood (West Brom), Marco Rojas (Wellington Phoenix), Cameron Lindsay (Blackburn), Andrew Milne (Rangers), Rosie White, Annalie Longo (both Football Ferns) and Michael Fitzgerald (J-League club Albirex Niigata) all Wynrs graduates, as is Caleb.

Whether Rufer jnr can follow in his father's footsteps is debatable but he certainly understands now the impact his father made in Germany.

"It's only now going to be difficult for him because there was never any pressure on him in New Zealand," says Wynton, who acts as his son's manager.

"He's struggling with that aspect a bit and is getting frustrated because all the talk is about me. He's had so much press already because of his father and he's hardly even kicked a football.

"But you can't shield them from it. It's all part of what they have to learn as professional footballers. There's a lot of stuff young footballers have to overcome and I can help them through that.

"I wish I had someone like myself to mentor me when I was young. I had the talent at his age but I was only interested in chasing skirts and doing stupid things. I wasted a lot of years and could have had five or six more years at Bremen.

"Clearly he's got the talent [to make it]. He's in the right place and it's up to him to make the most of it."

Rufer says his 13-year-old son, Joshua, holds more promise than his older brother but has "no drive or passion" for the game. "If you see him on a field, he can do things no one else can. But you can lead a horse to water, you can't force him to drink," Wynton says.

Caleb, though, wants to drink deeply. He narrowly missed out on contracts with Hanover and Borussia Moenchengladbach ("the decision was between me and another guy") but was picked up by SC Langenhagen, where he scored eight goals in 15 games in the under-19 league and earned trials at other clubs.

One of them was SV Wehen Wiesbaden, where he is now the youngest member of their under-23 squad. He's on a one-year deal but already the club have opened talks about extending it for another couple of seasons and he's comfortable at a smaller club where he can find his feet. The first team play in the 3rd Liga but the second team play in the top German under-23 competition.

"It was a good decision to come here," he says. "I don't want to move too fast because I'm still young. I'd like to stay here for another year or two and gradually work my way up. I hope that step by step, I'll keep going higher and higher.

"I was born with football in my blood. I'm hoping I can be as good as my father."

There are lots of people hoping the same thing.