Ricky Herbert Dinner

11 January 2010

The Soccer Shop and Star Soccer are putting on a fundraiser dinner with Wellington Phoenix and All Whites coach Ricky Herbert. The dinner will be held at Sky City Hamilton on the 26th February 2010. Tickets are $80 and can be purchased through the Soccer Shop. For more infomation view the flyer.

A New Year Beckons

24 December 2009

Another football season is not too far around the corner so before you get to far into your Christmas lunch here are a couple of pieces of information for you. Our preseason training will be starting in the heat of summer at 6:30pm on the 12th of January 2010 at Porritt Stadium. In other news, Wanderers are pleased to announce that Stu Dunbar will be coaching the reserve team this year (who will be competing in the Northern League Reserve Competition). All new players are welcome to join us on a Thursday night at Porritt Stadium.

We hope you have a merry christmas and a happy new year and look forward to seeing you in 2010!

New Sponsorship Deal 

The club committee is about to embark on a new fund raising scheme for both the senior and junior players. All it

involves is for you to do your grocery shopping at New World Rototuna and use your FLY BUYS card. New World Rototuna has agreed to pay the club 5% of your till receipt in donations to the club (and you still get to keep your FLY BUYS points).

What we need you to do as club members is to collect as many Fly buys numbers as possible and encourage people to buy their groceries at New World Rototuna. The club will collect the numbers and set up a data base at New World so they can record the receipt amounts and pay the club accordingly.

The money being raised will help the club to develop our young players and to ensure the club can help to support all of our senior players.

You can find out more by reading the info sheet

AGM

Wanderers Sports Club (Hamilton) Inc.

Notice of Annual General Meeting

The committee of Wanderers Sports Club (Hamilton) Inc. wish to advise the Annual General Meeting is to be held on Sunday 29 November 2009 at the Te Rapa Tavern and Sports Bar commencing at 2pm.

All members are invited to attend.

Wanderers 6-a-side

2 September 09

The Wanderers 6-a-side competition will be running again this year and is due to start on the 8th of October. If your thinking about entering a team then now is the time to start organising it because entries will fill up fast. Like previous years there will be social and competitive divisions, with each team playing two games each night. Games will be played between 6:00 and 8:00pm each Thursday night with the competition running through until the 10th of December. The entry fee is $160 per team.

The full details of the competition can be found on our flyer. Entries are now closed for this years 6-a-side.

Another Season Coming to an End
 

16 August 09

Another season of football is winding towards is end for Hamilton Wanderers. The first team drew 1-1 with Manurewa at home in their last game to finish seventh in the Northern League. It was a season that had plenty of promise with a top four finish looking very achievable for the majority of the season but results over the last 3 rounds didn't go their way and they fell out of playoff contention.
  

The reserves continue to battle away in the Federation league. With three rounds remaining they are second from the bottom with a four point buffer between them and last placed Tauranga. The team that finishes last is automatically relegated while the second to last place team goes into a promotion/relegation playoff.
  

In the Waikato leagues the Classics have finished second in the Waikato A division, 5 point behind the Cambridge Legends. Despite beating the Legends 3-0 in Cambridge and finishing the season with a run of eleven games unbeaten the Legends consistency throughout the season proved the difference. Brownie's team have also been performing well. They currently sit in fourth place in the Waikato D division with a few games still to be played.
 

The Womens A team sit mid table in their league with five wins from nine games. Their league is scheduled to run through until the end of August and they will also be competing in the final stages of the Womens Federation Plate competition.
 

Big Weekend at Porritt

20 July 09

Wanderers have a big weekend lined up with plenty of action at Porritt Stadium. With three games at home on Saturday and one of the biggest social events of the year at night there should be plenty of entertainment for everyone. Add to this the fact that cross town rivals Melville will be lining up against our first team and you have all you could ask for in a weekend of soccer.

The action starts at 12:30 with the Reserves hosting Tauranga in a bottom of the table clash that could go a long way in deciding the final placings. At the same time the Classics (who are currently second in Waikato A) play Hamilton North.

The big game kicks off at 2:45 between Wanderers and Melville. Both teams go into the game sitting in the top four and in playoff contention. Melville are in second place and just one point off the lead, Wanderers are nine points further back in fourth.

Later on Saturday the annual Lip Sync competition will be held in the club rooms. As always the competition will be hotly contested and will provide great entertainment. Everyone is invited so come down to support the acts and enjoy the evening.

Wanderers Teenagers Make the Big Time

04 July 2009

Hamilton Wanderers are proving to be a hotbed of football talent with three teenagers signing major contracts. Hot on the heels of Chris Wood joining West Brom (and becoming the fifth New Zealander to play in the Premier League) Marco Rojas and Michael Built have been snapped up.  Rojas has signed with New Zealands only professional team, the Wellington Phoenix and is joining the squad for the remaining pre season games. Built will join English League Two side Northampton Town.

The story of how Rojas became part of the Phoenix team is quite special with the Phoenix's fan club the Yellow Fever sponsoring his trip to Wellington to train with the Phoenix. He impressed enough on his first visit to be asked back and after another week of training and preseason work talks of a contract started. He is now a confirmed signing and will join the Phoenix this season as an under 21 player. You can read more about Marco's story here and comment on the Yellow Fever's forum.

Meanwhile Michael Built will soon join Northampton Town after briefly playing for their Under-16's on a previous tour. Built was part of Wanderer's very successful Under-17 team last year who won the Metro Under-17 league. The young striker has been a part of the first team squad this year as well as playing for the New Zealand Under-17s and St Pauls 1st XI. You can read more about Michael Built's story here.

Wanderers Complete A Successful Long Weekend

02 June 2009

Hamilton Wanderers youngsters have shown what the future has for the club as they were again called on heavily over Queen's Birthday weekend with the continued absence of the teams senior players. Saturday saw the team venture to Auckland without Captain Michael Mayne, Jeff Sole and wonderkid Marco Rojas and dominate Onehunga Sports for a well deserved 2-1 win.

Monday was worse as Hamilton were without Mayne, Sole, Rojas, Ben Steward, Johno Rose and new signing Ricky Broderson. But that didn't worry the young lads, who got stuck in and even an all in brawl couldn't deter the youngsters from a 2-0 win. With 8 players under the age of 20, this weeks team make up will pose some "good" head aches for Mark Cossey as he may finally have a full strength squad to pick from. Although Mayne and Sole are still posing some concern with a vital clash with Central looming.

Long Weekend Double Header

The Wanderers First Team play two games over the Queen's Birthday long weekend. On Saturday they travel to Onehunga who sit seventh on the Northern League table.

On Monday (1st June) they play their first game of the Chatham cup. They host Papakura City from the Northern League 1st Division at Porritt Stadium. As is normal with Chatham Cup games kickoff is 2:00pm.

Wood's dream run continues

May 7, 2009

AUCKLAND – When Chris Wood woke up to the news he had made New Zealand’s Confederations Cup squad, the teenager had to make sure he wasn’t still dreaming.

The seventeen year old West Bromwich Albion trainee was fast asleep when official notification of his All Whites selection arrived via email on Wednesday morning (UK Time) to the Birmingham home where he lives with his mother Julie.

But the noise of a phone call from a proud mother to an equally-chuffed father back in New Zealand roused the newest All White from his slumber.

“I half woke to Mum talking about the final squad of 23 and went downstairs where she told that I’d made it in,” Wood said.

“It’s a huge honour.”

If Wood kept a diary for the past 12 months it might read like a little like a Roy of the Rovers annual so he could have been excused for wondering if the line between dream and reality was beginning to blur.

“I made sure I was definitely awake!”

The recent chapter of the Chris Wood story is now well known – an unassuming Kiwi teenager with raw potential gets the shot of a lifetime at the academy of a Premier League side.

He makes a steady start but then after a goal rush for the U-18s and reserve team, gets a late call up to West Brom’s first team against Portsmouth and becomes just the fifth New Zealander to play in the Premiership.

“It’s been a good five or six months since I’ve been back from Christmas, and I’ve played well and got chances.

Wood knew his name was on a wider list of 32 in contention for a Confederations Cup call up, but wasn’t sure if he had done enough make the final cut.

“I only really thought I was an outside chance. I mean, a seventeen-year-old getting a full international cap would be amazing. Growing up, playing for your country is something every little kid dreams about.”

The former Hamilton Wanderers and Waikato FC striker admits he faces another big step when he gets his first taste of international football, but All Whites coach Ricki Herbert already thinks Wood can compete for a significant role.

“Right across the board there isn’t anybody we’ve selected who we wouldn’t consider for selection, and someone like Chris Wood is certainly going to add some pressure up front,” Herbert said.

“He’ll be pushing the likes of Shane Smeltz and Chris Killen and they’ll need to be looking over their shoulders.”

Wood is likely to get his first opportunity in one of two warm ups in Tanzania or Botswana enroute to South Africa as Herbert looks to finalise his best eleven ahead of a marquee friendly against World Champions Italy on June 10 and a Confederations Cup campaign that begins with world number one Spain on June 14.

Wanderers Struggle at Home

2nd May 2009

Wanderers 0 Bay Olympic 0

For the second week in a row Wanderers have struggled through a game they should have dominated and this time have only come away with a point. More concerning for Mark Cossey must be the growing list of injuries to key players which is starting to hinder Wanderers chance at a good tilt at the title. This week Marco Rojas was unable to play after suffering a serious ankle injury with 5 minutes left to play in a school game. Add this to the worrying absences of Sam Wilkinson and Jeff Sole and Wanderers ranks are starting to look rather thin. Questions have to be raised to the validity of quality young players playing for school on a Saturday morning and then trying to back up for club in the afternoon, especially at Premier Northern League level.

Trying to describe this game leaves one to ponder what to say without offending anyone. The game meandered along with very little excitement or endeavour and few goal scoring opportunities for either side. Vladimar Frank pulled off a sensational save when Bay Olympic had a one on one in the first half which should have been converted. The second half didn't prove too much more exciting until the introduction of NZ U17 Michael Built. Built came on and really got stuck in, beating players at will and playing lovely balls across the box which no Wanderers player got anywhere  near. Built even had the chance to round the keeper and break the deadlock but the keeper managed to get a palm to the ball. But that was about the extent of the excitement.

Two things stick in my mind after the game, the first being the fact Wanderers had three 17 year old subs on their bench, all who had played full games for school in the morning and two being the lack of direction provided by senior players for the younger ones. It seems too many players are ready to point the finger instead of rolling up their sleeves and leading the way when the going gets tough.

With a week to prepare for the local derby next week, it's not all doom and gloom just yet. I look forward to an interesting battle and who emerges as the key players in a game that could define both clubs seasons...................

Wanderers Win Ugly

Wanderers won an ugly game away to Papatoetoe on Saturday 2-1 thanks to two goals from Marco Rojas. Going into the game without the services of Sam Wilkinson due to injury, Wanderers new it was going to be a tough game.

Read more here.

Wanderers Win Preseason Tournament

16/03/09

Hamilton Wanderers have won their own preseason tournament, although it happened under controversial circumstances. Wanderers and Melville both finished top of their pools after day one and the stage had been set for a Wanderers vs Melville final. Wanderers faced Otumoetai in their semi-final and comfortably advanced while Melville beat Cambridge in their semi-final. However, during their semi-final Melville fielded an ineligible player and Cambridge were given the win. Cambridge were unable to field a team for the final because of a high injury toll meaning Wanderers were the winners.

Given that both Wanderers and Melville were at the ground and ready to play, a game between the two sides went ahead anyway. It was a tight game that never really got going, Steven Holloway had the best chance of the first half when he went through one on one with the Wanderers keeper but was unable to get a shot away. After a scoreless first half the decisive goal came late in the second half when Sam Wilkinson scored from close range to give Wanderers a 1-0 win.

On day one Wanderers beat Unicol 6-0, Cambridge 1-0 and then finished the day off by comfortably beating Rotorua. By the end of the tournament they were the only team that had not conceded a goal. The only blemish for Wanderers was when goal keeper Adam O'Rouke was sent off in the last game against Melville and had to be taken to hospital with a suspected broken foot.

Rotorua won the plate competition, beating Unicol in the final.