Austrian Andreas Heraf is the new coach of the Football Ferns.
The role had been vacant since early November, when Tony Readings resigned after six years in charge.
Heraf is New Zealand Football's technical director and would normally be charged with assessing potential candidates, but it appears that he put himself forward for the role – and been successful.
Heraf and Gareth Turnbull, who will be Heraf's assistant, were interim co-coaches on the recent tour of Thailand, where the Ferns enjoyed two impressive victories.
The Asian side are not exactly women's football powerhouses, but Heraf and Turnbull introduced some new players to the mix, and also showed some innovative thinking with some positional and tactical changes.
"I am really excited to be the Head Coach of the Ferns for the next two years as I believe this team has the potential to perform well on the world stage," said Heraf.
"I have enjoyed being part of this environment on the USA Tour and more recently in Thailand. I feel we are making good progress, but the exciting thing is there is much more growth to come.
"Over the next two years, the goal for the team is qualifying for the Round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup in France. We have seen the Ferns beat some of the best teams in the world in friendlies and the challenge for 2019 is to be able to do that at a pinnacle event."
Heraf has been in the technical director role for less than four months, starting behind the desk in late August.
In an ironic touch, Readings was part of the panel that appointed him, along with NZF CEO Andy Martin and former All Whites coach Anthony Hudson.
Tony Readings quit in November. Photo / Photosport
At the time Martin hailed the appointment of Heraf as a "coup" for the sport, and he continued that praise today.
"Andreas has made an immediate impact on our Technical Department and he also made some very positive changes to the Ferns in November," said Martin.
Heraf played 11 internationals for Austria in the 1990s. He was part of the squad that qualified for the 1998 World Cup, though didn't see any game time in France.
One of the biggest moments of his playing career was appearing in the 1997 UEFA Cup final for Rapid Vienna against Paris St Germain.
After retiring as a player, Heraf coached various teams in the Austrian Bundesliga before being appointed as head of youth football at the Austrian Federation in July 2008.
Over the last decade, Heraf has coached various Austrian age group teams – from Under-15 to Under-20.
