Under fire Football Ferns coach Andreas Heraf has received backing from the top of New Zealand Football, though with some caveats.
NZF CEO Andy Martin said today that he would not be seeking the resignation of Heraf from one or both of his positions, following the unprecedented fallout after a series of controversial statements from Heraf, in the wake of the Fern's loss to Japan last Sunday.
Martin, who is in Russia at the Fifa congress and was speaking for the first time since that match, said Heraf was the right man for NZF's technical director role - "given his excellent background" - and needed to be given time to effect the changes he wanted to make.
As Ferns coach, Martin said the Austrian coach would be judged on his results, just like the team.
However, Martin also admitted he was stunned by some of Heraf's comments, particularly around his view that a country like New Zealand would never be able to compete with the top tier nations.
