Soccer: Kingz undaunted by results

By TERRY MADDAFORD

Forget, if you can, the Football Kingz' record of nought from five this season or that they have won only twice in their past 18 NSL games.

Hope springs eternal - off and on the field - at the club which can go only one way as the 2003-04 season heads into the second quarter of 24 matches.

On the field the results are obvious.

Off it, new general manager Peter Cox is in damage-control mode.

Refreshingly, he, unlike former chief executive and now board chairman/owner Chris Turner - a master of riddlespeak - does not attempt to paper over the cracks. Cox tells it as it is.

"We are determined to build bridges," said Cox, whose first step was to visit NZ Soccer chief executive Bill MacGowan's office.

"I have a free hand to do that. Chris [Turner] admits he does not have the skills across the board that this job demands."

Cox accepts that patience is wearing thin among Kingz supporters. He knows questions are being asked about the team's survival.

Yes, he says, the bills are being paid, and no, coach Ken Dugdale is not under threat.

"No matter what happens, Dugdale is safe. He is doing everything he can with what he's got," said Cox.

"He is digging in and fighting. He believes in what he is doing. Every single guy in the club wants to be here."

Senior player Harry Ngata agreed: "The players are not too downhearted. Ken Dugdale puts on a positive face.

" We have been working for the past six weeks with motivational expert Craig Lewis.

"After each game there is a session of self-analysis when we look at systems and structures. It is really professional.

"This mental look at things is something new for most players."

Ngata said the players had all been paid on time - every time.

"It doesn't matter whether a player is being paid $50 or $500, there is the same commitment.

"We don't ask questions," he said. "We get a run-down every two weeks on what they are doing and get on with it."

The relationship between the Kingz - Cox in particular - and NZ Soccer is crucial.

Cox, surviving day-to-day through support from owners, investors and smaller sponsors, must find every little gain he can to sustain the operation.

"In the next week I will prepare all the details I need to get alongside New Zealand Soccer," he said.

"We will have something to present to their next board meeting. We have to show them we can be successful.

"Our Fifa licence might depend on that.

"Getting bums on seats is vital. There are some prospective sponsors I can't talk to in the current environment.

"That loss last weekend, as an example, cost us another one."

MacGowan welcomes the fresh approach Cox brings.

"We have had three positive and meaningful meetings.

"Unlike the past, he accepts we [NZ Soccer] have a vital role to play in their survival. I'm looking forward to working with him."