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SYDNEY - Embarrassed New Zealand Knights coach Paul Nevin admits his side's dismal performance against Sydney FC may only heighten calls for the embattled club to be thrown out of the A-League.
Nevin apologised to supporters after a performance he labelled unacceptable and 'schoolboyish' in capitulating 4-0 to Sydney FC at Aussie Stadium last night.
With just three wins in 33 A-League games -- and by far the worst home crowds in the league -- New Zealand is under enormous pressure to prove it belongs in the competition, with speculation the Knights may even struggle to return for next season.
With so much on the line, a gutted Nevin could do little to hide his disappointment at last night's new low point.
"We're fighting for our lives and performances like that doesn't make our case any stronger," Nevin said.
"At the moment it's difficult to even convince people back in New Zealand that we deserve to be there (in the A-League)."
The Knights held Sydney scoreless for 36 minutes, but after Sasho Petrovski's opening goal conceded three more in the second half as the A-League champions ran roughshod over the competition strugglers.
"I'd like to apologise to everybody in the room and to our fans at home," Nevin said.
"That was totally unacceptable and I'm embarrassed by it to be honest.
"People are really squeezing to find a positive out of that. For me that is no where near good enough.
"It just looked like schoolboys out there and for the first time I find it very hard to defend one of our performances.
"We've been well beaten in games before but had some good spells and been committed and organised... but today there was none of that.
"If you can't pass a ball 10 yards to a player that's unopposed and when you're not under pressure... I'm very upset about that. "
Making matters worse, the Knights were supposed to be riding high on confidence after upsetting then second-placed Queensland Roar 1-0 last week.
"It was probably the most confident we could be entering a game," Nevin said.
"We put in a battling performance last week, it wasn't pretty, but we were united and worked very hard... we didn't have that today, the fight. "
With the likes of North Queensland and Wollongong hoping to gain entry into the competition in coming years, Nevin said he supported the A-League's expansion - but not at the expense of New Zealand.
"We want more Australian teams in it, but not at the expense of New Zealand," said Nevin.
"It's vital for New Zealand football that they have team in the A-League. "
- AAP
