Football administrators move on

A couple of very familiar faces will be missing when club football resumes at A&P Park.

For the past decade and more Andrea Smith-Scott and her partner Nicky Smith-Scott have been at the forefront of the sport in Marlborough, all year round.

Andrea has been general manager of Marlborough Football for the past 11 years, while Nicky has been responsible for football development and administration since 2020, and was a volunteer for many years prior to that.

Now they are gone, heading to Whitianga, on the Coromandel Peninsula, where they will manage a five-star tourism resort, in Andrea’s words, “a total lifestyle change”.

As she departs Marlborough Football, which she admits has “been her life” for the past 11 years, Andrea reflects on the highs and lows of the multi-faceted role, pinpointing some areas she derived special satisfaction from.

“Watching the progression of the kids has been a highlight … the juniors have been a major focus of ours.

“Senior football will always be there and there is not much more you can grow senior football, but it has been exciting to grow the numbers in the junior ranks over the years.

“And also providing opportunities for our young players – kids like [NZ rep] Katie Pugh, Tessa Hyland and Nic Stanton who have all gone somewhere, giving them those first opportunities, watching them grow, then thrive.”

Andrea is also especially proud of the various initiatives she and Nicky have put in place, as well as some they adopted and grew, such as the futsal skill centre, the 102-team kids summer tournament, the skills and holiday programmes, the Marlborough Academy, plus the rep programmes and the fact the numbers of players have remained constant despite challenges, such as the COVID situation.

The duo are also gratified to have been able to facilitate tournaments such as the Matt Neal Memorial, the Gavin Roberts, the South Island Masters and John Columbus events, all bringing scores of people to the region.

Nicky, a former NZ senior player, feels football is “strong in Marlborough”.

“It is quite exciting that the kids have a lot more avenues to go down now … the progression is there. Katie Pugh is a good example, her journey shows that anyone from a small town can go to a World Cup, as long as they have got drive.”

While the highs have certainly outweighed the lows during the duo’s time here, there has been an on-going frustration in recent years, namely the delay in building a new purpose-built pavilion at A&P Park.

“I really wanted to see that pavilion up and running, it is a project I have been working on since I first started here,” said Andrea. “The council said there was money put aside and within the next couple of years we were going to have a new pavilion … and then just watching it being pushed further out while other sports got new facilities, that is one of the lows for me.

“Not being able to provide the facilities here for the numbers we have got. It is sad not having somewhere, with our numbers, where everyone can come back to afterwards, to socialise and get together.

“The new pavilion was going to be the home of football.”

Thankfully, the pavilion project is still with the council and both Andrea and Nicky are optimistic it will be built sooner rather than much later.

“There is nothing more they need from us, I’m confident that it has to be started by the beginning of next year,” added Andrea.

As they take their leave, both women are adamant some things need to remain in place for the game to continue to thrive in the province, citing initiatives such as the Marlborough Football Academy, the rep team programme (which is unique to this region), the ever-growing futsal league and the holiday programmes, plus the highly-successful junior referees programme which involves over 30 youngsters each year.

Andrea is also convinced there needs to be fully paid employees on the ground in the area. She points to the “very healthy” financial situation Marlborough Football are in compared to when she began, and says, “We have enough of our own money here, through the programmes we run, to pay for staff. That is why I am passionate about staff still being here.

“Everyone is replaceable, we just need to be replaced,” she added.

“Mainland Football have taken over the finances but there is definitely a role here for somebody local, with the same sort of passion, to step into a paid role. It is vital for the football community here.”

Lastly, Andrea and Nicky were keen to put a shout-out to the hundreds of club parents and volunteers, so vital to the game, plus excellent and “very professional” refereeing group. She also mentioned the support of many businesses, notably Mayfield Motorworld, Pak n Save, Dodsons and Meaters.

Although their mode of employment may have changed, the odds of the duo staying completely out of the football scene are slim, Andrea admitting that on a recent visit to their new location they quickly checked out the local football club.