Waikato FC

Former New Zealand international defender Che Bunce took the reigns of Waikato FC during another tumultuous off-season for the Ngaruawahia-based club. After two weeks in the job Bunce has his first win as coach and is looking forward to a crucial match with Keith Braithwaite's Canterbury United...

Che Bunce: Yeah, it’s a very nice feeling – it does a little bit of pressure off and it’s a milestone, but very good to those first three points as a coach especially after the start to the season we had in the opening match, which didn’t go quite as I expected.

What did you do between that opening result and the match with Hawke’s Bay United?

I didn’t change a lot. In the Auckland game, there were parts of that performance where we did play well and the team did do as I wanted and it was just issues about finer detail that we needed to tidy up and fix.

Defensively we needed to pick ourselves up, look at parts of our structure and shape but otherwise the players did what I wanted them to do.

I think against Auckland we got our heads down and started to get a little widely spread when it became 3-0. I didn’t want to around changing things completely and we saw against Hawke’s Bay United that it came right in the end.

Good question but not an easy one to answer! The last thing you want to do is shoot your mouth off and say you ‘want to do this’ or ‘want to do that’ and ask for trouble.

I think first and foremost we would like improve on last season’s sixth place and aim for the top four.

Once you get into those play-off spots anything can happen. It’s going to be tough but our short term goal must be to get to the play-offs. Long term, as coach, I’m really undecided – I want to do the best I can this season and then reassess at the end of the campaign before I see where I go.

As a player you had a reputation as a non-nonsense defender – what is your playing philosophy as a coach?

My philosophies are probably a bit different to what people might imagine – I like my players to express themselves and play a fast attacking brand of football in the right areas, of course.

In the attacking third I try to encourage a lot of free-flowing play, in our defensive third I want us to be a no-nonsense unit. First and foremost you’ve got to win games but play an attractive style of football as well – finding that balance can be a challenge but it’s a good one.

How much of an influence has Kevin O’Leary been in your tenure so far?

Kevin is a massive influence; he’s rock solid and brings a lot of reliability to the mix. He has a lot of strings to his bow – the NZFC isn’t a professional league so you’ve got to have people around you who are capable of doing more than one thing because you don’t have the luxury of a full-time staff.

Kevin has a sport-science background, he’s a top coach in his own right, he’s a goalkeeping specialist – he really has a wealth of knowledge and experience to draw on. He’s also a great listener and provides guidance and support – he’s a brilliant addition to our club.

How have local players adapted to Che Bunce the coach as opposed to Che Bunce the team-mate?

You would probably have to ask them, to be honest. At Melville United I was always one of the lads but I’m a older now so although I enjoyed the social side at Melville I wasn’t one of the ones down the back of the bus.

The players at Waikato FC have adapted well and responded well – their work ethic has been great so I’ve got no complaints there.

You’ve gone for locally-based players – how difficult a challenge was that?

Not at all. We’ve still got seven or so Auckland-based players. It’s got to be Waikato-based – those are the players that will die for the shirt, so we’ve got to include young players and local players to build for the future.

If I had it my way, it would be great to see the Auckland-based players move down here even if its just for the summer. I

t’s a balancing act because I can’t over-train these players if we’re going to get the best out of them because of the commitment.

We had a local trial for local players and I still believe there could be one or two out there we could bring in as the season progresses.

What differences are there between the Northern Regional Football League and the New Zealand Football Championship?

I think there is a definite step-up – I think the NRFL has improved because of the presence of NZFC players but the playing surfaces, playing conditions and quality is just that much better at NZFC level.

It’s simply conducive to better quality football – teams try to play on the ground, defences are tighter, less room for attackers.

I like the way the NZFC is and would like to see it remain the same with the franchise format. I know the Competition Review is coming up but I would like it to remain the same.

I think we need the continuity. Whether or not the powers that be keep it in the summer or it goes to winter, I hope the format remains the same.

What are your thoughts on your match with Canterbury United – is that a must win?

This is such a short competition of just fourteen games, so every game is vital. I believe you have to look at winning every game.

A lot of our players are new to the NZFC and haven’t experienced what a long day it’s going to be traveling down there for the match, so that will be a learning curve. Canterbury fought really hard against Waitakere United and made life hard for them so they’ll be confident after that performance – confidence can carry a team through, so we’ll treat them with respect.