Hawke's Bay United
Encyclopedia
Hawke's Bay United is an association football club based in Napier
, New Zealand
. HB United play in the ASB Premiership - a semi-professional franchise based league, which runs independently of the winter club season. Local winter clubs provide the player pool for each franchise. Their home stadium is Bluewater Stadium.
The head coach is former assistant coach of Hawke's Bay United, Matt Chandler. Chandler was given the position of head coach after former coach, ex-Celtic FC and Scotland
goalkeeper Jonathan Gould
was appointed as the goalkeeping coach for the Wellington Phoenix.
Hawke’s Bay United (HBU) was founded in 2005 under the name of Napier City Soccer, as the summer entity of Central League club Napier City Rovers
. In the inaugural NZFC season (2004/2005), they finished 5th out of 8. The following season, Napier City Soccer was renamed to their current moniker of "Hawke's Bay United" and changed their kit colour to the Hawke's Bay
provincial sporting colours of white and black, as part of an effort to greater represent the greater East Coast instead of just the city of Napier. The rebranded Hawkes Bay United finished last in the season standings.
Napier, New Zealand
Napier is a New Zealand city with a seaport, located in Hawke's Bay on the eastern coast of the North Island. The population of Napier is about About 18 kilometres south of Napier is the inland city of Hastings. These two neighboring cities are often called "The Twin Cities" or "The Bay Cities"...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. HB United play in the ASB Premiership - a semi-professional franchise based league, which runs independently of the winter club season. Local winter clubs provide the player pool for each franchise. Their home stadium is Bluewater Stadium.
The head coach is former assistant coach of Hawke's Bay United, Matt Chandler. Chandler was given the position of head coach after former coach, ex-Celtic FC and Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
goalkeeper Jonathan Gould
Jonathan Gould
Jonathan Alan Gould is a former Scottish international footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently the Goalkeeping Coach at Perth Glory of the Australian A-League.-Playing:...
was appointed as the goalkeeping coach for the Wellington Phoenix.
History
Napier City Rovers
Napier City Rovers are an association football team based in Napier, New Zealand. They are currently competing in the Central Premier League.-Club history:The team was founded in 1973 via a merger of Napier Rovers and Napier City....
. In the inaugural NZFC season (2004/2005), they finished 5th out of 8. The following season, Napier City Soccer was renamed to their current moniker of "Hawke's Bay United" and changed their kit colour to the Hawke's Bay
Hawke's Bay
Hawke's Bay is a region of New Zealand. Hawke's Bay is recognised on the world stage for its award-winning wines. The regional council sits in both the cities of Napier and Hastings.-Geography:...
provincial sporting colours of white and black, as part of an effort to greater represent the greater East Coast instead of just the city of Napier. The rebranded Hawkes Bay United finished last in the season standings.
The Bay Army
The Bluewater Stadium is generally regarded as one of the noisiest venues in the NZFC due to a small but passionate group of supporters who have been branded with the title of the 'Bay Army'. Often accompanied by a large drum, the group sets out to get behind the local side, while adding some atmosphere which is sometimes lacking at other football grounds around the country. The Bay army's founders are local students Tom Banister and Scott Miller but Miller has recently retired from the supporters group and now lives in Wellington. Since Scott's departure, younger brother Todd Miller joined Banister as the co leader of the supporters group. The Bay army have been known to travel to away games and support the team on the travels. The most recent away game the bay army attended was the dramatic 2-1 away win to Youngheart Manawatu in Palmerston North.Controversy
In 2008/09 referee Matt Conga accused members of the Bay Army for chanting obscenities at a particular opposition player. The matter was cleared up when it was established that the fans were shouting 'creep', a regular chant used to 'put off' a member of the opposition team closest to the wooden stand where the bay army reside, usually a left winger. The matter was eventually put to rest as a misunderstanding.2009/10 season
The bay army returned to park island for the new season for the 2-2 home draw against Waitakere United. They were also present at the home win against Waikato and plan to attend home games until the end of the season and beyond. Banister stated his main aim for the future of the supporters group was "increased numbers and a more united atmosphere inside Park Island".Current Squad
Updated for 2011-12 SeasonStaff
- Head Coach:
Matt Chandler - Assistant Coach: Chris McIvor
- Team Manager:
Tim Kilkolly - Physio: Jess McIvor