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Dragons up next

Words: ACFC Media

Saturday 30 September 2017

Picture: Phototek

AUCKLAND, New Zealand - Auckland City FC's pre-season preparations take another step forward when the Navy Blues face Canterbury United at Normanby Road on Sunday.

The Navy Blues have dominated matches with Canterbury United over the past three seasons and will look to continue that at Auckland Grammar's artificial pitch complex in the heart of the city.

One interesting backdrop to Sunday's friendly match are criticial comments by Canterbury United coach Willy Gerdsen about the signing policy of other ISPS Handa Premiership clubs.

Navy Blues coach Ramon Tribulietx outlined Auckland City FC's recruitment succinctly ahead of the friendly match.

"I don't know what has been said by Willy on this matter but I don't have a tendency to judge what others do in their world.

"We had an opportunity to sign some New Zealand players for different reasons and combined with the local players I think we have managed to put together a good number of local players that aligns with our football philosophy.

"The difficult task for us each season is to find local players that are technically good and can understand the systems that we play," he said.

Auckland City FC's ranks have been boosted by the arrival of All Whites Kris Bright and Liam Graham, while the versatile Dan Morgan has rejoined the club from Waitekere United.

The Navy Blues also boast other All Whites caps with Cam Howieson, Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi and Harshae Raniga either signed up or in the latter's case looking to sign. There are also three players from the Ole Academy who have already made their first non-competitive tasks.

Tribulietx prefers to take a broader view of where the Navy Blues preparations are at beyond the national identity of his players.

His chief concern is making sure his squad gets plenty of game time before a competitive match is played.

"We are getting closer to the start of the season now and although we will still look at playing most players, we need to start extending the number of minutes played.

"These two objectives are difficult to align with each other and therefore we will have a better idea of how we will manage this as we get closer to the Canterbury United game," he told the club website.

The Navy Blues drew 2-2 with the Wellington Phoenix thanks to goals from Emiliano Tade and Ryan De Vries on Saturday.

Sunday's match kicks off at 3 Normanby Road, Auckland Grammar, at 12.30pm.

Ends

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