- By Henry Lee, AUT Journalism Student
Fencibles United Men’s First Team have started the Northern League Championship season strongly, leading the competition ladder with 26 points and eight wins from 11 games.
Fencibles have improved significantly this year under new head coach Rhys Ruka.
Ruka was appointed at the start of the season as former First-Team coach and Fencibles director of football, Martin Rodwell, stepped down to focus on the development of the club’s youth football system and his director role.
It’s clear Ruka has put a huge focus on younger players this year, bringing youthful exuberance to the First Team.
Seventeen-year-old attacker Kodie Nicol has benefited from this, impressing early on in this campaign, scoring 10 goals in the opening 11 games.
He’s second in the overall goal-scoring table for the Men’s Northern League Championship division, behind only Ngaruawahia’s Darius Palma with 16.
Although this is only Nicol’s second season as a men’s First-Team player, he’s played for Fencibles for over a decade, starting as a four-year-old.
Nicol says he’s always thought about playing for the Fencibles First Team.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to represent my childhood club so when I was given the opportunity I was very excited.”
Fencibles United’s assistant coach Michael Poulopoulos believes Nicol has always had the talent to play First-Team football at a high level.
“Kodie has always had the potential to be a good footballer – the big thing for Kodie was believing in his ability,” he says.
When asked about Nicol’s best attributes as a player, Poulopoulos explains: “His vision, technical ability, eye for goal and quality in the final third are some of the reasons why he’s had such a successful season to date.”
Nicol credits his strong start to the season to the work of his teammates.
“I wasn’t expecting to score as much as I have but a lot of that comes down to the boys and the chances they’ve created for me.
“The support from experienced players like Jamie Mason and Daniel Bunch has been unbelievable.
“They both have been unreal players for us this year but have also been unbelievable teammates.”
Nicol will be looking to improve his impressive goal tally this Saturday and help his team in the top-of-the-table clash against second-placed Ngaruawahia United at Centennial Park in Ngaruawahia.
