Wellington Phoenix coach Ricki Herbert has completed his roster with the signing of young New Zealander Cameron Lindsay.
Lindsay has been part of the academy at English Premiership club Blackburn Rovers since 2008 and fills the final Under-21 spot in the Phoenix squad.
The defensive midfield player won’t be available for Wellington’s opening game against Gold Coast United on Sunday.
“I’ve known Cameron for a wee while now,” said Herbert, who is also the coach of the New Zealand All Whites. “We brought him in just to help us with numbers up in Auckland before the All Whites went away on the last tour.”
“I’ve been in contact with his Dad on a couple of occasions and I think there was always going to be a little bit of movement at Blackburn so it’s great (he’s coming here).”
“He’s a professional boy. He’s been at a big club and a good club for a long period of time. I think he ticks all the boxes for what we’re looking for.”
“He’s a Kiwi boy and I think that’s important too. I wasn’t just going to sign a New Zealander but I think coming out of what he’s done he’ll be good for us.”
Lindsay’s signing, following the return of Nicky Ward earlier in the week, means the Phoenix have reached the minimum requirement of 20 players – although Lucas Pantelis has been ruled out for the season with a serious knee injury and Mirjan Pavlovic is out for around two months with a broken arm.
But Herbert said he was comfortable with having only 20 players on the books, especially after the upheaval surrounding previous owner Terry Serepisos and his financial troubles which culminated in a change of ownership at the club just a couple of weeks ago.
“We just need the dust to settle a little bit,” Herbert said. “I think we just need a little bit of patience now from everybody.”
“We’ve got the group that we’ve got. I think there will be an expansion (of the squad) in time.”
“We’ve gone back-to-back final series with the majority of this group. There is a lot of willingness and desire to do that again. But it’s going to be a tough year.”
American Alex Smith is currently on trial with the club as a potential injury replacement for Pavlovic.
“He’s come at a tough time leading into the opening game of the season. But he’s settled well,” said Herbert. “He looks a decent enough player. We won’t use him this weekend. I’ll make a call next week. He’s doing most things right.”
Herbert will also start to look at potential candidates to replace Pantelis next week as well.
“I’ll get the weekend out of the way. That’s a long-term one now. We can bring somebody in who is maybe at the sharp end of the A-League,” said Herbert.
“There will be one or two disappointed players around the clubs at this moment. Some may not make squads and might not get selected and that pool might open up a little bit for us after round one. Hopefully we can be in the market and get something done next week.”
