Mark Paston will renew his rivalry with Glen Moss at Wellington Phoenix again next season after he agreed a new one-year deal with the Hyundai A-League club.
Mark Paston will renew his rivalry with Glen Moss at Wellington Phoenix again next season after he agreed a new one-year deal with the Hyundai A-League club.
Paston sat behind English import Tony Warner at the start of last season but was ever-present in the second half of the campaign, which included his first finals series after surgery on broken legs ruled him out of the Phoenix’s previous two appearances.
Now with Moss returning to Wellington after stints with Melbourne Victory and Gold Coast United, the two New Zealand goalkeepers will once again by vying for the No.1 shirt at club and international level.
“I feel I’ve still got plenty to offer and am looking forward to next season already,” said Paston.
“Glen and myself have been vying for the goalkeeping spot at the club before, as well as with the All Whites, and it will be good to have such strong opposition for the position.”
Phoenix head coach Ricki Herbert has made no secret of the fact he wanted the 35-year-old keeper to remain at the club.
“Mark had a fantastic season and it was important to keep him at the club,” said Herbert, who is still working through negotiations with Chris Greenacre and Dani Sanchez.
“The competition between Mark and Glen has always been hard-fought and I can see that continuing.
“It is great to see two Kiwi boys who have excelled in the A-League at our club.”
The pair will get an early chance to stake their claims to Herbert when they assemble with the rest of the All Whites squad on Saturday for friendlies against Honduras and El Salvador in Texas before heading to the Solomon Islands for the OFC World Cup qualifying tournament.
“The timing of these games is good for me because I think if you have too long off between seasons the body can relax a bit too much,” Paston said.
“It will be a good lead in to pre-season training, though I will have to take a couple of weeks break for a minor operation to take screws out of my leg.”
