They say you should never meet your heroes, but in the case of Alex Paulsen, an encounter with Glen Moss in the earliest days of adolescence was the perfect way to start his journey toward becoming a key figure in FFA Cup history.
Paulsen is “still buzzing” the morning after his penalty shootout heroics in Wellington Phoenix’s 0-0 (3-4) win over Isuzu UTE A-League powerhouse Melbourne City in the quarter finals of the FFA Cup.
The 19-year-old saved three spot kicks to send the ‘Nix into the semi finals of the cup competition for the first time in club history, where Ufuk Talay’s side will meet Melbourne Victory in the final four.
He’s in the final months of his teenage years, but at the very beginning of his teens Paulsen made it his mission to meet Moss, the ‘Nix goalkeeper at the time.
“When I was younger I was at Onehunga Sports up in Auckland,” Paulson said.
“At the time they had a partnership with the Wellington Phoenix soccer schools. So it was kind of like that pathway for all the younger boys and girls at Onehunga Sports to make a pathway to go to Wellington Phoenix.
“There was a Wellington Phoenix game, I must’ve been 13 or 14, maybe. There was a prize giving from Onehunga Sports, so they did a bit of a function where you could do your prize giving, and then after you could go watch the Wellington Phoenix play.
“I went up after the game, I wanted to get a photo with Glen Moss. I managed to get a photo with him, and I think I got another photo with Ben Sigmund as well. It was a really neat thing.”
REPORT: Teen saves three pens as ‘Nix beat City in shootout
Moss and Sigmund, together with legendary New Zealand international gloveman Mark Paston, provided Paulsen with the inspiration to grow through his teens into an impressive young keeper in his own right.
As the years ticked by he showed exactly what he’d learned from the key Phoenix figures of the past.
In the final of the 2018 U-16 Oceania Football Confederation Championship, New Zealand faced Solomon Islands. Paulsen was in between the sticks when the game progressed into a penalty shootout. The then-16-year-old came up clutch, diving to his right to block the all-important penalty to set New Zealand on the path to a 0-0 (5-4) win and OFC Championship glory.
Paulsen’s approach to the mental games of a shootout? “For me I think it’s about talking to yourself – I don’t know if a lot of people do that.
“It might be weird but I like talking to myself mentally, to keep making sure I stay focussed. Just little words, making sure I’m still in the game and managing how I think, and what I can remember as well.”
Paulsen joined the ‘Nix academy, playing for the Wellington Reserves and winning the ISPS Handa Premiership MVP at 18 years of age in 2020.
As he’s grown he’s taken inspiration from his heroes of the past and taken his game to new levels under the guidance of ‘big brother’ Oli Sail.
“I especially looked up to Mark Paston, when I was growing up – I used to watch him play a lot, and Glen Moss as well,” he said.
“I also feel like Oli Sail is a big role model for me, he’s pretty much my big brother.
“I kind of look up to him a lot, if he has any advice I’ll ask him and see what we can discuss, because he’s a real role model in that sense.
“There’s a lot of other younger goalkeepers I have talked with and communicated with along the way.
“I still feel like I can learn, in terms of making sure there’s different aspects of my game I can improve on.
“I think a lot of people always have their strengths and weaknesses, so I think my education is a big weakness I can always improve on.”
Paulsen added: “It’s a big moment for me, and for the boys as well.
“Making a bit of history yesterday was fantastic for everybody. I felt we all dug deep and worked hard for each other to actually execute it at the penalty shootout. I’m stoked, I’m still buzzing from yesterday.
“This game kind of showed us we have what it takes to compete against some of the big clubs in the A-League. I feel like if the boys can carry that momentum and mentality into the next couple of games, hopefully we can get some big results.
I’ve got nothing to lose I feel. I just want to go in there and prove to the boys that even though I am a backup I can help the team get some results. My mindset and mentality is have nothing to lose going forward.”
