Auckland FC Youth Development Partnership
**FC Tauranga Moana Proudly Joins Auckland FC’s Youth Development Club Partnership**
FC Tauranga Moana (FC Tauranga Moana) is excited to announce that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Auckland FC (AFC), making the club an official member of the newly launched Youth Development Club Partnership.
This initiative further demonstrates FC Tauranga Moana commitment to providing leading player pathways, enhancing our New Zealand Football (NZF) accredited Skills Centres and Talent Development Programmes we already operate. This initiative enhances these pathways to support player development opportunities in Tauranga Moana.
Through this partnership, Auckland FC have committed to provide inclusive, high-quality development opportunities for our members. The partnership is designed to create a structured pathway that ensures young players, coaches and operational staff have access to Auckland FC resources, coaching, and support they need to grow their skills to pursue further football opportunities.
“We didn’t have to think about this partnership for too long”, said FC Tauranga Moana Trustee Brendon McHugh. “We’ve looked at various partnerships over the years, but there was always a hook that we didn’t feel aligned to our values. What we love about this partnership is that Auckland FC are looking to enhance our current programmes, they see the value clubs like FC Tauranga Moana already offer and want to help us build on this.”
“We’ve been very impressed with Auckland FC’s approach so far”, said FC Tauranga Moana Trustee Maaka Nelson. “They’ve taken time to engage with us to understand where they can add value, which has formed the basis of the Youth Development Partnership. There is a lot to like about the Partnership, one that stuck out to us straight away was their understanding that keeping youth players local was important, rather than taking them away from the region. That’s really important to smaller football regions like ours”.
Looking ahead to 2025, Auckland FC will establish a dedicated Development Centre with the support of Rebel Sport, the naming rights partner. This facility will feature advanced training programmes and resources for identified players within partner clubs like FC Tauranga Moana. These players will continue to train and compete with FC Tauranga Moana, ensuring they remain connected to their communities while benefiting from additional support through Auckland FC.
“Connecting our local talent pathway to a professional environment like Auckland FC is a massive step forward in providing more quality opportunities for our players and coaches” said FC Tauranga Moana Technical Director Barry Gardiner. “The proximity to Auckland adds the extra benefits of players not having to leave the region too early to access professional opportunities. We are looking forward to building and fostering a working relationship with Auckland FC that will benefit our local football community.”
As a Pathway Club, FC Tauranga Moana will help facilitate with providing Auckland FC regular reports on players, while also hosting Training Camps and Development Games in Tauranga Moana.
“This is an exciting step forward for youth football within New Zealand”, said FC Tauranga Moana Head of Academy Cameron Grieve. “It's great to be associated with Auckland FC & provide this professional pathway for our current & future players. We’ve been lucky enough to have had a few players move into, or be involved in professional environments who have been through our development programmes; Jonty Bidois, Grace Duncan, Van Fitzharris, Mackenzie Bryant to name a few, so we are looking forward to working with Auckland FC and promoting more opportunities for footballers in our region.”
