Busy footballing, education life for Ceri Evans

Press, 21 May 1982, Page 15

Busy footballing, education life for Ceri Evans

By

ALISTAIR ARMSTRONG

Life is hectic these days for the youth soccer international, Ceri Evans.

The 18-year-old defender has to sandwich a Bachelor of Science course in between commitments with the Rothmans league team, Christchurch Mogal United, and the New Zealand under-19 squad. With United and the youth squad gearing up for a busy schedule next month, his timetable is starting to look he says. The youth team goes into camp in Palmerston North on Thursday to prepare for its matches against the touring English fourth division club, Bournemouth, there on June 1 and in Wanganui on June 3.

From Wanganui, Evans will journey to Auckland, where United plays the first of two North Island Rothmans matches set down for Queen’s Birthday week-end. The second game is in Napier.

In between times, Evans has a Rothmans match in Christchurch tomorrow, and an examination on Tuesday. Fortunately, mixing studies with football and being successful at both is something Evans has been able to do since his schooldays.

Born in Christchurch, the son of the former English and Welsh soccer professional, Gwyn Evans, and a former New Zealand women’s table tennis champion, Joyce Williamson, Evans moved to Nelson with his family when he was eight and in the following years represented Nelson in all junior grades. . In 1979 the 1.85 m centreback had an unsuccessful trial with the English first division club, Manchester United, before returning to join the Rothmans league contender, Nelson United, in 1980. About the time of his seventeenth birthday, in October, 1980, Evans was named for what is effectively a national B team to represent this country in the

Merdeka tournament in Kuala Lumpur, and the youth team, which last year reached the final qualifying group for the World Cup junior tournament. The youth team, with Evans as captain, almost preceded its senior counterpart in reaching the “Cup Finals’’ when it was beaten, 1-0 and 3-0 by Argentina and against Israel, it won, 2-1, and drew, 0-0.

After spending last season with Wellington Diamond United, the Rothmans champion, Evans is now settling in well with the re-shuffled Christchurch Mogal line-up. His pairing in the centre of the defence with the Englishman, Paul Wilkinson, has been one of the success stories of United’s season to date. The tall duo (Wilkinson is 1.89 m) have been able to keep most of the league’s strikers at bay with their ability in the air.

The Christchurch coach, Terry Conley, says Evans is also good with his feet. “For a lad of his height, he is very good on the ground —. like Glen Adam (a New Zealand World Cup defender) — but a bit quicker." Evans has enjoyed his spell at United and feels that after a “rough" start when he and the players around

him were new to each, other, some team understanding is now developing. The mildly disappointing results of the past few weeks — United’s 1-1 draw with Invercargill Thistle and 0-1 losses to East Coast Bays and Dunedin City — are a part of .what Evans sees as a “pretty tight league.” “We have just got to buck ourselves up now,” he says. Looking to his own game, he says he would like to sharpen up his heading of the ball. “I think ‘Wilkie’ is doing all the heading at the moment and I am dropping off to sweep, which I am quite happy doing because he is good in the air. But the fact that he is doing so much, means I'm not getting any practice.” Coincidentally, Evans plays his soccer in the same position as his father, a former Crystal Palace defender.

Gwyn Evans, the current secretary of the New’ Zealand Football Association, has been a strong influence on Ceri, although there was never any undue pressure, the student says.

"He went overboard not to push me at a young age,” he said. But his father has since been a guiding light in the career of one of this country's brightest soccer prospects. “Having him there has been a help, of course. He knows so much and the type of comments he passes after watching me play are such as most people in New Zealand wouldn't think about — just the finer points,” he said. Looking to the future, Evans can't see himself attempting to play professional soccer in England again (although he would “like to have a go”) until after his university studies are completed.

In the rneantime, he seems sure to continue in this country at a level which has already enabled him to travel around the world.