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Erin Nayler
Erin Nayler, Super Saver
by Jeremy Ruane
"I always say the Abby Wambach penalty save", says Erin Nayler of her most memorable save to date. "It wasn't my greatest save, but the whole atmosphere made it one of my favourites saves".
It was certainly one every New Zealand football fan will remember the Football Ferns number one making at the USA's expense, a vital denial in a 1-1 draw on what was just her eighth appearance for her country, way back in October 2013.
And in the thirty-odd appearances she's since made for her country, we've come to expect at least one 'worldie' from our Kiwi super saver during the course of battle - two in her most memorable match.
"I really enjoyed the whole game against Canada at last year's Women's World Cup. The saves I made in that game make it one of my favourites, along with winning in Brazil last year and, even though it's a bit cliched, my debut".
That came at the 2013 Cyprus Cup against Italy, with Erin keeping a clean sheet a month before turning 21, and ten years after she embarked on a journey few women take on as a challenge.
"I was about nine years old when I first started playing", says the Auckland native. "When I was younger, I used to go along to my brother's training, 'cause my dad was the coach. That was my first involvement in the game.
"I went in goal when I was about eleven. I played really well and got player of the day - I must have been better in goal than I was out on the field! I really enjoyed it, especially the thrill of making a save, and I've stayed there ever since".
And how! Shooting to national prominence with her performances at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Finals in Germany, she was a non-playing squad member at the senior finals a year later, and one of our quartet of travelling reserves at London 2012.
Now she's going for gold in Rio. "It's exciting. I'm really excited because we've been working so hard for so long. We've played the USA a couple of times. The last time we did, we did not play our best", a point the Football Ferns' number one is keen to stress. "So we're eager to get out there and show everyone what we can really do".
That opening game in Belo Horizonte will see Erin once more coming face to face with an opponent who has established the gold standard where women's goalkeeping is concerned, and even though she's hesitant to admit it, given current circumstances, Hope Solo is an inspiration to her.
"She certainly was when I was younger, that's for sure", she's says of her opposite number in New Zealand's opening game. "As time has gone on, though, I've looked up to some of the Premier League 'keepers, David De Gea in particular.
"He had a tough time coming through, and didn't start out as the best 'keeper, to the extent that he would get booed when he came onto the pitch, thus would struggle to perform well. But he progressed, found his confidence and started playing well, which is something I can relate to".
Helping Erin overcome those self-doubts and crises of confidence, while overseeing her growth and development as a goalkeeper, has seen Football Ferns' goalkeeping coach, Danny Robinson, play a significant role in her career throughout this decade.
"I've been working with Danny since the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Germany, almost seven years ago. So it's been a long time. I guess a lot of my growth and improvements have come from him, his training, and his coaching.
"We've just taken it step by step. I'm always looking to improve something and he'll help me with that, as did Jenny Bindon, who was the number one when I first became involved with the national teams.
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"Being able to see things from the side of the field and have her guiding me helped me to improve a great deal and gave me confidence as well, so that I was ready for the challenges facing me when I did step onto the field".
Challenging herself in the Lotto Northern Premier Women's League has entailed Erin playing for a handful of clubs in the competition so far, before captaining Northern Football to the National Women's League title last year.
From that came the opportunity to play professionally, earlier this year, with Sky Blue FC in the US-based National Women's Soccer League. What followed next was far from memorable, to put it mildly.
To cut a long story short, our blue-eyed blonde heroine came out of the ordeal smelling of roses, while the colour of mud will forever shroud the Sky Blue name after their contribution to proceedings, an object lesson in how not to look after players recruited from abroad.
Erin is understandably coy when it comes to passing comment on the issue. "It's another bump along the road, one from which I've bounced back. I'm not going to think about it, or let anything from what happened affect how I play.
"Instead, I'm just going to knuckle down, aim to perform well, and play as I always do. There's not really anything I can learn from it, but it's just helped me become more resilient".
And even more appreciative of her "really supportive family and friends" to whom she returned, one of whom, long-time boyfriend Jordan Carter, provided Miss Nayler with the perfect pick-me-up - he, as a far more famous Carter so often sings, 'put a ring on it'!
"Haha! We got engaged in Samoa in March. I've done a little bit of planning so far, but at the moment I'm quite focused on the Olympics. When that's over I can start organising everything to do with that, 'cause that takes a fair bit of planning as well. We're probably looking at February 2018 - a wee while away. That gives me time".
Far more pressing, of course, are matters of a Brazilian nature. "Ultimately we want to get a medal. A gold medal would be the best, of course, but we're going to take things step by step, focusing on the group games, then, once we get out of that, the quarters, etc..
"For me personally, my aim is to play and perform well, and hopefully get a contract out of it - I want to play professionally again, and have a better experience, whether that be in Europe or Asia".
Being an Olympian will certainly help in that regard. "It's so hard to explain what it means to be an Olympian. I think it's really hard to put into words. What it does do, though, is make you really proud to represent your country, and your family.
"Years of hard work have paid off, and you've reached pretty much the peak of your career, if you are an Olympian. It's something to be really proud of, and I'm really excited for it, and to just be an Olympian".
Even if it means lugging around an extra suitcase, containing the forty-five pieces of standard issue NZ Olympic Committee attire which each member of the New Zealand team at Rio 2016 will be sporting throughout the three weeks on which the attention of the sporting world will focus on a land renowned for the way it has embraced 'O Jogo Bonito'.
"Haha! I've actually just packed them! I don't have room for anything else in that suitcase, so I'll be lugging around two bags probably. But rest assured", says our intrepid super saver, "my goalkeeping gloves were the first thing I packed!"
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