Auckland FC’s AUT alumni
With less than a month until the 2025/26 Ute A-League Premiership kicks off, AUT is recognising its talented alumni working in high-performance sports roles, including those at Auckland FC, some of whom only graduated last year.
Ten AUT alumni are currently part of the Auckland FC support team whose roles span physiotherapy, commercial partnerships, marketing, communications, performance analysis and sports science, to name a few.
Many other alumni working at high-performance, New Zealand sports organisations are also AUT and Sports Performance Research Institute New Zealand (SPRINZ) alumni and postgraduate students.
AUT Vice-Chancellor Professor Damon Salesa says “AUT has long held a reputation for producing great graduates with sought-after, innovative skills and knowledge and this is very well represented by our School of Sport, Exercise and Health alumni.
“In Auckland FC we have yet another top sports organisation who has snapped up our alumni for their real-world talent, further reinforcing AUT’s position as a leading New Zealand sports university.
“Looking ahead to the team’s second season, we are very proud to have become Auckland FC’s official education partner. We are also very much looking forward to supporting the team at Go Media Stadium, knowing our alumni are a force behind one of the most exciting clubs in Australasia,” he says.
Holding a Masters of Sport, Exercise and Health, majoring in Sport Leadership and Management, AUT graduate Max Maddocks-Henderson joined the club when it was still in its infancy.
“I’d just graduated from AUT and one of my Sport & Recreation lecturers was encouraging me to put myself forward to the club and show them how I could provide a valuable contribution from day one. Fast forward 12 months and it has been nothing short of mind blowing to be able to put everything I’d learnt at AUT straight into practice and be part of Auckland FC’s special journey.”
AUT graduate and Auckland FC Commercial Activations Coordinator, Amy Walker, says, “I recently finished studying sport and recreation at AUT which opened the door to an internship with the club. Within just three months of graduating, I found myself back with AUT, this time speaking in a lecture to first-year students in what felt like a full-circle moment, having so recently been in their shoes. I have enjoyed staying actively connected to the AUT community and I hope to continue doing so,” she says.
Bachelor of Business in Management and Leadership & Bachelor of Sport and Recreation in Management, Jarrod Wallace, is an Assistant Analyst with Auckland FC - an area that has seen exponential growth in recent years and as such, has become an increasingly in-demand area of study at AUT.
“It had been a long-term goal of mine to be part of a professional sporting set-up. A large part of my job involves scouting upcoming opponents; reviewing their past matches to identify tactical trends, key behaviours and potential areas we can exploit. I put together detailed reports and video packages to help coaches structure training sessions and inform our game plans. After each match I collaborate with the coaching staff to review our own performance, highlighting our strengths and areas for improvement. Supporting player development of our reserve team players is also a key part of my job.
“I really enjoy the analytical side of the job – working with data and footage to make sense of what’s happening on the field and help the team improve. There’s always something new to learn, and the potential for growth in this field is huge,” says Jarrod.
Tseard Theo van der Mei is an Assistant Sport Scientist with the club and holds a Master of Sport, Exercise and Health.
He says, “It’s a joy to work in a high-performing environment where I get to continually develop and grow alongside some great professional operators. This is important to me because I love learning and enjoy facing new challenges. Working in elite sport is fun because I get to work with amazing athletes and be a part of such great sporting moments.”