Logan Rogerson made his A League debut today. The 18-year old from Ngāruawāhia made his debut entry in the second half of the weekend's clash against Melbourne City.
It was a win for Logan Rogerson, despite his side going down to Melbourne City 1-nil.
“It was pretty proud for me and my family and we have been waiting a while for it, when I got out there it wasn't as scary as I thought it would be it's just another game of football in the end and I really enjoyed it.”
The Phoenix midfielder says he has been waiting a long time for this moment in his career. The advice head coach Ernie Merrick gave him was simple.
“He just said to do my thing, take players on, dribble, don't be scared, get the ball don't hide and I was quite happy to get my first touch early.”
His first on-field encounter was to defend former teammate Manny Muscat.
“I remember Manny (Manny Muscat) coming on, but I knew I had Manny for pace.”
In 2015, Logan signed a three-year deal with Phoenix. He says all his hard work paid off when he got a taste of playing in the big league.
“It was hard and probably only my family would know and at the end of the day that's football and everywhere you go around the world it's just the same and you just have to keep working hard off and on the field and the opportunities will come.”
Logan is continuing to push for higher honours.
“I'd love to go back with the all whites trip but either way I am getting A league Games and hopefully Anthony sees me playing and I make the All whites as well.”
With four players returning from All Whites duties, he will have to wait another week before he can play his second A League game. This Saturday, the Phoenix will play Perth Glory at NIB Stadium in Perth, Australia.