Tony Lochhead

Tony James Lochhead ( born January 12, 1982 in Tauranga ) is a New Zealand soccer player. The left-back is since 2007 the A- League club Wellington Phoenix under contract.

Club career

2001 Lochhead moved to the U.S. at the University of California, Santa Barbara to study chemical engineering to compete. In addition, he played in the football team of the university, the gauchos, where he was achievers. In 2004, he played for some time at Orange County Blue Star in the USL Premier Development League before he signed up for the MLS SuperDraft 2005 and was in the 3rd round of 33 out of the New England Revolution selected.

The elected in 2004 to New Zealand International Young Player defender signed in September 2005 a professional contract with New England, and came into the 2006 season to 16 inserts. In the play-offs, in which New England Revolution advanced all the way to the final, he was disregarded. In April 2007 he was released from his club to create a place for the previously gedrafteten Bryan Byrne.

A month later, he signed a two-year contract with the newly formed New Zealand's A- League team Wellington Phoenix.

National

Lochhead represented the New Zealand U- 17 team at the U- 17 World Cup 1999 in New Zealand. He came in all three group games available for use, including the surprising 2-1 victory in their final group game against Poland. In qualifying for the Olympic tournament in Greece in 2004 Lochhead played in the U -23, to participate in the final tournament but was missed in the play-offs against the Australian team.

In 2003, he was in a friendly match against Iran his debut in the senior national team and has ever since become a regular player. By winning the OFC Nations Cup 2008 is qualified for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa and at the same time for the play- offs against the Asia - fifth to the FIFA World Cup 2010.