Liz Anton is one of Auckland Football Federation's most versatile Centre-Backs. 

Anton has had a big year on the international stage, taking part in the 2018 FIFA U20 Women's World Cup as well as representing the Football Ferns at the most recent OFC Women's Nationas Cup. 

AFF Media Officer, Mark Casson, caught up with Anton for a solid yarn as we spoke about her journey in football and what she aspires to do outside of the sport. 

Liz Anton's Profile below: 

MC: How did football start Lizzie? Tell us the foundations of your footballing journey
LA: I started playing properly when I was in 10^th grade, I had played a few seasons before that, but I started training under George Vale, my sisters’ coach, and then I wanted to be better than my sister, so I kept going at it.

MC: Did anyone have a big influence on you from the start?
LA: George Vale had a huge influence on my footballing career and I’ve been training under him on and off.

MC: Which clubs did you play for?
LA: I played for Springs when I was younger and probably when I turned 15, I went to Lynn-Avon for three seasons and then went back to Springs.

MC: You recently went to New Caledonia with the Ferns, Talk us through that experience
LA: It was a great experience, going away with the National team is always a privilege and training with some of the best players in the country and the world for that matter is always good for my own personal development and aside from that, it’s always good to get some game time and just learning off them.

MC: What’s the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to you as a footballer?
LA: I’ve had a few embarrassing things, but I remember one thing at training, we were doing this warm up netball kind of game and I remember we had to intercept the ball and I accidentally somehow jumped over one of my teammates and we ended up falling over each other.

MC: At the U20 Women’s World Cup, we noticed you were Captaining the side against Ghana for a bit, tell us, what was it like to wear the armband?
LA: It was a pretty special moment for me, I was vice captain for the tournament under Malia (Steinmetz) and it was good to try and lead the team, I didn’t really mind if I didn’t get to wear the armband, but still it was a pretty special thing to have.

MC: Against France, there was an incident where the ball was crossed into the box, you jumped up to clear it with your head, only to be sandwiched between a French player and Anna Leat, have you ever taken any huge knocks on the field?
LA: I mean, as a centre-back, yeah I do, but this year in FFDP, I’ve had a few shots to the face, I also remember, when I was 12, I was training with my dad once and he just smashed the ball into my face.

MC: In this 2018 NWL campaign, what’s been your favourite part so far?
LA: It’s been a really good campaign, some good results, but I’ve really enjoyed it, I’ve got to know some of the players that I’ve never played with before, some senior players like Lucy (Carter) that I can learn off as well.

MC: If you ever won the Lottery and were given the opportunity to explore three parts of the world with three friends, which three members of the NWL team would you take and where would you go?
LA: They would probably be, Nadia (Olla), because she’s a muppet like me, probably Sarah (Morton), because she would know all the places to go to and then probably Paige (Satchell) because she’s pretty funny. There’s a lot of places I would like us to go, but probably Europe, places like Italy, France, Germany, I really want to go to Berlin.

MC: Do you have a dream car?
LA: Anything Eco-Friendly.

MC: There’s a photo of you absolutely skilling a player from Southern United – Have you ever pulled any grand skills on the football field where it just looked really cool?
LA: I’m not sure that I have but hopefully, but if I did, it would be a reaction.

MC: What do you do outside of football? Study or work?
LA: I am studying at Auckland University doing Green Chemistry.

MC: Do you have a cool catch phrase? – Like a word you say heaps
LA: YAAASS QUEEN!

MC: Any nicknames?
LA: Lanton, Liz, Lizzie or Spazz – My dad used to call me spazz as a kid because apparently I was crazy.

Article added: Friday 07 December 2018