Andrew Victor Boyens is a New Zealand former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

and is the technical director for

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Boyens has represented

at the international level.

Career

College

Boyens spent his childhood in Napier where he was born on 18 September 1983 and moved to Dunedin at age 16. He was educated at

Kavanagh College Trinity Catholic College (known as Kavanagh College before 2023) is a Catholic, state-integrated, co-educational, secondary school located at Rattray St, in City Rise, central Dunedin, New Zealand. The school was founded in 1989 as the ultima ...

and the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

, completing a BA in 2004. He started his playing career in

, playing for

and semi-professional club

Dunedin Technical Dunedin Technical Association Football Club (known locally as Tech) is a semi-professional association football club in Dunedin, New Zealand. They compete in the ODT FootballSouth Premier League and were the 2018 ODT FootballSouth Premier Leagu ...

before transferring to

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; ) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1889 by the New Mexico Territorial Legislature, it is the state's second oldest university, a flagship university in th ...

in 2004, where he was named a first-team All-American in 2006.

Professional

After briefly playing for

Otago United Southern United, previously known as Otago United, is an amateur football club based in Dunedin, New Zealand. Founded in 2004, they play their home games at the Logan Park and Forsyth Barr Stadium. It is the southernmost football club playing ...

in the

New Zealand Football Championship The New Zealand Football Championship () was a men's association football league at the top of the New Zealand league system. Founded in 2004, the New Zealand Football Championship was the successor to a myriad of short-lived football leagues in ...

, Boyens was drafted in the first round of the

2007 MLS SuperDraft The 2007 MLS SuperDraft was held in Indianapolis, Indiana on January 12, 2007. It was the eighth annual Major League Soccer SuperDraft. The first selection belonged to expansion team Toronto FC. The SuperDraft was followed by the 2007 MLS Su ...

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matc ...

. He scored his first MLS goal off a corner in a 2–1 win over the

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. Founded in ...

on 2 June 2007. He was released by Toronto FC on 14 April 2008. Boyens went on trial at

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...

in April 2008, and signed with the team on 5 May 2008. He appeared in 19 matches during the MLS regular season. After an up and down season Boyens' solid play in central defence helped Red Bulls pull off a surprising first-round upset in the MLS playoffs, defeating defending champion

Houston Dynamo Houston Dynamo Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in Houston. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Established on December 15, 2005, the club was founded after their fo ...

4–1 on aggregate. After appearing in 41 official matches for the club in three years, New York Red Bulls announced that Boyens would not be part of their plans for the 2011 MLS season. He signed with

Chivas USA Chivas USA (pronounced ''CHEE-vahs'') was an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competed in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conf ...

on 9 February 2011. At season's end, Chivas USA declined his 2012 contract option and he entered the

2011 MLS Re-Entry Draft The two-stage 2011 MLS Re-Entry Draft took place on December 5, 2011 (Stage 1) and December 12, 2011 (Stage 2). All 19 Major League Soccer clubs participated. The Stage 1 and Stage 2 Drafts were conducted in the same order as the traditional Wai ...

. Boyens was selected by

Los Angeles Galaxy The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Gal ...

in stage 2 of the draft on 12 December 2011. He signed with Los Angeles on 30 January 2012. After the conclusion of the 2012 season, LA declined the 2013 option on Boyens's contract and he entered the

2012 MLS Re-Entry Draft The two-stage 2012 MLS Re-Entry Draft took place on December 7, 2012 (Stage 1), and December 14, 2012 (Stage 2). All 19 Major League Soccer clubs were eligible to participate. The Stage 1 and Stage 2 Drafts were conducted in the same order as th ...

. Boyens went undrafted in both rounds of the draft.

Return to New Zealand

Following a stint as a head coach within the LA Galaxy Youth Academy, Boyens returned to New Zealand football in February 2014 when he was named as the new Football Development Officer for the Waitakere region. He began playing with amateur club Forrest Hill Milford, where he also serves as assistant coach. Boyens resumed his professional career when he signed with New Zealand side

Waitakere United Waitakere United was a football club based in Waitakere City, New Zealand. They were one of the franchises in the ISPS Handa Premiership. They played their home games at Fred Taylor Park in Kumeū and The Trusts Arena. History Waitakere Uni ...

on 20 October 2014. Waitakere cut ties with Boyens following the 2014–15 season.

International

Boyens was included in the

squad for a series of matches against

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

in February 2006, but did not play in any of them. He made his national team debut in an unofficial friendly later that year, when he came on as a substitute during

's 5–1 loss to Spanish club

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

on 15 August. Boyens' first official international appearance came in May 2007, when New Zealand drew with

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

2–2.

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...

noted that the defensive back two pairing of Boyens and

Ben Sigmund Benjamin Robert Sigmund (born 3 February 1981) is a New Zealand former international footballer. He represented New Zealand at under-17, under-20 and senior level. Club career Born in Blenheim, Sigmund spent his early career with Football K ...

were "''boasting 10 minutes international experience between them''". He was named in the

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup was the eighth FIFA Confederations Cup, Confederations Cup, and was held in South Africa from 14 June to 28 June 2009, as a prelude to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The draw was held on 22 November 2008 at the Sandton ...

New Zealand squad, and gifted

David Villa David Villa Sánchez (; born 3 December 1981) is a Spanish former professional association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, Villa is th ...

Spain's fifth goal when he "air shot" a routine clearance during Spain's 5–0 rout over New Zealand on Sunday 14 June. On 10 May 2010, Boyens was named in New Zealand's final 23-man squad to compete at the

2010 FIFA World Cup The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...

Club career statistics

Honors

New York Red Bulls

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

Western Conference Championship (1):

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

References

External links

* *
NZ Football Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boyens, Andrew 1983 births Living people All-American college men's soccer players Men's association football defenders Association footballers from Dunedin Chivas USA players LA Galaxy players LA Galaxy non-playing staff Major League Soccer players New Mexico Lobos men's soccer players New York Red Bulls players New Zealand men's association footballers New Zealand men's international footballers People educated at Trinity Catholic College, Dunedin Toronto FC draft picks Toronto FC players University of Otago alumni 2004 OFC Nations Cup players 2008 OFC Nations Cup players OFC Nations Cup–winning players 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2010 FIFA World Cup players New Zealand expatriate men's association footballers Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in the United States New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in Canada 21st-century New Zealand sportsmen