Chris "Zorro" Zoricich (, ; born 3 May 1969) is a

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 ...

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

player who represented the

New Zealand national football team The New Zealand men's national football team () represents New Zealand in men's international Association football, football competitions. The team is governed by the governing body for football in New Zealand, New Zealand Football (NZF), whic ...

in the 1980s and 1990s. Born to

Croat The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

parents, he began playing football in his native Auckland for Blockhouse Bay Under-7's and went on to play over 50 times for his country.

Club career

Zoricich, nicknamed "Zorro", began his senior career with

Papatoetoe Papatoetoe is a suburb in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest suburb in Auckland by population and is located to the northwest of Manukau, Manukau Central, and southeast of Auckland CBD. Papatoetoe was traditionally an important area fo ...

in Auckland before moving to

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...

in England between 1990 and 1993. He made 59 first team appearances there, and 12 as a substitute during his time at the club, before work permit restrictions forced him to return home. A group of Orient fans protested outside the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

to try to keep him in the country. In 1994, Zoricich returned to New Zealand to play for

Central United Central United Football Club is an amateur association football club based in Sandringham, Auckland, New Zealand who complete in the NRFL Northern Conference. The team was officially called ''Central Soccer Club'' until 1996 when it changed ...

, a Croatian-influenced team. His brother, Michael (who played

Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is organised by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and contested annually between teams from over 150 competing countries, making it the world's largest annual ...

tennis for New Zealand), and his father, Ivan, also turned out for Central at various points. However it was not long before Zoricich was on the move again, this time to

Brisbane Strikers Brisbane Strikers Football Club is an Australian semi-professional football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in 1991 as Brisbane United, the club competed in the National Soccer League until the 2003–04 season. Brisbane Strikers ...

in the Australian

National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in Australia, run by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL, the A-League's predecessor, spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977 until its ...

. He spent two seasons in Australia before heading to England to try his luck again. He made one appearance for

Welling United Welling United Football Club is a semi-professional association football club, based in Welling in the London Borough of Bexley, England. The most prominent aspect of the club is its men's first team, who play in the , the seventh level of the E ...

in the Vauxhall Conference and also had a trial spell with Chelsea, at that time managed by

Ruud Gullit Ruud Gullit (; born Rudi Dil; 1 September 1962) is a former Dutch Association football, footballer and subsequent manager. Regarded among the greatest footballers of all time, he was also noted for his Utility player#Association football, abili ...

. During his time at

Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to: * Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England ** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066 * Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge * Stamford Bridge (stadium), in ...

, Zoricich never made the first team but was a regular in the reserve side's defence. Zoricich returned to Australia to re-sign for the

in 1997, after the club had won the NSL championship on their home ground. He then ended his NSL career by playing for

Newcastle Breakers Newcastle Breakers FC are a defunct Australian football (soccer) club. Formed out of elements of the Newcastle Austral club, they participated in the National Soccer League The National Soccer League (NSL) was the top-level soccer league in ...

and

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

, before returning to England as his English wife was homesick. After trialling with League Two side,

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...

, he signed for

Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Thanet District of Kent, England. It is located on the north coast of Kent and covers an area of long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and W ...

in the Nationwide Conference and then moved on to St Albans City in the Conference South Division. This was followed by short spells at Harlow Town,

Boreham Wood Borehamwood (, historically also Boreham Wood) is a town in southern Hertfordshire, England, from Charing Cross. Borehamwood has a population of 36,322, and is within the London commuter belt. The town's film and TV studios are commonly known ...

Heybridge Swifts Heybridge Swifts Football Club is a football club based in Heybridge, near Maldon, Essex, England. They are currently members of the and play at Scraley Road. History The club was established in 1880 as Heybridge Football Club. After joining t ...

and

Wealdstone Wealdstone () is a district located in the centre of the London Borough of Harrow, England. It is located just north of Harrow, London, Harrow town centre and is south of Harrow Weald, west of Belmont, Harrow, Belmont and Kenton, London, Kenton, ...

International career

Zoricich made his international debut against

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

on 27 March 1988. He went on to win 57 caps in full 'A' internationals, including captaining the

All Whites The New Zealand men's national football team () represents New Zealand in men's international football competitions. The team is governed by the governing body for football in New Zealand, New Zealand Football (NZF), which is currently a memb ...

at the 1999 Confederations Cup in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and the

2003 Confederations Cup The 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup football tournament was the sixth FIFA Confederations Cup, held in France in June 2003. France retained the title they had won in 2001, but the tournament was overshadowed by the death of Cameroon player Marc-Vivi ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. His only international goal was in a 1–2 loss to

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

in June 1999 at the

Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six Continental football championships, continental champions ...

International goals

:''Scores and results list New Zealand's goal tally first.''

After International football

Zoricich as of 2014 is the premier football coach a Saint Kentigern College in Auckland. Since 2022 Zoricich has been Head Coach of Cooks Hill United FC

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zoricich, Chris 1969 births Association footballers from Auckland Living people New Zealand men's association footballers New Zealand people of Croatian descent New Zealand men's international footballers National Soccer League (Australia) players Papatoetoe AFC players Leyton Orient F.C. players Central United F.C. players Brisbane Strikers FC players Welling United F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players Sydney Olympic FC players Newcastle Jets FC players Margate F.C. players St Albans City F.C. players Harlow Town F.C. players Boreham Wood F.C. players Wealdstone F.C. players Men's association football defenders 1996 OFC Nations Cup players 1998 OFC Nations Cup players 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2000 OFC Nations Cup players 2002 OFC Nations Cup players OFC Nations Cup–winning players 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players English Football League players 20th-century New Zealand sportsmen Expatriate men's footballers in England