This Jewish soccer pro plays in a New Zealand winter league down under

For many people, New Zealand sounds a long way away. But for many New Zealanders, Invercargill – – in the far south of the country – – sounds like quite a trip in itself.

So how did David Schipper, a Jewish, professional soccer player from San Diego, end up on its squad?

“I was playing for a Canadian team, and a Japanese teammate told me that he was going to play for a team in Auckland, New Zealand,” Schipper told The Times of Israel. “He told me that would give him a chance of qualifying for the Fifa Club World Cup and play against some of the best teams in the world, like Real Madrid.”

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The opportunity to play against the best players and best clubs in the world sounded like a dream come true for Schipper, so he asked his agent to look into it. Some two years later, in 2017, after a stint playing in Europe, the American received an offer to play for Southern United, a Dunedin-based club.

Dunedin is the second largest city in New Zealand’s South Island with a population of about 130,000. But by the time Schipper managed to sort out all the visa issues and was cleared to play, the summer league was nearly over. The summer league is the main competition in the bottom half of the South Island, but most players then sign on for the winter league to keep their match fitness.

So Schipper signed with Southland United, an Invercargill team. The similarity of the two teams’ names — Southern United and Southland United – made a good talking point.

Invercargill is far further south than Dunedin — which puts it much closer to Antarctica. In fact, Southland United is possibly the southernmost soccer team in the world. The team’s base is home to only 55,000 people. It is also the cloudiest city in New Zealand and the second windiest (after the capital, Wellington).

Being so close to the South Pole means that Invercargill has a very different climate than San Diego.

“It rained all the time, was windy,” Schipper said. “It was cloudy. There was fog and hail.”

Every game is played outdoors regardless of the weather. But though the weather is cold, the people are not.

“It has a small-town feel and the people are really nice,” he said.

Schipper initially faced an unexpected challenge — deciphering the Kiwi accent. But the athlete was no stranger to hurdles, physical or otherwise.

“It took me a while to understand them,” Schipper said, “but at least they speak English. Remember, I had just come from playing in Europe.”

There were a few New Zealandisms that had to be explained to him though – – such as “heaps,” “rubbish” and “I reckon,” which all have different meanings down under than they do in North America.

He’s toured all over the South Island with his teammates, visiting Queenstown, Wanaka, and many other tourist sites, and says it is all very beautiful — at least until the weather turns.

“There are some things in New Zealand that you just don’t have in San Diego,” Schipper said. For example, “the big waterfalls. The nature is completely different, so massive and green.”

After almost a year in Invercargill, Schipper has never met another Jewish person — not even a single Israeli tourist.

However, “there were no issues about being Jewish,” he said. “When people asked me I always told them my religion and it was never an issue.” Schipper was the first Jew that most people in Invercargill had ever met.

Last year he told the coach he wanted to fast on Yom Kippur, even though they were training that day, and was easily accommodated.

But Schipper misses being around other Jews. Whenever he sees matzah or any other Jewish food in the grocery store, he buys it simply for its provenance.

Last year Schipper played the entire winter season with Southland United, helping them finish third in the league. Despite being a midfielder — more of a playmaker than a goal scorer — he scored about a dozen goals for the club. This year he has already scored six or seven goals for Southland United.

Last year’s third place finish entitled the club to play against the other top South Island teams; the winner of that goes on to play against the winner of the North Island contest. The country’s top team goes to the FIFA Club World Cup and gets to play against some of the best teams from around the world.

However, Schipper missed all the post-season matches and had to return to the United States to undergo surgery for injuries to the hips and groin. Playing without him, the team came sixth out of eight in the first round of that competition. (Team Wellington went to the United Arab Emirates for the international competition but was eliminated in the first round after losing in extra time to Abu Dhabi’s Al-Ain Football Club.)

After intensive physiotherapy, Schipper was able to return for the first half of this year’s winter season in Invercargill, which began just as the weather started warming up in the northern hemisphere.

He spoke to The Times of Israel during the mid-season break from back in San Diego, where he is waiting for the doctor to give him a clean bill of health. He said he hopes that his doctor will declare him match fit, so he can go back to Invercargill and finish the season.

One of the highlights of his professional career, Schipper said, was representing the US at the 2017 Maccabiah Games.

“In 2017 I was between contracts, so I had the opportunity to come to Israel and represent the USA,” Schipper said. It was the second time he’d been to Israel.

He said that Israel just felt like home. It brought him tremendous pride and a great feeling to play in the Jewish state.

“My parents were able to join me in Israel,” he said. “It was amazing having them share with me the experience and pride of representing the USA and playing as a Jewish athlete.”

Source: Timesofisrael.com

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