Kris Bright

Born in South Auckland, New Zealand, the son of New Zealand 1982 World Cup representative Dave Bright. Bright started as a Semi-Professional with Waitakere City in 2004. Whilst with Waitakere, Bright was the 2004 top scorer in the Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Premier as a 17-year-old, and played in the club's 0–1 loss to Miramar Rangers in the final of the 2004 Chatham Cup. Over 1+1⁄2 seasons with Waitakere City, Bright scored a total of 29 goals. In mid-2005, Bright was named as one of three players in the New Zealand Knights' apprenticeship scheme. Shortly after the start of the season, though, Knights player Neil Emblen was forced onto the injured list, which would allow the club to sign Bright as a replacement for four weeks. Bright was rushed into the squad to play the Central Coast Mariners at North Harbour Stadium, and produced a Man of the Match performance as he played the full 90 minutes on debut as the New Zealand side went down 1–3. Bright's performance in his first match earned praise from Knights manager John Adshead, and he was rewarded with a starting place in the following match against the Newcastle United Jets. Bright appeared in the Knights's following four games up until Emblen's return from injury, but had done enough to retain his position in the squad, having signed another short-term contract, this time to cover for Joshua Rose. By the end of the 2005–06 season, Bright had made a total of 12 appearances, three from the substitutes bench. In mid-2006,…

Bright has represented New Zealand at under-15, under-16, under-17 and under-20 levels. He played in all of New Zealand's matches during their failed qualifying campaign for the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship, scoring four goals, including a hat-trick in a 13–0 win over Tonga. In 2005, Bright was selected for the under-20 squad to compete in the OFC qualifying tournament for the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship, but again the country were unable to make the finals, finishing third in their group behind the Solomon Islands and Fiji. His senior international debut for the All whites was a substitute appearance in 2008 for a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Fiji, and his first senior international goal was against Thailand on 28 March 2009. He was included in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup squad, making a single appearance as a substitute against European champions, Spain. He missed out on the final 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but was named as one of seven non-travelling reserves.