Valour Adds New Zealand Forward Oskar Van Hattum

Canadian Premier League side Valour FC is retooling its attack with the addition of New Zealand right winger Oskar Van Hattum, who can also be deployed as a centre forward.

The 23-year-old will have a small window to impress, signing on for the remainder of the year with eight games left to play. Valour holds a club option for 2026.

The Auckland native ventures to Canada after a spell in Ireland with Sligo Rovers, where his new teammate Kris Twardek once played.

Van Hattum tallied 12 league appearances in Ireland after signing this January, with a few injury spells limiting his goal contributions to just one assist.

A brighter spot on the forward’s resumé is his time with A-League side Wellington Phoenix, where he tallied six assists and two goals in 48 appearances after rising through the reserve ranks. The 23-24 campaign saw his side finish as runners-up in the league.

“We like a lot of things about Oskar,” says Valour boss Phil Dos Santos. “He’s young but brings international experience. Oskar will help us in this final stretch… He’s decisive in the final third and can give us goals and assists.”

The 23-year-old has represented New Zealand at the youth level, most recently featuring in all three group stage games for the U-23s at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

One of Valour’s best all-time athletes came through by way of New Zealand, with Moses Dyer having proven fairly prolific in Winnipeg before venturing elsewhere, both throughout the league and beyond.

Dos Santos will be hoping Van Hattum can inject some spark to the club’s attack: on par for one goal per game, they’re the least productive final third in the league. Valour currently rests second from the bottom, with a first-ever playoff appearance nearing the precipice of mathematically impossibility.

Header Image Photo Credit: Valour FC