Trans-Tasman farewell clash “very competitive”

By AAP, 22 Feb 2010 AAP is a Roar Pro

Tagged:: football, New Zealand, Pim Verbeek, Socceroos, World Cup

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It wasn’t exactly first choice, but Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek sees useful preparation in a World Cup farewell game against old foes New Zealand.

Football Federation Australia announced on Sunday that Melbourne, with backing from the Victorian government, would host a pre-World Cup departure clash with the All Whites at the MCG on May 24.

While New Zealand had pushed for the clash since they joined Australia in qualifying for the World Cup in South Africa with a 1-0 win over Bahrain last year, the FFA was less keen.

It came after attempts to attract several European and South American countries failed to lure a bigger-name team than world No.79 New Zealand for the one-off match.

However, it promises to draw a big MCG crowd with the timing expected to ensure the likes of captain Lucas Neill, Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell and Mark Schwarzer are involved for Australia.

FFA’s venue choice is another Melbourne sporting victory over Sydney, having also hosted the farewell match between the Socceroos and Greece for the last World Cup in 2006.

Verbeek saw the match up between his world No.23 ranked team and the All Whites as useful preparation for the coming clashes with World Cup pool opponents Germany and Serbia in particular.

“New Zealand are a FIFA World Cup qualified country, they play more-or-less a European style of football and there is a nice rivalry between our two teams that goes back many years,” Verbeek said.

“We are expecting a very competitive match against the All Whites and it will be a great way for us to start our pre-tournament camp.”

The Socceroos start their camp in Melbourne on May 19 and will attend the Australian Football Awards on May 22 before heading to South Africa and at least two more warm up matches ahead of the World Cup.

Australia have not played the All Whites since June 2005, when the Socceroos won 1-0 at Craven Cottage in London in Ricki Herbert’s first game as New Zealand coach.

They used to meet regularly in World Cup qualification before Australia switched to the Asian Football Confederation from Oceania.

It’s the first time the two teams have qualified for the same World Cup tournament, with New Zealand in Group F against Italy, Paraguay and Slovakia.

The match up follows some initial goading from New Zealand Football chairman Frank van Hattum who last year claimed: “They (Australia) keep running away from us. The buggers, they are chicken shit.”

New Zealand would be expected to fly back its European-based leading players like Ryan Nelsen, Chris Killen and Rory Fallon just days before they returned to Europe to start an altitude training camp in Austria.

The trans-Tasman rivals have met 60 times in total since the first match in 1922 when New Zealand beat Australia 3-1 in Dunedin.

New Zealand have won only 13 of the matches played between the two countries – 36 losses and 11 draws – and it is 21 years since they last beat a full-strength Australian side.

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The Crowd Says (27) | Page 1 of Comments

craig said | February 22nd 2010 @ 9:46am | Report comment

what a terrible waste of a big game

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Davstar said | February 22nd 2010 @ 2:10pm | Report comment

This is the biggest let down to socceroos supporters since the dive Grosso did in 2006.

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Brett McKay said | February 22nd 2010 @ 2:46pm | Report comment

on the surface, it’s the classic no-win for the Footballeroos. If they win, it won’t be by enough, or it’ll be “and so we should have”, and if they lose, well there wouldn’t be much optomism for South Africa…

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Republican said | February 22nd 2010 @ 2:54pm | Report comment

There is an obsessive rivalry from NZ’s perspective. Half the mob attending will be Kiwi expat, so they are assured home ground advantage playing.here as always.

We continue to give them a benevolent leg up in obliging them in every sport you care to mention – and that’s just sport. They are indeed the fiercest of competitors rather than simply our poor cousins from across the ditch.

Wake up Australia, it’s time to cut these mercenaries loose once and for all, or test their committment of (unconditional allegience to the Aust Federation of States which includes supporting the Wallabies, changing their sporting colours, and coming together under one flag and anthem, ours of course – and that’s just for starters) if they expect to continue gleaning the privelege they have now assumed for far too long..

You know it makes sense!

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- AA said | February 23rd 2010 @ 4:09pm | Report comment
  
  Thank god! Someone has said it publically. Yes, I can relax now. Yippee.
  
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- Hammer said | February 23rd 2010 @ 4:24pm | Report comment
  
  Yawn
  
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Midfielder said | February 22nd 2010 @ 3:04pm | Report comment

Imagine if we loose …. OMG ……… nightmare ….

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Dogz R Barkn said | February 22nd 2010 @ 3:09pm | Report comment

This news is a big let down on so many fronts.

In one breath we’re talking about Italy, Brazil, Argentina, etc, and we’re saying that we are now far too big and important to play a minnow like NZ – and then literally minutes later, it’s NZ that we are playing!

The second disappointment is that the FFA would choose the MCG over ANZ stadium – if the game only draws about 60,000 people, it’s going to look pretty poor – this is at a time when Sydney threatens to draw more to its final than Melbourne managed to draw last Thursday!

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- Davstar said | February 22nd 2010 @ 3:49pm | Report comment
  
  lol i know yea! what happend to us playing England??????
  
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  - Dogz R Barkn said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:01pm | Report comment
    
    The other thing is that NZ appear to have organised stacks of friendlies between now and the WC.
    
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Towser said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:12pm | Report comment

One thing you can say about this clash is that there will be no fond farewells. It will be anything but a friendly.
Sure its not Brazil or England,NZ are not in the same class football wise we know that.
But in relation to giving us a competitive match with real intent to beat us,bring it on.
The stars are alignedwith both teams in the World Cup,may never happen again.

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MV Dave said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:26pm | Report comment

l have some sympathy for the FFA here as there is little else they could do…should they have offered more money for the Croatian team and put up with a 2nd or 3rd string team? Other countries dont want to travel this far for a one off friendly… Anyway it is a thank you and send off for the Socceroos and to wish them well, doesnt matter too much to me who they are playing as long as it is the 1st string Socceroos. Will be there with family and mates as usual.

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- Towser said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:38pm | Report comment
  
  And that is really what its all about wishing the lads well at the WC,recognising the real acheivement.. KIwis to do the same.
  On touring teams. No doubt you were at the last farewell against Greece. From what I remember it was mediocre as have been many others. This wont be as a football match.
  
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- Dogz R Barkn said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:40pm | Report comment
  
  But a friendly against Croatia would have brought in 95,000 to the MCG – wouldn’t that have paid the bill with some leftover?
  
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  - MV Dave said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:58pm | Report comment
    
    Promoted right and with ticket prices appropriate this will get 80-90,000 (probably quite a few Kiwis included). Not too often we can get to see HK, Timmuh, Lucash, Emo, Vinnie, The Swarz, Bresc, Josh all playing together…getting pumped already
    
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    - Dogz R Barkn said | February 22nd 2010 @ 5:08pm | Report comment
      
      Do you reckon playing the Kiwis will attract 80k+??
      
      I dunno – what do people think?
      
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      - danny said | February 22nd 2010 @ 7:53pm | Report comment
        
        i reckon it’ll still pack the place out if marketed well. it’s about seeing the socceroos one last time before the world cup; the opposition is a secondary consideration. important, sure, but a distant second behind the home side.
        
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      - AA said | February 23rd 2010 @ 4:10pm | Report comment
        
        No.
        
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        Chris K said | February 23rd 2010 @ 4:42pm | Report comment
        
        If the tickets were cheap enough
Towser said | February 22nd 2010 @ 4:56pm | Report comment

No doubt. But personally I would prefer to see the Socceroos in a competitive match. Lets face it,these type of matches(Croatia) are just a glorification of Overseas teams not us. Believe me I’ve stood in enough of these type of matches to know in the past.
Socceroos were the away team..
Now we can celebrate our acheivements in football(& the Kiwis) in this part of the world.
Probably as I said previously may not happen again. At least not for a long while where were both in the World Cup

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- MV Dave said | February 22nd 2010 @ 5:00pm | Report comment
  
  Spot on Towser.
  
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- AA said | February 23rd 2010 @ 4:11pm | Report comment
  
  My gawd NZ has loose World Cup credentials.
  
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allblackfan said | February 22nd 2010 @ 9:38pm | Report comment

Given the fact that Germany wants to play NZ to get insights into how the Socceroos play, wouldn’t it be beneficial for the Socceroos to play NZ and gleam possible lessons that the Germans might learn from the Kiwis (u know it makes sense:-)!!

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