NEW ZEALAND – FOOTBALL FERNS AT FULL STRENGTH FOR CYPRUS CUP

The Ferns line up against Canada, Russia and the Netherlands in Group B of the eight-nation tournament, boosted by the return of three overseas players who missed New Zealand’s tour of China in January.

Olympic Games standout Ali Riley missed that trip due to academic commitments at Stanford University while defenders Rebecca Smith and Marlies Oostdam had club commitments in Australia’s W-League with Newcastle Jets and Melbourne Victory respectively. Smith has now signed for German Bundesliga club Vfl Wolfsburg.

With the trio absent from China, head coach John Herdman blooded a host of U-17 and U-20 players and two of those teenage debutants – Rosie White and Sarah McLaughlin – have retained their spots in the 18-strong squad for Cyprus.

“We gave some of the younger players a taste of international football in China and many of them will force their way into future squads as we build towards the 2011 Women’s World Cup and 2012 Olympics,” Herdman said.

“There are still eight players who played in last year’s U-20 World Cup in this squad so to have the experience of older players like Smith and Oostdam and others like Kristy Hill and Jenny Bindon is crucial both on and off the pitch.”

With all three of New Zealand’s opponents ranked between 11 and 17 in the world, Herdman was relishing the prospect of benchmarking his young side against nations in the second tier of women’s football.

“Each game becomes a chance to step towards what we need to produce in World Cup games.

“We know that in major tournament we’ll be grouped with two of the tier-two teams, so winning consistently against these teams is the long-term aim.

“In the short term it’s about establishing the winning processes that will lead to sustainable success.”

While the world number 24 Ferns have played Canada four times in since 2007 – losing three and drawing the most recent match – Herdman says all teams are unknown quantities.

“We’ve seen a lot of Canada in the past few years but with a new coach they become a little bit of a mystery again.

“We haven’t seen much of the European sides but we know the Dutch are unbeaten in nine matches while the Russians are undergoing a revival with qualification to the Euro Championships.”

England, Scotland, South Africa and France comprise Group A with the top team in each group meeting in a March 11 final, and other teams playing off for final placings.

Football Ferns squad for Cyprus Women’s Cup, March 5-12 2009

Goalkeepers:

Jenny BINDON – Waitakere City (32/0)

Aroon CLANSEY – Three Kings United (1/0)

Defenders:

Abby ERCEG – Three Kings United (33/2)

Anna GREEN – Three Kings United (15/1)

Kristy HILL – Three Kings United (7/0)

Rebecca SMITH – Vfl Wolfsburg, Germany (33/2 )

Marlies OOSTDAM – Melbourne Victory, Australia (30/0)

Midfielders:

Betsy HASSETT – Three Kings United (5/0)

Katie HOYLE – Lynn-Avon United (20/0)

Annalie LONGO – Three Kings United (18/0)

Hayley MOORWOOD (Captain) – Lynn-Avon United (41/3)

Ria PERCIVAL – Lynn-Avon United (33/2)

Ali RILEY – Stanford University, USA (25/0)

Kirsty YALLOP – Lynn-Avon United (25/7)

Forwards:

Amber HEARN – Lynn-Avon United (18/3)

Emma KETE – Lynn-Avon United (20/3)

Sarah McLAUGHLIN – Claudelands Rovers (3/0)

Rosie WHITE – Unattached (3/0)

Management: John Herdman (Head Coach), Jill Gillmore (Assistant Coach), Simon Eaddy (Goalkeeping coach), Julie Hogg (Manager), Brad Conza (Sports Scientist), Meridy Boyd-Clark (Physiotherapist).

Schedule:

March 5 – New Zealand v Canada

Paralimni (1:45am, Mar 6 NZT)

March 7 – New Zealand v Russia

Nicosia (1.45am Mar 8 NZT)

March 10 – New Zealand v The Netherlands

Paralimni (1am Mar 11 NZT)

March 12 – Final or Placing playoff, time and opposition tbd.

Story and photo courtesy NZF Media