Five-nation soccer contest confirmed

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33091, 5 December 1972, Page 22

Five-nation soccer contest confirmed

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON. A five-nation Oceania tournament in Auckland early next year has been confirmed as part of the New Zealand soccer team’s build-up for the World Gup.

The secretary of the New Zealand Football Association (Mr G. Moore) said yesterday that the Oceania tournament would be held in Auckland from February 17-24. The five countries taking part would be New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti, New Caledonia, and the New Hebrides.

The tournament comes three weeks before New Zealand’s first World Cup elimination match with Australia, also to be played in Auckland. The tournament, set down for New Caledonia late last season, fell through at the last minute after Australia’s eleventh-hour withdrawal. This year the five teams will play each other once,

gaining two points for a win, and one point for a draw. At the end of the round-robin series the top two teams play off for the Oceania Trophy. BULGARIANS Mr Moore also revealed that negotiations were taking place for the Bulgarian national side to play one or two matches on the way to Australia earlier in February. If negotiations which the joint tours committee is discussing come to fruition, the New Zealand team will be in for a period of concentrated soccer next season. From March 11 to March 24 it will be involved in Its World Cun group elimination matches with Australia, Indonesia and Iraq in Sydney. The joint tours committee has invited two leading British dubs, Hibernian and Birmingham City. Mr Moore said that Hibernian,

second at the moment in the Scottish first division, have been invited for three games over the Queen’s Birthday period. Birmingham City, promoted to the English first division this season, have been invited for two mid-week fixtures some time in May. STOKE CITY Mr Moore said that Stoke City, the League Cup winner last season, had also expressed an interest in playing a few matches.in New Zealand. However, the N.Z.F.A. was awaiting definite confirmation from the other two clubs before committing itself to any arrangement with Stoke.