Few new faces in N.Z. soccer squad

Press, 12 July 1983, Page 40

Few new faces in N.Z. soccer squad

By

DAVID LEGGAT

The core of New Zealand’s World Cup soccer squad has predictably been retained in the 22-man party for the Olympic Games qualifying series, which begins in September. The Olympic squad, released yesterday by the New Zealand Football Association chairman, Mr Charlie Dempsey, contains 15 players who were in Spain at the World Cup finals last year, and of the seven not included, four had retired or were unavailable. It is essentially an experienced squad. None is new to the international scene and

unlike New Zealand teams of the not too distant past, it is a squad imbued with a particularly professional approach. Allan Boath, the Scottishborn mid-fielder, has been named captain by the national coach, Mr Allan Jones. This is no surprise as Boath was appointed by Mr Jones for the two matches against Australia last February, when he began his reign as New Zealand coach, and Boath held the job for the trip to South Korea last month.

That trip was clearly a fact-finding mission for Mr Jones, and four of the 17 players who made the tour

have been left out — the veteran Mount Wellington striker, Keith Nelson, Papatoetoe’s lan Masson, Jeff Strom, of Wellington Diamond United, and Johann Verweij, Christchurch Mogal United’s top scorer this winter.

It will be a bitter disappointment for Verweij, who had been particularly keen to cement a place in the Olympic squad, after missing the World Cup series. Clearly room had to be found for New Zealand’s two outstanding strikers, Steve Wooddin and Wynton Rufer, while Alex Metzger and Peter Henry impressed in South Korea. However,

Mike Groom, a forward who has not scored in the national league this season, must rate as a surprise inclusion. The mid-field has been tried and proven in the world’s most demanding arena, and it is encouraging to have Billy McClure, a skilled mid-field attacker, given another opportunity. He was in Spain but did not get a chance to show what he could offer. He increases the options in an otherwise unspectacular, if diligent, hard-working mid-field.

Rudi Feitsma’s inclusion as the third goal-keeper could mean the end of Richard Wilson’s slender pros-

pects of regaining a NewZealand place in the forseeable future.

Seven of the squad will be omitted for the two-match trip to Fiji next month. Those 15 will be named later this week. New Zealand's opening Olympic qualifying matches are against Japan and Taiwan, on September 25 and October 1 or 2 respectively, in Auckland. The full Olympic squad is.— Goal-keepers: Barry Pickering (National Mutual Miramar), Frank van Hattum (Christchurch Mogal United), Rudi Feitsma (Manurewa). Defenders: Adrian Eirick

(Hanimex-North Shore), Ricki Herbert, Ron Armstrong, Glen Adam (Mount Wellington), David Burgess (Miramar), Ceri Evans (Dunedin City), Glen Dods (West Adelaide). Mid-fielders: Allan Boath (Christchurch United, captain), Steve Sumner, Keith Mackay (Manurewa), Duncan Cole (Canberra), Billy McClure (Papatoetoe), Ken Cresswell (Gisborne City).

Forwards: Steve Wooddin (South Melbourne), Alex Metzger (Mount Wellington), Wynton Rufer (F.C. Zurich), Peter Henry (North Shore), Mike Groom (Manurewa) and Grant Turner (Christchurch United).