New Zealand friendly the last chance saloon for Aussie fringe players


New Zealand friendly the last chance saloon for Aussie fringe players

Author
Message
Joffa
Joffa
Legend
Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)

Group: Moderators
Posts: 66K, Visits: 0
Quote:

New Zealand friendly the last chance saloon for Aussie fringe players

* Doug Conway
* From: AAP
* May 21, 2010

MONDAY'S farewell friendly against New Zealand looms as the last clear chance for fringe Socceroos to impress coach Pim Verbeek before he wields his World Cup selection axe.

And there's a lot of blood-letting to do.

Verbeek must hack his 31-man squad back to 23 by the start of June.

Monday's MCG showdown against the All Whites is the last-chance saloon for eight players and not all of them will get game time.

Verbeek is still weighing up how much to use the match as an opportunity to experiment.

But the time for experimentation is running out, as he must name his final squad by June 1.

That's the day Australia plays the first of two warm-ups in South Africa, against Denmark and the US, ahead of the Group D opener against Germany in Durban on June 13.

"It's not about being a good or a bad player," says Verbeek.

"It's about the balance - how many midfielders, strikers, defenders do you take, what is each player's best position, how versatile they are."

The Dutchman has already decided on the three goalkeepers he will take to South Africa, plus 17 of the 20 outfield players.

In other words, the remaining 10 outfielders in camp in Melbourne are vying for three spots.

Competition is so intense that some Socceroos could play their World Cup at the MCG.

Others might not even be that lucky.

Fringe players like Mile Jedinak are bursting to stake their claims, even for a back-up berth.

Jedinak, who is in a tussle with Carl Valeri to play understudy to Vince Grella in the main defensive midfield role, tries to focus on himself and forget about the competition.

"I think everyone just goes about their business training hard and giving themselves every opportunity," he said.

"Carl is a great player who has done exceptionally when he has come in.

"I try to worry about my own business.

"People say it's between me and him but I try to focus on myself and hopefully I can stake my claim like that.

"The New Zealand game is a good opportunity for everyone to press their claim and try to impress the coach if his mind is not made up, which I'm sure it's not."

Asked if he had any inkling about the starting line-up, Jedinak said: "If you know anything could you tell me because I've got no idea."

Verbeek won't be risking Harry Kewell and must decide whether to give a hit-out to other players who have had injury problems, including Grella and Mark Bresciano.

He must also decide on who to try up front, big man Josh Kennedy or Scott McDonald, or perhaps both at different times.

New Zealand striker Rory Fallon has injected a lot of feeling into the game by stressing the Kiwis won't be holding anything back and there could be injuries as a result.

Jedinak agreed with Fallon one point.

"There is no such thing as a friendly game, I believe," he said.

"We will be taking the game seriously."

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/world-cup-2010/new-zealand-friendly-the-last-chance-saloon-for-aussie-fringe-players/story-fn4l5n4r-1225869774032

Riv of Canberra
Riv of Canberra
Pro
Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)Pro (3.3K reputation)

Group: Forum Members
Posts: 3.2K, Visits: 0
This is the line up I'd like to see, and why.

Federici - good to get capped now
Williams - test his injury niggle
Milligan - I'd like to compare him against Moore
Moore - I'd like to compare him against Milligan, and he needs the match fitness
Lowry - cap him and consider against Carney for 23
Valeri - compare him to Jedi for 23
Jedinak - compare him to Valeri for 23
Bresciano - test his injury and give him match fitness
Carle - give him a full match and see how he goes, and how he serves McDonald
Garcia - test his fitness
McDonald - give him another go in Pim's formation and see if he can adapt.

And I'd definitely rest key players like Kewell, Cahill, Neill and Scwarzie. Others safe are Chipperfield, Culina and Kennedy but I want to see others start against NZ to make final decisions on them. Shame I'm not a selector! And I'd bring Ruka and Vidosic on with at least 30 mins to go. I have both of these guys ahead of the likes of Garcia and McDonald but this could change.
Joffa
Joffa
Legend
Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)Legend (86K reputation)

Group: Moderators
Posts: 66K, Visits: 0
Quote:
Chris Wood in the frame to play

Last updated 05:00 22/05/2010

All Whites coach Ricki Herbert insists he is still mulling over three selections ahead of Monday's international against Australia in Melbourne, with two defensive spots and one up front on the line over the weekend.

Herbert's statement yesterday contradicted that of goalkeeper Mark Paston, who said earlier that the team had been made known in-house.

The coach, however, said "100 percent" it had not been finalised and he would not decide the makeup till after their final training run in Melbourne tomorrow night.

If Paston did let something slip, the safe bet would be on the same starting XI and 3-4-3 formation as the first leg qualifier against Bahrain in Manama last year.

That XI, or the blue team, spent the first real training hitout of the camp playing against the rest of the squad, the red team, at a water-logged North Harbour Stadium yesterday.

Skipper Ryan Nelsen was flanked by Ivan Vicelich and Ben Sigmund at the back, Tim Brown and Simon Elliott were in the middle of the park with Leo Bertos and Tony Lochhead as wingbacks, while Shane Smeltz, Chris Killen and Rory Fallon formed the front three.

If Herbert is considering changing that mix, the two players he would be looking to bring in at the back are the new boys, Winston Reid and Tommy Smith, who would displace Vicelich and Sigmund.

Up front, Herbert is itching to give 18-year-old West Bromwich Albion product Chris Wood a start and insists he is well in the frame for Australia, let alone the first World Cup match against Slovakia on June 15.

A month ago, Herbert said he believed Wood could be the All White to watch at the World Cup and the coach's belief in him is matched only by the strapping striker himself.

A standout as a substitute in both matches against Bahrain last year and having been touted by some as potentially our best striker since Wynton Rufer, Wood insisted there was no pecking order among the four strikers and if there was, he considered himself as No1, not No4.

There is no doubt the Hamiltonian has the confidence and talent to nudge one of the more experienced trio out of the lineup, and it seems a case of when, not if.

"He's right in the mix. It wouldn't surprise me to see him starting against Slovakia," Herbert said of Wood.

When asked if he could start on Monday, Herbert said: "There's a good chance. He's a real talent, we've been careful and cautious with him but I think it's time to cut that leash."

http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominion-post/sport/football/3726498/Chris-Wood-in-the-frame-to-play-Socceroos

GO


Select a Forum....























Inside Sport


Search