The All Whites are confirmed to play against the Republic of Ireland in November this year. The Fritz Schmid-coached team will take on the World No 33 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin in an international friendly ‪on Thursday 14 November.

It will be the first international friendly played between New Zealand and the Republic of Ireland. The OFC Nations Cup champions, who are confident to confirm further friendlies for the March international window soon, will look to build on Schmid’s first year in charge of the national team.

The World No 122 competed at the Hero Intercontinental Cup in India in June. The All Whites managed consecutive wins over Chinese Taipei and India, the first back-to-back wins against non-Oceania opposition in 12 years.

Schmid expressed his satisfaction of being offered a benchmark test against a world-class opponent in the Republic of Ireland.

The Swiss also reaffirmed his ambition to secure further international fixtures, besides another European-based game in the November international window, to offer his young team extensive international exposure through a complete match calendar for this important year.

New Zealand will hope they are heading to Ireland after securing their qualification for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The OFC U-23 Championship will be staged in September and October in Fiji with a place in the Tokyo Olympics going to the winner.

Article added: Friday 18 January 2019