Head coach Des Buckingham is pleased with the way his New Zealand U-23 men are tracking ahead of their bid to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics and is hoping to see further significant steps taken tonight against Australia.

Buckingham and his side are currently across the Tasman putting the finishing touches to their preparations for the Olympic qualifiers and part of their build-up includes a pair of matches against the old foes, the first of which resulted in a promising 1-1 draw on Friday night in Wollongong.

“Friday was a good game with both teams showcasing what they are capable of doing and we will be looking for more of the same tonight,” Buckingham says.

“We have built a strong identity over recent months, focusing on who we are and what we are capable of doing. There is a lot of belief and trust in our players, who are encouraged to express their abilities in a positive and supportive environment. This will be the same for our second game against Australia and I am really looking forward to watching us play again.”

Buckingham is able to call on the services of several players with senior All Whites experience and one of these, midfielder Clayton Lewis, was the goal-scoring hero three days ago.

After a scoreless first half, New Zealand had fallen behind to a Riley McGree strike just before the hour but Lewis stepped up to pull his side level in spectacular fashion soon after. The 22-year-old is yet to appear for Scunthorpe United in the early stages of the English season but showed no signs of rustiness when curling home a perfectly-placed free kick.

The Kiwis went onto to share the spoils with an Australian squad packed full of Hyundai A-League experience, continuing a recent run of momentum that bodes well for their prospects of making it to Tokyo 2020.

“We have been able to continue building on the past 18 months of work, both on and off the field, that includes the success at the U-20 World Cup and then the recent gold medal at the Pacific Games,” Buckingham says.

“The performance was pleasing and to be only the third team to get a result against Australia at this level is a credit to the playing group.”

While Buckingham is focused more on a progression in performance, to go one better and earn a victory in Campbelltown tonight would be a moment to savour as such successes against Australia have not come easily to New Zealand footballers in recent memory.

Only one victory has ever been claimed by New Zealand at U-23 level – a famous 1-0 triumph in Adelaide back in 1996 – while a 1-1 draw took place in Auckland in 2004.

At senior level, the All Whites last got the better of Australia in 2002, Ryan Nelsen scoring the winner at Mt Smart Stadium.

Prior to Friday’s draw, the most recent encounter between the nations came in the female game, the Football Ferns being edged out 2-0 in Sydney last February during their preparations for the FIFA Women’s World Cup.

With the OFC Men’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament – to be held in Fiji from 21 September – now only days away, Buckingham says another game against a side of Australia’s quality is the ideal preparation and that another pleasing performance would be a timely confidence boost. 

“To play against a strong Australian team, consisting of just less than 700 A-League appearances across their selected squad, is a really good test for us and will help hugely in the upcoming qualification campaign,” he says.

The match is available to watch via live streaming, to view please click here

Match Details

Australia U-23 vs New Zealand U-23
Monday 9 September, 7.30pm (9.30pm NZT)
Campbelltown Sports Stadium, Campbelltown
For live streaming please click here

New Zealand (from): 1. Cameron Brown (GK), 2. Jordan Spain, 3. Robert Tipelu, 4. Hunter Ashworth, 5. George Stanger, 6. Dane Schnell, 7. Myer Bevan, 8. Jake Porter, 9. Max Mata, 10. Clayton Lewis, 11. Oliver Whyte, 12. Conor Tracey (GK), 13. James McGarry, 14. William Jones, 15. Sean Liddicoat, 16. Gianni Stensness, 17. Logan Rogerson, 18. Lachlan McIsaac, 19. Noah Billingsley, 20. Dylan de Jong, 21. Aidan Munford (GK)

Article added: Monday 09 September 2019