AUCKLAND – Four All Whites have been named but New Zealand has been robbed of promising Sunderland FC defender Jack Pelter in a blow to their bid for a place at the Beijing Olympic Games.
Injury has cruelly ruled Pelter and his Junior All Whites (U-20) team-mate Nick Roydhouse out of the March 1-9 Oceania Olympic Games qualifying tournament at Churchill Park in Lautoka,
Fiji.
University of Louisville defender Phil Edginton replaces Pelter who injured his ankle in his first training session back for Sunderland’s reserves after a lengthy spell out with a broken foot.
It is another setback for the Cantabrian who signed for the English premier league club after co-captaining New Zealand – and scoring their sole goal – at last year’s FIFA U-20 Men’s World Cup
in Canada.
Waikato FC playmaker Shaun Van Rooyen – one of 12 NZFC players selected in Stu Jacobs’ 20-man Oly-Whites squad – comes in for Roydhouse who broke a leg playing for YoungHeart Manawatu in the
national league on Waitangi Day.
Thai Airways All Whites squad members Daniel Ellensohn, Jacob Spoonley, Jeremy Brockie and Steven Old have been named but only Ellensohn has seen recent game-time for the senior national team.
Jacobs will coach the U-23 Oly-Whites with All Whites and Wellington Phoenix boss Ricki Hebert seeking a release from the role to concentrate on his national team and A-League commitments.
The Oly-Whites open their campaign against hosts Fiji on March 1 – a tough start to the round-robin tournament where the winner (providing final signoff is granted by the Oceania champion’s
respective Olympic Committee) earns automatic entry into the 16-nation men’s draw for Beijing.
It is understood at least some of the nine players fined and booted off Fiji’s Olympic squad for breaking a team curfew recently have been reinstated by the Fijian FA.
Fiji will be especially confident after an encouraging camp in Queensland earlier this month where they overpowered Brisbane Olympic 3-2, Brisbane Strikers 4-1, Palm Beach XI 5-1 and Runaway
Bay XI 7-0 in an unbeaten build-up tour.
The Oly-Whites preparation will remain on-shore with a 10-day camp at the Millennium Institute on Auckland’s North Shore from Monday before the squad departs for Fiji on February 27.
It promises to be a busy time for Jacobs who has guided Team Wellington into playoff contention for the NZFC. Shortly after he returns from the desired Olympic date in Beijing in August, Jacobs
will be charged with guiding the Junior All Whites to back-to-back FIFA U-20 World Cups.
New Zealand has never qualified for the Olympics, narrowly dipping out to now Asian-aligned Australia for a place at the 2004 Athens Games. Olympic qualifying football is played by U-23 teams
with three over-age players permitted at the Games proper.
.
The other participating nations at next month’s Oceania qualifiers are Cook Islands, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
Meanwhile, Football Ferns coach John Herdman is expected to announce his senior women’s squad shortly for the one-off, winner takes all Olympic women’s qualifier against PNG in Port Moresby on
March 8.
In other news, the All Whites have climbed four spots to 90th in the latest FIFA world rankings.
Oly-Whites squad for Oceania Olympic Men’s Qualifying tournament at Churchill Park, Lautoka, Fiji from March 1-9.
Goalkeepers: Jacob Spoonley (Wellington Phoenix), Liam Little (Otago United), Michael O’Keeffe (Canterbury United).
Defenders: Aaron Scott (Waikato FC), Steven Old (Wellington Phoenix), Michael Boxall (University of Santa Barbara), Phil Edginton (University of Louisville), Cole Tinkler (Team Wellington),
Joel Mathews (Auckland City), Hone Fowler (Waikato FC).
Midfielders: Jason Hayne (Waitakere United), Jeremy Brockie (Hawke’s Bay United), Cole Peverley (Hawke’s Bay United), Craig Henderson (Dartmouth College), Shaun Van Rooyen (Waikato FC), Dan
Keat (Dartmouth College).
Strikers: Greg Draper (Wellington Phoenix), Costa Barbarouses (Wellington Phoenix), Daniel Ellensohn (Team Wellington), Sam Messam (Hawke’s Bay United).
Management team – Coach: Stu Jacobs (Team Wellington). Assistant/Goalkeeping coach: Jonathan Gould (Hawke’s Bay United). Trainer: Andy Smith (Team Wellington). Manager: Jim Hogg. Doctor:
Celeste Geerstema. Physiotherapist: Roland Jeffery. Massage therapist: Wade Irvine.
Saturday, 1 March 2008 – Match Day 1
14:00 (3pm NZT) New Zealand v Fiji
16:30 (4.30 NZT) Cook Islands v Vanuatu
19:00 (8pm NZT) Papua New Guinea v Solomon Islands
Monday, 3 March 2008 – Match Day 2
14:30 (3.30 NZT) Solomon Islands v Cook Islands
17:00 (5pm NZT) Fiji v Papua New Guinea
19:30 (8.30 NZT) Vanuatu v New Zealand
Wednesday, 5 March 2008 – Match Day 3
14:30 (3.30 NZT) Fiji v Cook Islands
17:00 (6pm NZT) Papua New Guinea v New Zealand
19:30 (8.30 NZT) Solomon Islands v Vanuatu
Friday, 7 March 2008 – Match Day 4
14:30 (3.30 NZT) New Zealand v Solomon Islands
17:00 (6pm NZT) Cook Islands v Papua New Guinea
19:30 (8.30 NZT) Vanuatu v Fiji
Sunday, 9 March 2008 – Match Day 5
12:00 (1pm NZT) Cook Islands v New Zealand
14:30 (3.30 NZT) Vanuatu v Papua New Guinea
17:00 (6pm NZT) Solomon Islands v Fiji
Story courtesy of New Zealand Football. For more information visit www.nzsoccer.com