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2007 - Training Camp | Allan Jones | John Herdman | Tournament Review | Tonga | Solomon Islands | Papua New Guinea
Tournament Review
China, Here We Come!!
by Jeremy Ruane
It's been sixteen long years since New Zealand last dined at the women's soccer world's top table, but in 2007, we're back!! And boy, does it feel good!
The records will show that the SWANZ swept aside their opposition, trouncing Tonga 6-1, slamming the Solomon Islands 8-0 and pummelling Papua New Guinea 7-0 to secure the sixteenth and final berth at the fifth FIFA Women's World Cup Finals later this year.
The scorelines don't tell the full story, however. There was a last-minute change to the squad before they left New Zealand, as Hayley Moorwood explains. “When we arrived at the airport, we discovered that Rachel Howard wouldn't be coming with us to PNG but would be flying to Wellington to be with her family, following a sudden bereavement.
“The news came as a shock to all of us, particularly Rachel, and it was very brave of her to meet with us at the airport before we went our separate ways. That was quite a sad moment for all of us, but I think the team came together really well for Rachel, and let her know that we were there for her”.
The squad were travelling in their tracksuits, and were struck by the intensity of the mid-thirty degree heat immediately upon arriving in PNG. But climate shock wasn't the only thing that was in store for the squad.
“It was a definite culture shock when we arrived”, says Moorwood. “The bus ride through to the Lae International Hotel was quite an experience, and nothing we really expected at all - we weren't sure what we were going to encounter afterwards.
“There was such poverty in the place. Just to look out and see kids running around doing their thing … a very eye-opening experience. It was just an entirely different culture, and a whole different lifestyle, with shacks for miles, even up in the hills.
“We had a funny experience on that trip. We had a van following us with our luggage, and along the way, we managed to lose some muesli bars - they actually fell off the van! Luckily none of the luggage fell off, but the muesli bars were gone within seconds - there was no claiming those back!!”
Wendi Henderson was the only member of the squad who had been to PNG previously, having been a member of the squad which won the Oceania qualifying tournament in 1991 in Port Moresby to progress to the inaugural Women's World Cup Finals later that year, also in China.
“She tried to assure us as to how it was”, recalls Moorwood, “but it's something you really have to experience for yourself. Given `Weed' said it had updated quite a bit since 1991, I don't think I'd have wanted to go there sixteen years ago!!
“We didn't really get outside the hotel - it's not like we experienced anything outside `the walls', I guess, but it was fun and a good experience - something different”.
SWANZ coach, John Herdman, endorses these sentiments. “It was a really enjoyable tour for the players and the staff. We wanted to go away with some good memories, and asked people to work hard on and off the pitch to realise that. Everyone pulled together really well throughout the course of the ten days to make it fun and enjoyable.
“The staff and I were very impressed with the players' willingness to build a strong culture, on and off the park”, he continues. “There are some really strong characters in this group, and when called upon to perform, everyone produced a good work ethic and performed strongly.
“There was a lot of competition for places, but when changes were made, that willingness to build a strong environment meant the culture remained strong, which was very pleasing. It's hard to single out individuals for these reasons, but Ria Percival showed a level of consistency which highlights her level of maturity at this level”.
It's a level which New Zealand's opponents couldn't match, and Moorwood is diplomacy personified in her assessment of the trio of island nations the SWANZ overcame en route to China.
“I didn't think our opponents were that much competition, to be honest. We attacked a lot, which is an area of our game we needed to work on, so I think it was good that we came up against opponents who helped us to become better at building ourselves towards playing higher-ranked opponents.
“It's been a long time since New Zealand scored some goals, let alone the twenty-one we got in the tournament”, declares the scorer of the SWANZ last goal of the qualifiers.
“It was really nice to get on the scoreboard, and it builds confidence in the team when we do score some goals, and there were some good ones - some great goals that came out of that tournament, so I think it was good to get the confidence back up in that way as well”.
Oceania's champions faced another opponent on the tour, however. “The heat was a huge factor”, declares the twenty-three-year-old midfielder. “We knew to hydrate all day, every day, and we were constantly going to the bathroom because we were hydrating, but nothing can prepare you for the heat that we had to play in.
“It was difficult, and I think it was a huge factor in the way that we played. In saying that, I think we really came through, and actually played at levels we wanted to perform at at times”.
Herdman chimes in. “The conditions were very dangerous and the players were well aware of them - it was a psychological threat in every game. Then, in the Solomon Islands match, Emily McColl suffered a seizure - that was my scariest moment as a coach”.
“She came on as a half-time substitute, and was popping up everywhere over the next fifteen or so minutes before the incident. I'm really pleased she came through OK”.
The coach was also pleased with how his charges overcame the elements. “As a group, representing their country meant sacrificing an awful lot in order to realise their dreams of qualifying for the Women's World Cup Finals. So I'm very proud of what they achieved in some really tough and trying conditions”.
The realisation of that dream came in the match against the host nation, and Moorwood is only too willing to recall a special moment in New Zealand women's soccer's history.
“We managed to get on top fairly early, and it was a good feeling to know we had four goals in thirty minutes - it relieved a lot of pressure. We relaxed a whole lot more as a result and decided to play around a little.
“It never really set in that we had qualified until the final whistle, but once it sounded, the celebrations afterwards were just incredible. We were jumping all
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 Champions of Oceania!
The New Zealand squad celebrates qualifying for China 2007
photo courtesy NZ Football
Details from the Oceania Women's World Cup qualifying tournament:
 Our Women's World Cup qualifiers tour guide, Hayley Moorwood
 Kirsty Yallop (nearest camera) and Wendi Henderson lead the way in a Lae training session, urged on by assistant coach Jill Gilmore
photo courtesy NZ Football
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over each other, screaming, yelling … everything you can imagine.
“It was such a good feeling to win the Oceania qualifying tournament - it's something New Zealand has only done once before. I was with the team in 2003 and it was a gut-wrenching moment when we lost to Australia, but this tour is just full of many happy moments - this one topped the lot”.
Now the hard work starts, for both players and coaching staff. And Helen Tunstall, NZ Soccer's Injury Prevention Officer, has her work cut out getting the players fit. “We've got a lot of work to do there”, states Herdman in no-nonsense fashion.
Moorwood agrees. “We really need to buckle down, train hard, work hard, and have the discipline to go out and build fitness - that's going to be a huge factor against the bigger teams. I think we're willing to work for it, though. Now that we've qualified, we're building towards the real deal - the World Cup. I think NZ will do well”.
As they have under Herdman's guidance, especially given the behind-the-scenes events which preceded the qualifiers. “Allan Jones' resignation was definitely unexpected”, reflects Moorwood, “but we players were confident that someone was going to come in and do just as well.
“That someone was John Herdman. I think he is a great coach, will do well, and did do well with us in PNG, where we had a great environment. We knew of him through the U20s, of course, but he came in really fresh, and it was a new thing for us - everyone adapted really well to him. In my opinion, everyone loves him as a coach”.
The coach also has his work cut out for him, as he's looking well beyond China 2007 … try the 2012 Olympics, in fact! “I want to work really hard towards laying a strong foundation for women's football in New Zealand”, declares Herdman. “The players are buying into the idea of using the Women's World Cup to create a fantastic foundation for the future.
“The key, which the senior players have identified, is delivering a legacy - this is the massive responsibility towards which I`ve referred previously. It's not just about qualifying, but laying down a strong international pathway, foundation and culture which supports the long-term future of the game”.
To that end, Herdman has some strategic goals in mind to achieve this objective. “Our short-term goal is China 2007, our medium-term goal is the 2008 Olympics, while long-term, the 2012 Olympics is our aim.
“The key is not to lose sight of the medium- and long-term future, while our attention is drawn towards this year's Women's World Cup Finals. For that competition, our goal is to go to China and try to create mayhem by causing some big upsets.
“Our prime objective at this World Cup is to be credible, and both credible and competitive at the 2008 Olympics. If we can start laying some strong foundations at this World Cup, the Olympic Games is something we can be competitive at”.
A key component of New Zealand's preparations for China 2007 sees the women playing their first home international since October 1998. And like all her team-mates, not to mention the women's soccer community at large, Moorwood is delighted with what is set down for Bill McKinlay Park from 3.30pm on Sunday, 27 May.
“I'm really looking forward to it. For as long as I've been on the NZ women's team - since 2003, I haven't played at home, so it's going to be a lot of fun. It's going to be good for the NZ women's football environment too, I think, to come out and see us play, and see what we can do.
“Our opponents are the University of North Carolina `Tar Heels', the top university in the USA, so they're a very good side - I've played against them with Virginia Commonwealth University, so I know how they play and what they're capable of. They're not an easy team at all, by any means.
“I think the NZ team will have a good game against them. I'm looking forward to it, if selected, and I'm looking forward to watching it if I'm not!! Whichever way, I'm looking forward to it!!”, she says with a chuckle.
The match isn't a cap-earning international - these are only awarded for appearances against other full national teams - but is just one of a number of matches the SWANZ will play prior to the Women's World Cup Finals. Included among them is a clash with the USA at Chicago's Soldier Field on August 12.
That is another match Moorwood and her colleagues will be keen to play in, and it goes without saying that being selected for the Finals themselves is an honour which will be much coveted by the twenty-one players (including three goalkeepers) John Herdman has to select.
If among the chosen ones, Moorwood intends to “see what I can do for the team, and play to what I believe is my best level - what I believe I can reach. The next few months will definitely help get me there. I'll definitely be training hard and working hard towards what I know I can perform at.
“From the team's perspective, it would be great to get one or two wins under our belts - not only qualify for China, but let the other teams know that New Zealand is a team that can play, has a lot of talent, and is up and coming at the same time”.
That won't be an easy task, given the draw has pitted the SWANZ against Brazil (currently ranked eighth), Denmark (sixth) and host nation China (eleventh) in September.
Ironically, New Zealand were drawn against both China and Denmark in the 1991 Finals, and they have since played the Chinese on five other occasions, most recently in November last year.
SWANZ international Maia Jackman has had even more recent experience of taking on the Women's World Cup Finals hosts, playing the entire second half as a member of the FIFA Women's World All Stars in the gala fixture which preceded the 2007 draw.
Moorwood is thrilled for her New Zealand team-mate. “Maia making the All Stars team is amazing. I think it's a huge, huge deal for NZ women's football - it's a huge inspiration. As soon as I found out about it, I couldn't help but be excited for her. I think I called her - or she called me - that day, and I couldn't tell her enough how cool it was that she was playing in the All Stars team.
“She's so humble about it, too - very humble, very unselfish”, she continued. “She seems to think that other players deserve it just as much as she does, but in my opinion, I'm really, really happy that it's been Maia, to be honest.
“She's worked very hard over the years, and she's been a great role model to many, myself included, over that time, so it's good to see her achieve something she definitely deserves, something for us all to aspire to”.
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