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Hosting Announcement
U-17 Finals The Icing On Women's Soccer's Cake
by Jeremy Ruane
These are definitely special times for New Zealand's women's soccer fraternity to savour.
There's the appointment of the New Zealand game's most experienced coach, Allan Jones, as the National Women's squad's mentor, for instance.
Or the realisation of a dream in not only qualifying for the U-20 Women's World Cup Finals, but performing highly creditably on the ultimate stage as well - make no mistake, the scoreless draw with third place-getters Brazil in Russia ranks as New Zealand's best-ever result in world football, at any level and embracing either gender.
Then there's the potential for the not-too-distant future to consider, with the senior squad embarking on their twin quests of qualifying for and being competitive at both the 2007 Women's World Cup Finals in China, and the 2008 Olympic Women's Football Tournament in Beijing, which takes place soon after the U-20 Finals in Chile.
Little wonder, with so much to play for inside the next two years, and a world ranking of 23 (out of 134) comparing decidedly favourably with the All Whites' 131 (out of 205), that people from all spheres of the game are suddenly finding female football fashionable, having come to realise the potential of an aspect of the code this writer has been following for twenty years.
Welcome aboard, folks - what's taken you so long?
For those who've served the women's game over a lengthy period of time, the news that New Zealand will host the inaugural U-17 Women's World Cup Finals in 2008, as announced by FIFA President Sepp Blatter at around 2.20am on Saturday, September 16, is wildest dreams come true material.
Securing this tournament is the icing on the cake for the women's game in this country, but it didn't come easily, as NZ Soccer's Head of Women's Football, Michele Cox, the lady responsible for the compilation and submission of the hosting bid, explains.
“The month leading up to Russia was very busy, and quite stressful, as we needed to submit our bid, which equates to two telephone books size-wise, prior to departing in early August.
“During this time, Sue Batty, with U-20s matters, and Tracy Brady, with the bid, provided tremendous support, and it's fantastic that all the work that has gone into stating our case to FIFA has come to fruition”.
Cox openly acknowledges the role the U-20s squad unwittingly played in Russia. “You can't underestimate the impact the team had on a number of influential people at the finals, both on and off the pitch. They could see that we're an up-and-coming nation through the girls' efforts, and that definitely aided our cause.
“The finals will be something people won't want to miss out on, that's for certain”, she continues. “The standard of football in Russia was outstanding, yet the crowd sizes there were very poor. Thus one of our key objectives will be getting people into the stadiums to watch the action.
“Another is that this is the first-ever U-17 Women's
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POTENTIAL STARS OF 2008
 Rebecca Brown (Auckland)
 Hannah Wall (Wellington)
 Danielle McFadyen (Auckland)
 Lauren Mathis (North Harbour)
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World Cup Finals, and New Zealand is hosting it. It's a chance for us to set the standard for future tournaments, while leaving a legacy for New Zealand football, one which we hope no-one will forget.
“Above all, I think it's going to be a fantastic tournament for us, not just in terms of hosting the event, but just as importantly, on a competitive level as well”.
Twenty-eight of the likely candidates to make up the New Zealand U-17 Women's squad in 2008 will be in Sydney between September 29 and October 7 for some international experience against yet-to-be-confirmed opposition.
Coached by Maurice Tillotson and Lesley Letcher, with assistance from Cathleen Bias (Manager), Helen Tunstall (Sports Science) and Maia Jackman (Physio), the squad consists of:
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