ALL WHITES V BAHRAIN - Official 1st Leg T

12.5 ?

Well last time i'll comment in here till tomorrow Come on the All Whites, hoping next time i logging the stories on the home page are happy ones. Fingers crossed for a 2-1 win.

Make the most of Manama match says Macala Friday, 09 October 2009 15:45 MANAMA � Bahrain coach Milan Macala believes it is vital for his side to make the most of playing at home in the first leg of their 2010 FIFA World Cup play-off when they tackle New Zealand at Bahrain National Stadium on Saturday.

Just 180 minutes stands between the two sides and a place in South Africa with that prize proving equally important for both nations.

Bahrain have never featured at a World Cup before while New Zealand�s solitary appearance came 28 years ago.

Macala�s side has shown incredible spirit and togetherness to get to where they are now and the Czech coach has asked for one more push from his players to secure a place on football�s most prestigious stage.

"The spirit of our players is high and we will fight until the end to qualify for the World Cup," said Macala (pictured).

"We don't want to lose this precious chance and we will fight for it.

"Playing at home in the first leg is very important for us because we want to see the support of our fans which will help the players a lot to have a good result.�

While Bahrain are competent on home soil, New Zealand have proven they are no pushovers on their travels having beaten Jordan 3-1 in Amman in a recent friendly.

Bahrain lost out at the final hurdle for a place at the 2006 World Cup in Germany and Macala insists his side will be taking nothing for granted as they look to avoid a repeat of such heartache.

"We respect New Zealand and we usually don't underestimate any opponents," he added.

"We have prepared very well and we know a lot of information about them which will help us in the game.

�We should never underestimate them and hopefully we can figure out their weaknesses and strengths. We have studied them well and hopefully our preparations will be good to meet what we can expect from the game.�

The All Whites arguably have a number of players that on paper should prove stronger than their Bahrain counterparts with Blackburn's Ryan Nelsen joined by A-League top-scorer Shane Smeltz and Celtic�s Chris Killen.

Reports in New Zealand suggest coach Ricki Herbert could employ an ambitious attacking formation with Smeltz, Killen and Plymouth striker Rory Fallon all handed starts.

And skipper Nelsen admits the two games pose a different challenge to that what which he is used to in the English Premier League on a weekly basis.

"The Premier league is constant, it's week in week out," he said.

"You generally know your opposition, the stadiums you play in and the surroundings. It's like your job, but this is a one-off sort of thing. It's a do or die situation in that you can't go out next week and get the three points back. It means everything."

will peeps be on here during the game.

most likely. If i'm up il go on it on my phone

NZ's so excited its shaking! anyone feel the earthquake?

No. For i shall be at the pub.

Oh yes.

Hard news fell over

It was massive shook the whole house. And it was very loud.

 

Bring on Jimmy Bannatyne if we won't this.

Most weird. Outside on the Barbie (sunny here in Brooklyn, YR), and heard a low-roaring sound followed by a very shrp jolt.

Took my mind off the football for 5 minutes anyway. Can't believe how all encompassing this bloody tie is!

Just so you know, I didn't feel it in CHCH.  I acutally didn't know you were all being serious til I went to offtopic

Whoo are you seriously 22???

De Jong's commentary might be available in English

Handy page for people wanting to tune in overseas:  http://nzfootball.co.nz/plugins/newsfeed.cgi?rm=content&plugin_data_id=28896

If TV3 don't have anything on it tonight... (Currently talking about the extremely popular Ironman, wonder if they will play highlights of it over Live A-League?)

wheres Gourdie? is it his fault for this?

Man, getting pretty excited about the game farken!

I heard he is away, couldn't of picked a worse time though.

His honeymoon i believe.  THat Cheeseman guy is a footy nut. Can't see why he isn't instructed to do some stuff

 

If you're up?

Huge fail SBStefan2009-10-10 18:59:20

Right, I'm goneski.  See you on the other side.  C'mon All Whites!!

Jst qualified for the WC on FM. it's a sign. lost 3-2 away from home and won 3-1 @ home. Smeltz getting 4 of the 5!  

 

try the candle - light a candle, then bung it up your ring hole. When the candle burns all the way down, it's wake up time.

 

Only way I make to work on time

Nz Seb2009-10-10 19:35:40

disappointed no final build up coverage from tv1. not one mention.. CMON ALL WHITES

C'MON ALL WHITES!

yes only 8 hours to kick off
it's like the Singapore play-off

I don't mean to be a nervous pervous

They only have half a stadium, lads will think they are at North Harbour.

Just seen the team. McGlinchey is far better than Brown will ever be.
Our weakness is our defending flanks, this is where we could get punnished.