All Whites v Socceroos Match Thread

Put yer handbags away boys.

Will be a great game... thought would have been better in Brissy, or Sydney where there's a much larger Kiwi population.

It'll be great at the G nonetheless, and there will be a few more than 20,000 of your bestest mates to see it too DS.

A few of us here will go over as well... it is only the West Island after all!

I wouldn't expect Western Samoa's greatest export OR the latest winner of Turkish Idol to play tho... certainly no more than a 20 minute cameo to keep the natives from getting too restless... we'll see.

As for the result: 2-1 to the Ockeroos!

Fark!

It's on March 24... I'll be in Brissy anyway!!!


Result   

its may 24 - mis-print in some reports which say march 24

I'll still be there!... and yeah, the crowd will be fine.

btw - think you guys are being a bit harsh on DS.

He thinks Aussie can win the World Cup. He deserves what he gets.

I remember is Singing "Were gonna win the cup" after our win....


Looks like i'll have to make the trip to Melbourne I never wanted to make.

TBH Diego Son said no one will care about this game as soon as we get to Africa, if we win I will remember the day for ever. Regardless of what happens in Africa.

Hmm, would do you guys think... Go to this or a Nix v Melbourne game?

Will Nix fans suffer a brain melt, cheering on a team with Smeltz and McGlinchey against a team with Durante and McKain? 

Quote from NZF website. "Glading said it was a case of �watch this space� for more announcements on plans for the game in New Zealand."

I assume this is refer to TV coverage, training sessions etc, and not another game in NZ.

Looks like flights are around $500-600 return

Will this be a B team as english/euro players wont be released?

Its in the international window, Boro.

http://au.fourfourtwo.com/news/122999,verbeek-kiwis-are-worth-opponents.aspx

Verbeek: Kiwis Are Worth Opponents

Feb 21 2010 13:12

SOCCEROOS coach Pim Verbeek insists New Zealand's All Whites are worth opponents for Australia's final farewell game on May 24 before heading off to the World Cup.

The Roos will meet the Kiwis at Melbourne Cricket Ground - and Football Federation Australia hopes to match the 90,000 crowd that farewell Australia against Greece before the 2006 World Cup.

But there has been an air of disappointment about the choice of New Zealand as the opponents for the final game, with many hoping to see a bigger nation or one more similar to the style Australia will face in South Africa.

Pim Verbeek today backed the match and promised a spectacle for supporters.

"New Zealand are a FIFA World Cup qualified country, they play more-or-less a European style of football and there is a nice rivalry between our two teams that goes back many years," Verbeek said.

"We are expecting a very competitive match against the All Whites and it will be a great way for us to start our pre-tournament camp.

"The match will not only be an opportunity for the fans to farewell the Qantas Socceroos, but also for us to say thank you to the fans for supporting us through the qualification campaign."

The Socceroos squad is expected be the full strength World Cup line-up and will include their biggest names such as captain Lucas Neill, Tim Cahill, Harry Kewell and Mark Schwarzer.

"This is a great opportunity for Australian sports fans to fill the stadium with green and gold to send the team off to the FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa in grand style," said FFA CEO Ben Buckley.

"A wonderful tradition started in 2006 when a huge crowd saw a fantastic game of football and showed to the Qantas Socceroos that they had the whole country behind them before they left to take on the world in Germany.

"The anticipation around the 2010 is building rapidly and the fact that New Zealand has qualified for the FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa adds to the excitement."

I was talking about the rest of the world. Think globlally son. Your individual actions and thoughts are yors, I'm talking about the rest of the world when I made that comment,

I'll definitely be making the trip from Sydney to watch this! Will be awesome!

Thanks Sam.

1 or 2 people have suggested around the traps that this game is a sweetener for Oceania's vote for the World Cup, but I'm don't necessarily hold that view. But I'll throw the theory here for discussion anyway.

diego's son2010-02-21 16:04:29

Looks like I'll have to take the heat here for that one. All good fun.

i'm gonna ask for leave tomorrow at work, I really wanna go, anyone from Auckland going?

Before the last World Cup OZ played Greece at the MCG and got 90000

You really are an obnoxious prick?

Dutante and McKain are not good enough to get in the Australian team.

nope lol

yes he is. He thinks he's the man. Lets just ignore the boy.

lol.

waaah waaah waaah.

haters gonna hate.

I think you are right.
Cheers

Guaranteed sell out that game was, how many Greek-blooded people are there in Melbourne?

Similar to when Australia played Italy at the MCG for the 2000 Olympics - 93,000 went that night.

Some people here are also viewing it as a cash-generating exercise from the FFA Addicks. NZ's "appearance fee"comapred to some Euro or Sth American nations wouldn't have been that great. Either that, or there's something going on behind closed doors that none of us know about.

Like no one better wanting to come down? Its an issue we encoutered, too.

ALSO (to keep you guys in the loop, and note the authors also, 2 biggest rugby fanatics apparently; no-one heer can stand either Phil or Rebecca):

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/pims-parting-snub-for-all-sydney-fans/story-e6freye0-1225832582950

Pim's parting snub for all Sydney fans <!-- google_ad_section_end(name=story_line) --> <!-- // .story-line -->

COACH Pim Verbeek has robbed Sydney fans of the opportunity of farewelling the Socceroos in Sydney before leaving for the World Cup in South Africa. <!-- google_ad_section_end(name=story_introduction) --> <!-- // .story-intro --> <!-- google_ad_section_start(name=story_, weight=high) -->

ANZ Stadium at Homebush had been tentatively booked for the weekend of May 22-23 for the Socceroos to play the New Zealand All Whites in a game that would have raised $3 million for Australian soccer. In a further sign that the coach has even more influence than Ben Buckley or Frank Lowy, Verbeek vetoed the game because he didn't want his stars suffering any bumps or bruises.

All the Socceroos stars will be in Australia at the time for a training camp before leaving for South Africa, and the Kiwis were keen for the game to go ahead. A crowd of 60,000 would have raised $3 million in gate takings for Australian soccer at a time when the code is increasing costs every season for juniors to play the game.

200 countries on the planet play the game, so either way, whether you guys or Oz wanted a 'home' match, something is up.

Anything over $50 for tickets and this match is a flop. Melbourne public won't go for it.
diego's son2010-02-22 00:06:59

If the FFA market this correctly, they will get 80k to the game. I mean we got around that for a dead rubber against Japan... I was in Wellington for the Bahrain game, and would love to meet up with any White Noise fans who come to Melbourne for this game.

Paul, if you're part of the Green and Gold Army can you tell your boys to stop trying to sell those crap scarves for $30. For the FFA to get the crowd you tipped above, ticket prices would have to be really cheap (say $15-20, which won't happen).

I'll repeat, THIS GAME WILL NOT WORK ON A MONDAY NIGHT IN LATE MAY AT THE MELBOURNE CRICKET GROUND.

Period.

I don't really care for the GGA merchandise...

FMD! I think I'll retire now based on that. And as for Melbourne "top 3 sporting cities in the World", we see good and bad in everything. We're not goingto turn up just because something is on.

$120 tickets for this game and your buddies at the GGA can have 1 bay only, much like your minimal support you guys had with your section at the Oman game.

GGA is irrelevant now anyway.

That's a cop-out DS. We're not playing this game for the world - it's an Oz v NZ game, and they always have a meaning. At least for us.