Football Ferns squad named for World Cup qualifiers in PNG October 25, 27, 29 (vs. Tonga, PNG, Cook Islands):
http://www.nzfootball.co.nz/index.php?id=11&tx_ttn...
10 play overseas, eight in NZ (six outfield players + the two goalies)
All the ten overseas players play in some of the top women's leagues in the world too (four in Germany, one in the latest incarnation of the US women's league, one in Sweden, two in England, two in Japan and Rosie White plays for the US national college champs UCLA in what is a very good league too).
Abby Erceg is playing in both the US and German leagues - she's listed by NZF as playing for USV Jena in Germany but is on loan there from her US club, Chicago, since it is the off-season in the US.
The qualifying tournament is being played in Kokopo, the capital of East New Britain province, the major one on the large New Britain island in PNG (island pop. about 500,000; Kokopo 20,000).
It's only been the provincial capital since 1994 when a volcanic eruption destroyed the previous one, Rabaul, 20 km away.
Rabaul and New Britain are famous from WWII when the Japanese invaded and the US landed there.
Described by US troops as one of the worst hell holes of the Pacific war (swamps and mosquitoes).
This is interesting from Wiki:
"New Britain was largely formed by volcanic processes, and there are several active volcanoes on the island, including Ulawun (the highest volcano in Papua New Guinea), Langila, the Garbuna Group, the Sulu Range, and the volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan of the Rabaul caldera. A major eruption of Tavurvur in 1994 destroyed the East New Britain provincial capital of Rabaul. Most of the town still lies under metres of ash, and the capital has been moved to nearby Kokopo."