Does anyone know why this squad has 20 when the recent 20's had 18 for the qualifiers?
Because 3 x Western Suburbs players in the original 18 selection are wanting to play in Chatham Cup final which is same day as 1st pool game.
All are midfielders so can't just go without replacing them as not enough cover. NZFootball typically budget for 18 players for these, but allowed 20 under tournament rules.
Western Suburbs came to an agreement with NZ football to pay for 2 flights if the boys could join the team on the 10th.
There was an article about it a few days after the semi.