UNDEFEATED

UNDEFEATED

The Incredible Story of the 2010 All Whites

November 17, 2010

When the All Whites qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup� by beating Bahrain in front of a sell out crowd in Wellington, the public of New Zealand was euphoric - and stunned. It had been 28 years since we last qualified, and since then we hadn�t come close.

As delighted as all Kiwis were that night, the general consensus was that the All Whites, placed at 78th in the FIFA rankings, wouldn�t get far when they arrived in South Africa in seven months time to take on the world. And the rest of the world held the All Whites in even less regard. As the pools were announced, confirming the World Champions, Italy, amongst New Zealand�s opponents, the international press expressed its doubts about the team�s prospects.

So as the team assembled in New Zealand from their clubs around the World to prepare for the build up matches that marked the start of the campaign, it�s fair to say not many �experts� were rating their chances.

But the Kiwi public didn�t care; hell, we were ecstatic to be going to the World Cup again. So when the team left for Melbourne for the first match against Australia, the turn-out to send them off from Sky City was huge, the biggest a New Zealand Football team had ever seen. Thousands came, lining up for hours to meet the players they had last seen beating Bahrain and who, as it turned out, were on their way to becoming dead-set Kiwi sporting heroes.

And so, with quiet, determined, management from coach Ricki Herbert and inspirational on-the-field leadership from arguably New Zealand�s greatest footballer, Ryan Nelsen, the All Whites took on some of the best teams at the world�s biggest sporting event, and came away undefeated.

Undefeated is behind the scenes story of the All Whites incredible 2010 FIFA World Cup� campaign. Containing never-seen-before footage shot by the players and the crew that travelled with the team through their 2010 FIFA World Cup� campaign along with action from the key matches and insightful interviews.

Undefeated tells the whole story, from the beginnings of Herbert�s time as All Whites coach through to the players reflections on one of the greatest achievements at the 2010 FIFA World Cup�.

See the team assemble and dispatch Bahrain, hear match winner Rory Fallon�s private thoughts before the game.  Follow the team to Australia for the brutal match-up against the Socceroos. See players joy in beating Serbia in Austria, then travel to the luxurious Serengeti Resort in Johannesburg. Hear from the players in vivid detail how Winston Reid kept the dream alive in the final minute against Slovakia, see the players own footage of the dressing room celebrations after the epic draw against World Champions Italy, and witness the raw emotion of the final match draw against Paraguay and then come to grips with the realisation of what the team achieved.

Witness for yourself, from the behind the scenes, a story that if it was told twelve months ago no-one would have believed. No-one, that is, except the All Whites themselves.

I have some passes to the Thursday Wgtn premier of this to give away. All you need to do is tell me what White Noise tour member jumped into the security net to the ire of armed security guards during post Paraguay match celebrations? Email aw@yellowfever.co.nz

Andy Barron and James Bannatyne on Good Morning yesterday.

I'm not sure if it's already been mentioned, but I just found this teaser: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/video.cfm?c_id=4&gal_cid=4&gallery_id=115822