Olywhites make late personnel change
Des Buckingham has been forced to make a late change ahead of the OFC Olympic qualifying tournament, with forward Callum Mccowatt opting to stay with the Wellington Phoenix.
The national under-23 men’s team left for Fiji yesterday, where it is looking to secure a place at the Tokyo Olympics by winning the final on October 5.
Buckingham said Mccowatt had informed him of the decision last Friday.
‘‘He wanted to make sure he put himself in the best position to start the A-league season with the Phoenix, so we made a move to bring Jordan Spain in and Jordan’s now joined the squad.’’
With Mccowatt remaining behind to try to secure a place in Phoenix coach Ufuk Talay’s firstchoice XI, Buckingham has lost an attacking option, but in calling up Spain, a fullback, he has signalled Noah Billingsley could be used in the front three instead of at right back, where he played in the team’s recent friendlies against Australia.
Myer Bevan and Logan Rogerson are the senior forwards in the 20-strong squad, having each made a handful of appearances for the All Whites. There is also Phoenix teenager Ben Waine, so Buckingham will have no shortage of firepower at his disposal.
The Olywhites have been drawn with Samoa and American Samoa, who they face in their first two matches and should beat comfortably, as well as the Solomon Islands.
Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu are the main contenders in the other group.
‘‘We want to go there and qualify for Tokyo and we want to go there and play football our way,’’ Buckingham said on Tuesday, as the team completed its preparations in Auckland.
‘‘We’ve spoken a lot in recent months about our identity and who we are, and that doesn’t change whether we’re in the islands for qualification or at a World Cup or playing friendlies like we did against Australia.
‘‘It’s very much about us and how we play and we’ll continue to do that in the Olympic qualifiers.’’
While Mccowatt opted to stay with the Phoenix, fullbacks Liberato Cacace and Callan Elliot arrived in camp on Tuesday
alongside Waine, knowing that if all goes to plan, they won’t be back in New Zealand until October 6, a week out from their A-league season opener against Western United.
The presence of the Phoenix trio, as well as fellow pros Clayton Lewis, Gianni Stensness and Ollie Whyte, makes the Kiwis firm favourites to claim the sole place in Tokyo on offer.