Leaders wanted
andrew.voerman@stuff.co.nz
All Whites coach Fritz Schmid is looking for leaders.
He will have to give the captain’s armband to at least one of the 23 players he has selected for the Intercontinental Cup in India, and perhaps two or three, depending how things unfold and whether he opts for wholesale rotation at some stage, with three matches in five days (four in eight if they make the final).
Defender Tom Doyle and midfielder Tim Payne, two of the more experienced players in the squad, and two who started Schmid’s first game in charge, a loss to Canada in March, appear the most likely options, though there could yet be a surprise in store when the chosen one is unveiled later this week, ahead of Sunday’s (2.30am NZT) match against Kenya.
But while protocol dictates one man wears an extra bit of kit, exchanges a pennant before the game, and takes part in a coin toss to determine which end of Mumbai Football Arena the two teams will play towards – and, it should be said, gets the honour of leading his country – Schmid wants to see leadership from the wider group.
He didn’t name a captain when revealing his squad last Friday, and asked for ‘‘a little bit more time to decide,’’ when he was questioned about it.
‘‘I think it won’t be the first priority, to identify a captain,’’ Schmid said.
‘‘Obviously you also want to observe the group, how they get into it.
‘‘We have already had some nice moments where you can observe who is now in this new group taking responsibility, stepping forward and making a move, so I think that will come in due time.
‘‘We’ll have someone to exchange the flags before the game, and then I hope I have some players taking a bit more responsibility, even if they don’t have the captain’s [armband].’’
On a tour where more than half a dozen of New Zealand’s top players are missing – using last year’s World Cup qualifying playoff loss to Peru as a benchmark – the impressions those present leave could mean everything for their chances of being called up down the line, when the likes of Winston Reid, Ryan Thomas and Chris Wood are back in the mix.
Young players stepping up and taking responsibility will be crucial in India, a country well-travelled former All White Kris Bright once described as the toughest place he’d played.
Reports from those who were there for the under-17 World Cup last October give a similar impression, and there will be surely be times when the heat is on – literally, with temperatures set to be in excess of 30 degrees Celsius, even with kickoffs scheduled for 8pm local time. When those times come, Schmid will get a good sense of who is and who isn’t made of the right stuff.
Doyle, four seasons into a professional career with the Wellington Phoenix, where he has been part of the leadership group, and Payne, the most-capped player in the squad, would both be solid choices as captain, especially as they are likely starters in Schmid’s 4-2-3-1 formation.
Midfielder Clayton Lewis wore the armband at last year’s under-20 World Cup, but it might be too soon for him to perform the role for the senior team.
Reid was the All Whites’ official captain throughout former coach Anthony Hudson’s tenure, though as he was often injured or unavailable, it usually fell to Wood to do the job. Michael Boxall was captain for Schmid’s first game in charge, but club commitments kept him from this trip.