When the All Whites stunned the world
A decade ago this month, the All Whites were on the way to finishing as the only undefeated team at the Fifa World Cup in South Africa. In the first of a three-part series, Tony Smith looks back at what it was like to be there for one of New Zealand sport
The vuvuzelas’ deafening din may have, mercifully, receded, but reveries of one of New Zealand sport’s most magical moments remain, 10 years after the All Whites’ famous draw with World Cup champions Italy.
That barmy, balmy night in Nelspruit – June 20, 2010 – still ranks alongside Sir Edmund Hillary scaling Mt Everest and two gold medals in an hour on the Olympic Games track as unmatched highlights.
How, you may ask, can a 1-1 stalemate in a Fifa World Cup pool game be bigger than All Blacks or Silver Ferns’ World Cup victories, or more mind-blowing than Jonah Lomu trampling Englishmen on his path to the tryline?
Easy – the All Whites’ achievement had a far greater global reach. Football is the world’s biggest sport and everyone loves a David v Goliath story.
An offside goal to the All Whites. A dodgy penalty after the most dramatic performance by an Italian since Romeo wooed Juliet. A string of sensational saves by Mark Paston. World-class defending and leadership by Ryan Nelsen. A pointmaking substitution by Ricki Herbert. This game had it all.
No-one was expecting New Zealand to beat Italy with four 2006 World Cup winners in their starting lineup and another four on the bench. That didn’t stop born-again Christian striker Rory Fallon confidently asserting the power of prayer would get New Zealand through to the second round, leading Auckland sportswriter Chris Rattue to dryly declare: ‘‘But doesn’t Italy have a lot of Catholics?’’
Italy’s star midfielder Daniele De Rossi (more of him in a later ‘act’) put the clash into pre-match perspective. ‘‘Not qualifying for the second round would be a complete failure [for Italy]. It would be like the All Blacks going out in the first round of the Rugby World Cup.’’
Italy’s Serie A superstars were worth $330 million on the international transfer market. New Zealand had a shallow pool of 25 professional footballers. Only Nelsen – Blackburn Rovers’ skipper – and former Fulham midfielder Simon Elliott had played regularly at the highest level.
Just getting to Nelspruit (Mbombela) in Mpumalanga province was a mission. The Kiwi media posse set off from Johannesburg before dawn in a van with a driver and a security adviser. Hundreds of All Whites fans also made the four-hour bus journey.
A Motueka AFC flag fluttered in the Mbombela Stadium stands. Fans had no sooner settled in their seats when the All Whites scored.
An early Italy goal could have led to a rout. Instead it was the Azzurri fishing the ball from their net. Nelsen and Elliott had convinced their team-mates that while the Italians were technically better the All Whites were bigger, faster and tougher. The new-found confidence was starting to play off.
The All Whites won a seventhminute freekick. Up stepped Elliott – 36 years old and without a club contract – to curl the ball towards rookie defender Winston Reid, scorer of the last-gasp equaliser in a
‘‘New Zealand is like everyone’s second team now . . . it’s a real Cinderella story.’’
Ryan Nelsen
All Whites captain
1-1 draw with Slovakia. The ball skimmed Reid’s head, then glanced off Italy’s 2006 World Cup winning captain Fabio Cannavaro. Lurking behind was Shane Smeltz – marginally offside at the time of Reid’s touch, but alert enough to stroke home the most treasured goal in New Zealand football history.
Bedlam broke out. Smeltz sprinted for the corner flag to celebrate, with Nelsen in hot pursuit. Rows of stunned Italian fans behind the media benches abruptly stopped singing. Peter Phelan, ‘‘a lone All Whites fan in a big bloc of Italian supporters,’’ remembers his neighbours ‘‘tolerating my celebrations respectfully. I hadn’t noticed, at the time, that Smeltz was offside. I was less gracious 20 minutes later when Di Rossi dived for Italy’s penalty.’’
The All Whites escaped by a coat of paint when Riccardo Montolivo’s searing shot glanced off the inside of the post in the 27th minute, but their equaliser came like a bolt from the blue South African sky.
As Italians massed inside the All Whites area, preparing for a rightwing cross, Tommy Smith tugged De Rossi’s shirt before releasing his hold. Then, the AS Roma man faceplanted to the Nelspruit turf. Guatemalan referee Carlos Batres bought the ruse, pointed to the penalty spot and Vincenzo Iaquinta – a World Cup winner in 2006 – tucked home the spotkick.
The All Whites – and their fans – were incensed. Nelsen jabbed a finger in De Rossi’s face. ‘‘He was laughing,’’ Nelsen said later. ‘‘He couldn’t believe he was given it.’’
Smith would later shake his head, saying: ‘‘It was soft . . . he has gone down easily . . . he’s just flung himself to the floor.’’
Paston had made a world-class save to deny De Rossi in the 45th minute and was equally obdurate after the interval.
Nelsen was the other All Whites standout. Despite breaking a toenail and suffering severe cramp, he went on to produce one of the most inspiring displays by any New Zealand sporting captain.
The second half remains a blur. Italians dropped like flies anytime they came close to Rory Fallon’s elbows. Chris Wood, an 18-year-old striker from West Bromwich Albion, replaced Fallon and skinned Cannavaro, who could only watch as Wood’s left-foot shot flashed a metre beyond the outside post.
Coach Herbert then played his last card. On for injury-time came Wellington banker Andy Barron in a pointed gesture by Herbert, who’d been criticised by All Whites greats Wynton Rufer and Danny Hay for taking amateur players to the World Cup finals. Barron held his own – and his nerve – as the clock ticked down.
There was time for one last-ditch Italian attack as blood pressures boiled. Nelsen flung himself at Gianluca Zambrotta’s shot for yet another goal-saving block.
Seconds – it seemed aeons – later, Senor Batres blew one final blast. Game over. Forget the trifling