New Zealanders, Dutch keen to compete in ‘tight’ group
WhileEdmontonandtherest of the nation focuses on the home opener between Canada and China, two other countries in the same group are determined to make their own mark when the FIFA Women’s World Cup begins Saturday.
The Netherlands, ranked No. 12 in the world, will face off against No. 17 New Zealand after Canada’s first game wraps up. Both coaches are prepared for a tight battle in whattheysayisahighlycompetitive grouping of teams.
“We know that every single gameinthegroups—particularly our group — is going to be tight,” New Zealand head coach Tony Readings said on Friday. “The difference between the highest-ranked teams, which is Canada, and us is pretty tight. Every game is going to be close.”
New Zealand comes into the tournament with plenty of World Cup experience — this tournament marks the third World Cup appearance for team captain Abby Erceg.
The Dutch are going to be playing in their first World Cup, but they are still expected to perform well in the group.
Fans and opposing teams alike will especially have their eyes on Vivianne Miedema, who at the age of 18 is the star of the Oranje squad. In qualifiers alone, they scored 16 goals, three of them in a playoff game against Italy.
When asked who he expects to step up in the World Cup, besides Miedema, head coach Roger Reijners was quite blunt.
“All of them,” he said. “I think we have a good team on any every position. Of course, everyone is talking about Miedema and she’s a great player, a young talented player, but I think we have more than that.”
One thing is certain — both teams are ready to hit the field.
“It’s been weeks, months, years of hard work building toward this,” said New Zealand forward Sarah Gregorius.
“Now it’s at the point of let’s just get this thing started. Let’s show everyone what we’ve been working on, what we’ve been practising, what we’ve been living and breathing for the last little while.”