New Zealand Football is pleased to confirm that the Ford Football Ferns will play three home games during the Play-Off Tournament for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™ –  and some of Hamilton’s leading footballers are excited for the opportunities the tournament and these games will present their hometown.

The 10-team tournament, to be played at Waikato Stadium and North Harbour Stadium, will determine the final three qualifiers for FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™. Alongside the Play-Off Tournament the Ford Football Ferns will play two games in Hamilton/Kirikiriroa and one in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau. One game will be played against a top seed team at the tournament, and the other two against a yet to be announced guest team.

And when the Ferns take to the Waikato Stadium pitch on Friday 17 February, it will be the first time the women’s national team has played a full international fixture in Hamilton since 1991, when they beat Australia 2-0 through goals from Lesley Letcher and Debbie Pullen.

For 32-cap Ford Football Fern Olivia Chance, who spent much of her early years playing in Hamilton, hosting the Play-Off Tournament will an “amazing experience” for the country and Hamilton/Kirikiriroa in particular, giving fans in Aotearoa New Zealand a taste of what will come when the World Cup kicks off on 20 July 2023.

“Hamilton is where I grew up playing football,” explains the playmaker, who now plies her trade for Celtic in the Scottish Women’s Premier League.

“So I think to have some of the best female football players right on their doorstep is going to be an amazing experience for the town. And hopefully for the young girls, young boys, and anyone to get involved and go down and watch them, I think it will be an amazing experience.”

2018 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup bronze medallists, inaugural players for the Wellington Phoenix A-League Women’s team and proud Hamiltonians Kelli Brown and Grace Wisnewski are also excited about what hosting the Play-Off Tournament and the Ferns playing will bring to their hometown.

“It's massive,” says Wisnewski.

“Obviously the World Cup's a massive event and it's so cool that it's in New Zealand and Australia as well. So to be able to have that visibility early on of the international games is incredible, and will give everyone a real taste of international football here in New Zealand.”

“It's so cool for Hamilton to have some games of such high calibre,” says Brown.

“And I think, especially for women's football, it's something that's taking off in the WaiBOP region. So to get as many people down there and support the girls as much as possible would be really cool.”

The opportunity to see the Ford Football Ferns play in her hometown for the first time in three decades will be truly special experience for fans, says Brown.

“That's huge. That's something so special. And especially with the movement of the game at the moment, I think to get as many people there and support such a decent team and a team that's come so far, it'll be such a special moment to be part of that.

“And I think a lot of people would be very humbled to be able to say they were there at the match and part of the support.”

Ford Football Ferns match details

Friday 17 February

Ford Football Ferns vs A1 (first seeded team in Group A of the Play-Off Tournament)
Waikato Stadium (Hamilton/Kirikiriroa)

Monday 20 February

Ford Football Ferns vs Guest Team
Waikato Stadium (Hamilton/Kirikiriroa)

Thursday 23 February

Ford Football Ferns vs Guest Team
North Harbour Stadium (Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau)

The identity of the guest team will be confirmed in due course.

About the Play-Off Tournament

The 10-team Play-Off Tournament will take place from Friday 17 February to Thursday 23 February, with games played at Waikato Stadium and North Harbour Stadium. It will determine the final three teams to qualify for FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™.

The 10 participating teams in the Play-Off Tournament will come from Asia (two – Chinese Taipei and Thailand have already qualified), Africa (two), North and Central America and the Caribbean (two), South America (two), Europe (one) and Oceania (one). The final eight teams will qualify by October 2022 via each confederation’s qualification tournaments.

Ticket sales details will be confirmed closer to the tournament, and kick-off times will be determined following the Draw.

See the full Play-Off Tournament match schedule here.

Article added: Tuesday 05 July 2022