Many players in the running to represent their country at the upcoming FIFA U-17 World Cup will get a further chance to impress coach Jose Figueira when a New Zealand U-17 men’s identification camp is held in Wellington next month.

A total of 30 players have been invited to attend the four-day camp in mid-July and all will be aiming to establish themselves in Figueira’s plans for the World Cup, which will be staged in the football-mad nation of Brazil from 26 October to 17 November.

The camp arrives shortly after New Zealand’s participation in the recent U-18 International Youth Cup, in which Figueira’s side took on the U-18 national teams of hosts China, Korea Republic and Thailand.

New Zealand recorded one win and two losses against their older opponents to finish third and Figueira is looking forward to building on those foundations.

“It’s great to be getting the group together once again off the back of last month’s tour to China,” he says.

“Having this camp so soon after China means we can continue to build on the positive momentum from that tour and further deepen the playing philosophy and tactical concepts, as well as developing our culture and identity.”

Most of the 18 players who travelled to China have been included in the camp while Figueira is relishing the opportunity to assess the progress of the others.

“We have been keeping the net cast wide and a lot of work has gone into the monitoring of players since early 2018 when the cycle commenced,” he says.

“It’s always great to see new players break through and put their hand up for selection – at this age group the door is always open. The New Zealand youth space is in a really strong place, with some fantastic work happening up and down the country, and I’m excited to get back out on the grass with this group."

As part of the camp, the training squad will be taking on the Wellington Phoenix first team in a friendly match, which will give the youngsters a taste of what’s required at a senior professional level.

“They will have just started their preparations for the new season so it will be a high-quality test for us,” Figueira says.

New Zealand qualified for the FIFA U-17 World Cup by winning the OFC U-16 Championship last September and their opponents in Brazil will be revealed when the official draw is held at FIFA headquarters in Zurich on 11 July.

New Zealand U-17 Identification Camp Squad

Goalkeepers
Alexander Paulsen (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Luca Taylor (Birkenhead United/Northern/Mt Albert Grammar School)
Joseph Knowles (Bay Olympic/Auckland/St Peter’s School, Cambridge)
Callum Kennett (Lower Hutt City/Central/Palmerston North Boys’ High School)

Defenders
Max Drake (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Bradley Wilson (Western Springs/Auckland/St Peter’s College)
Joel Clissold (Eastern Suburbs/Auckland/Sacred Heart College)
Campbell Strong (Eastern Suburbs/Auckland/Sacred Heart College)
Finn O’Connor (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Jackson Simpkin (Brisbane City/Queensland/Anglican Church Grammar)
Nicholas Milicich (Birkenhead United/Northern/St Peter’s College)
Kris Naicker (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Harry Bark (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Adam Hillis (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)

Midfielders
Nathan Lobo (Birkenhead United/Northern/Liston College)
Robert Sabo (Western Suburbs/Capital /Tawa College) 
Sean Bright (Western Suburbs/Capital/Tawa College)
Marko Stamenic (Western Suburbs/Capital/St Patrick’s College, Silverstream)
Jackson Manuel (North Wellington/Capital/St Patrick’s College, Kilbirnie)
Hayden Aish (Western Springs/Auckland/Mt Albert Grammar School)
Billy Check (Nelson Suburbs/Mainland/Nelson College)
Ryan Verney (Onehunga Sports/Auckland/Rutherford High School)
Otto Ingham (Western Suburbs/Capital/Tawa College)
Benjamin Old (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Henry Hamilton (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Wellington College)

Forwards
Oskar van Hattum (Lower Hutt City/Capital/NZ Institute of Sport)
Jesse Randall (North Wellington/Capital/Rongotai College) 
Riley Bidois (Tauranga City/WaiBOP/Tauranga Boys' College)
Blake Driehuis (Lower Hutt City/Capital/Scots College)
Stephanos Georgiou (SC Freiburg/Germany/Black Forest Academy)

Article added: Wednesday 19 June 2019