Goalkeeper Cameron Brown will get an early chance to stake his claim for a spot between the sticks for New Zealand’s Olympic Games qualifying campaign when a youthful squad heads to Samoa this week.

Brown is one of three goalkeepers selected by national U-23 men’s coach Des Buckingham to attend the Pacific Games, in which a talented young group of Kiwis will come up against full-strength senior national teams from the Oceania region.

Aside from the challenge posed by the quality of opposition, each of the New Zealand players will be looking to impress Buckingham with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics looming on the horizon.

“It’s always good to get in front of the coaching staff and show what you’re about,” Brown says.

“It’s a good opportunity for some boys who maybe haven’t been looked at too much so far to put their hand up and say they’re ready for the squad.”

Brown is used to having plenty of competition for a starting berth. He shared the goalkeeping duties with Michael Woud at the recent FIFA U-20 World Cup in Poland – Woud starting three matches while Brown lined up in one – and is also currently fighting it out with his U-23 national team colleague Conor Tracey for a spot at Auckland club Central United.
 

                    Cameron Brown was part of the New Zealand squad at the FIFA U-20 World Cup (Getty Images) 

“The goalkeeping union in New Zealand has always been really good and we all get on really well. But we are obviously competing for one spot and that’s how it is,” he says.

“So you just have to take every training like you are the number one and you have to keep pushing each other because you all want that number one spot. But we are all good mates at the end of the day.”

Brown and Tracey are joined in the Pacific Games squad by fellow custodian Ellis Hare-Reid, who is based in Scotland with Ayr United. They will all be hoping for game time as the New Zealand U-23s take on the senior teams of Tonga, Samoa, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea in Pool A.

Buckingham is using the Pacific Games as preparation for the OFC Olympic Qualifying Tournament, which is set to take place in Fiji from 21 September to 5 October.

While booking a berth in Toyko is the wider goal, Brown says he and his team mates are not going to Samoa simply to make up the numbers.

“We’re going to be very competitive and we are looking to win it, I don’t think we’d be happy with anything less than that really,” he says.

The 19-year-old is aware just how tough that could prove though, with their senior opposition having prepared extensively for what is an important tournament for all the Pacific Island nations.

As ever when travelling to the islands, the conditions will also be a significant challenge to overcome, especially as the New Zealand squad has just departed from a cold and wet mid-winter week in Auckland. The heat and humidity of Samoa will be a different proposition entirely.

Brown has previous experience of dealing with that after facing the same problem at the U-20 World Cup qualifiers, which took place in a stifling Tahiti nearly a year ago.

“It is tough, the weather is obviously different to here with it being very cold at the moment but it’s something you adjust to. We’ve got a couple of days before our first game to acclimatise and get used to that so, by the time the first game comes around against Tonga, I think we’ll be good to go.”

New Zealand U-23 squad for Pacific Games

Goalkeepers
Cameron Brown (Central United)
Ellis Hare-Reid (Ayr United)
Conor Tracey (Central United)

Defenders
Jordan Spain (Cashmere Technical)
Sean Liddicoat (Coastal Spirit)
Robert Tipelu (Onehunga Sports)
Jackson Brady (Christchurch United / California Polytechnic State University)
Jorge Akers (Miramar Rangers)
Dylan de Jong (Eastern Suburbs)

Midfielders
Billy Jones (University of Nevada, Las Vegas)
Dane Schnell (Western Springs)
Jake Porter (Onehunga Sports)
Stafford Dowling (Onehunga Sports)
Sean Cooper (Onehunga Sports / University of California, Davis)
Lachie McIsaac (Birkenhead United)

Forwards
Ollie Whyte (Rio Ave FC)
Logan Rogerson (Unattached)
Seth Clark (Cashmere Technical)
Ihaia Delaney (Western Suburbs)
Byron Heath (Lower Hutt City)

Head Coach: Des Buckingham
Assistant Coach: Hiroshi Miyazawa
Goalkeeping Coach: Mark Oates
Strength and Conditioning: Danny Deigan
Physio: Roland Jeffery
Team Manager: Seamus Marten

Match Schedule

Tonga vs New Zealand U-23
Monday 8 July, 4pm (3pm NZT)

New Zealand U-23 vs Samoa
Wednesday 10 July, 4pm (3pm NZT)

Vanuatu vs New Zealand U-23
Friday 12 July, 4pm (3pm NZT)

New Zealand U-23 vs Papua New Guinea
Monday 15 July, 10am (9am NZT)

For more information on the Samoa 2019 Pacific Games please click here

Article added: Thursday 04 July 2019