Head coach Darren Bazeley says fans should expect “a couple of changes” in the All Whites line-up to face Australia in the second leg of their two-game series for the Soccer Ashes.
New Zealand lost the first game 1-0 in Canberra, but are back in Auckland, ready for Tuesday’s match at Go Media Stadium.
“Everybody’s recovered well from the game, so we’ve got no issues into selection,” Bazeley told a media briefing.
“We’ll make a couple of changes to freshen it up but we’ll never make wholesale changes because we’re working on the bigger picture and ensuring that we’ve got the cohesion and connection that we’ve been working on for the last two years.”
Captain Chris Wood, who shared the media briefing with Bazeley, said he rued missing his opportunities in the first leg when he could have put New Zealand in front.
Of the first chance, when Australia goalkeeper Paul Izzo palmed the ball to safety, Wood said: “I need to be scoring that first one beause that puts our team in the lead and would have made that game a lot more comfortable for us, so that’s the burden and the pressure I bring on myself as a leader, as a captaiin, as our main striker.
Wood said he needed to “smile and move on and become better and put it right” in Tuesday’s game.
Watch Chris Wood and Darren Bazeley brief the media
Here’s the full 15-minute media briefing:
Australia take their 1-0 lead into the second game, with the aggregate score deciding who’ll hold the Soccer Ashes Trophy.
If the aggregate score is level after 90 minutes at Go Media Stadium, the series will be decided by a penalty shootout.
How the squads compare
New Zealand
Kosta Barbarouses (70 caps/9 goals) Western Sydney Wanderers, Australia
Joe Bell (27/1) Viking FK, Norway
Tyler Bindon (18/3) Sheffield United, England (on loan from Nottingham Forest)
Michael Boxall (58/1) Minnesota United, United States
Luke Brooke-Smith (0/0) Wellington Phoenix, Aotearoa New Zealand
Max Crocombe (18/0) Millwall, England
Francis de Vries (12/1) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Callan Elliot (6/0) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Henry Gray (0/0), Ipswich Town, England
Elijah Just (37/8) Motherwell, Scotland
Callum McCowatt (25/4) Silkeborg IF, Denmark
James McGarry (2/0) Brisbane Roar, Australia
Ben Old (15/1) AS Saint Etienne, France
Tim Payne (44/3) Wellington Phoenix, Aotearoa New Zealand
Jesse Randall (4/1) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Logan Rogerson (15/2) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Alex Rufer (22/0) Wellington Phoenix, Aotearoa New Zealand
Oli Sail (9/0) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Sarpreet Singh (21/3) FK TSC Bačka Topola, Serbia
Finn Surman (10/1) Portland Timbers, United States
Ryan Thomas (20/3) PEC Zwolle, Netherlands
Chris Wood (85/44) Nottingham Forest, England
Withdrawn
Liberato Cacace (35/1) Wrexham, Wales (injury)
Alex Paulsen (3/0) Lechia Gdańsk, Poland (on loan from Bournemouth, England) (new club)
Marko Stamenić (31/3) Swansea City, Wales (injury)
Australia
Max Balard (1 caps/1 goals) NAC Breda, Netherlands
Jordan Bos (20/1) Feyenoord, Netherlands
Noah Botic (0/0) Austria Vienna, Austria
Martin Boyle (35/10) Hibernian FC, Scotland
Cameron Burgess (18/0) Swansea, Wales
Alessandro Circati (6/0) Parma, Italy
Milos Degenek (50/1) FK TSC, Serbia
Joe Gauci (7/0) Port Vale, England
Tom Glover (0/0) Middlesbrough, England
Ajdin Hrustic (32/3) Heracles Almelo, Netherlands
Nestory Irankunda (6/1) Watford, England
Jack Iredale (0/0), Hibernian, Scotland
Paul Izzo (1/0) Randers FC, Denmark
Anthony Kalik (0/0) Hajduk Split, Croatia
Hayden Matthews (1/0) Portsmouth, England
Connor Metcalfe (27/1) St Pauli, Germany
Nicolas Milanovic (1/0) Aberdeen, Scotland
Lewis Miller (13/1) Blackburn Rovers, England
Aiden O’Neill (21/0) New York City FC, United States
Kye Rowles (25/1) DC United, United States
Adrian Segecic (0/0) Portsmouth, England
Samuel Silvera (8/0) Middlesbrough, England
Ryan Teague (4/0) K.V. Mechelen, Belgium
Mohamed Toure (3/0) Randers FC, Denmark
Patrick Yazbek (3/0) Nashville SC, United States
Withdrawn
Fran Karacic (15/1) Hajduk Split, Croatia (injury)
Fixture
Game to be played on Tuesday September 9, 2025
New Zealand v Australia
Go Media Stadium, Mt Smart, Auckland, 7pm (NZT)
Ticket prices (Auckland match)
Tickets will be sold at ticketek.co.nz.
Before match day:
Adults: $20, $40, or $80 (plus ticketing fees)
14 and under: $10, $20, or $40 (plus ticketing fees)
Match day prices:
Adults: $25, $45, or $85 (plus ticketing fees)
14 and under: $15, $25, or $45 (plus ticketing fees)
Active Supporters Zone (South Stand – same location as The Port for Auckland FC):
Pre-sale: $20 adults / $10 (14 and under)
Match day: $25 adults / $15 (14 and under) (All prices exclude ticketing fees)
This story was first published on September 9, 2025.