Five BIG learnings from the All Whites semi-final win vs 44th ranked Panama.
Stamenić has become the beating heart in the middle of the pitch. With more potential talent to breakthrough in the CDM 6 department, he's the first name on the team sheet. Parker-Price in Sweden and the prospect of Dibley-Dias and Leuluai could bring more artistry as a partner than the equally physical and disrupter Champions League Joe Bell.
Club level, minutes and form aren't everything, but especially on the season before a world cup become really important. Although Waine did incredibly well with little game time and Wood has been surviving on scraps, it's no surprise that Paulsen, Stamenić, Just & Bindon were a big part of the game.
The A League is ranked lower, as are some obscure Asian leagues. But the team culture and trust from the manager allows those playing at "lower" club levels to step up and contribute on merit as equals. Dyer, Ingham, Wilkins, Bayliss... there's a lot of depth from years ago and also emerging talent.
Post-Wood we will be more mobile. He's world class at what he does, which is largely in a very narrow bandwidth of the field. When off, and with the properties of our other attacking players, we become far more fluid and dynamic as a front 3/4.
Continued investment in the games programme is essential. This is now our second calendar year of a full games programme with probably more than half against top 50 teams. Confidence and cohesion developed makes it seem more comfortable and normal already, and hopefully through the full four year period this is the new normal.