Olivia's last chance to make Cup squad

It's not quite last-chance saloon but it's fairly close to it, and Tauranga Girls' College midfield maestro Olivia Chance knows the next two weeks will be pivotal in her bid to make the final cut for the Football Ferns squad for June's Fifa World Cup.
Chance, 17, leaves on Tuesday with the 21-strong Football Ferns squad for game against Australia and China - the side's last full internationals before the World Cup in Germany.
Chance will still get a chance to impress coach John Herdman at weekly Ferns training which she travels to Auckland for but knows she'll need to grab every opportunity she gets against the two footballing powerhouses.
The Ferns play Asian champions and fellow World Cup finalists Australia at Gosford's Bluetongue Stadium on May 12 and 15 before heading to heading to Jinan to face China.
She made her debut for the full New Zealand team at the Cyprus Cup tournament in March, starting in one match and playing two others off the reserves' bench.
But Chance said a new diamond formation being used by Herdman, in place of the traditional 4-3-2 or 3-4-3 setups, means she is having to adapt fast to playing more of a holding role in midfield rather than using her pace to push forward down the flanks.
"John's trying it with us. With the diamond formation there's less of a role for wingers, which is my favoured position, so I'll have to work hard in the next two weeks to push my way in."
Chance joined her Waikato-Bay of Plenty teammate Sarah McLaughlin in the side. Herdman said after the rotation of players and combinations at the Cyprus Cup he's close to finalising his World Cup players.
"In terms of selection we've chosen the best squad and it'll be pretty close to what we take into the World Cup, but a few players have been brought in to look at one last time.
"The main focus [in Australia and China] isn't about player selection - we've gone through that process in Cyprus where we gave people lots of opportunities to play and got a feel for our squad. This tour is about the performance and getting closer to the results that we want at the World Cup."
Chance said the twin tests against Australia would be a vital benchmark, with the Matildas in the top tier internationally, having Japan, Korea and China to win the Asian championship.
"It would be great to get a win but we need to clock on for a full 90 minutes or we'll be beaten," Chance said. At the Cyprus Cup New Zealand proved competitive in every match but came home with a four game/four loss record - 4-1 against the Netherlands, 2-1 against Switzerland, 5-2 against France and 5-0 in the playoff for seventh against Mexico.
Chance said the pace of the game at the highest level was the biggest change.
"That quickness is what you need to play at to be successful at the top and it'll be the same in the next couple of weeks because both opponents play at pace, with short and sharp movements and good technical skill."
She's been training as much as she can with her boyfriend, Tauranga City United midfielder Tom Crawford, who was on target from the penalty spot in Saturday's 2-2 draw with Mt Albert-Ponsonby.
"I try and mingle with the boys as much as I can to sharpen my game and Tom in particular is really good because he knows how the game is played.
"We do heaps of fitness work together and he's a big support, although I'm not quite at his level in the sprinting drills yet. I think I've beaten him once in a sprint and haven't let him forget it, although he's made sure it hasn't happened again!"
Football Ferns - The Squad
Goalkeepers: Jenny Bindon, Aroon Clansey
Defenders: Katie Bowen, Hannah Bromley, Abby Erceg, Anna Green, Ria Percival, Ali Riley, Rebecca Smith.
Midfielders: Olivia Chance, Betsy Hassett, Katie Hoyle, Hayley Moorwood, Hannah Wall, Kirsty Yallop.
Forwards: Sarah Gregorius, Amber Hearn, Emma Kete, Sarah McLaughlin, Rosie White, Hannah Wilkinson.
Upcoming internationals
Thursday May 12 v Australia (Gosford)
Sunday May 15 v Australia (Gosford)
Friday May 20 v China (Jinan)