Football: Olivia Chance eyes World Cup

It's not quite last-chance saloon but it's fairly close to it, and Bay of Plenty 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 tomorrow 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 prestigious 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 is joined her Waikato-Bay of Plenty teammate Sarah McLaughlin in the side. Herdman said after the rotation of players at the Cyprus Cup he's close to finalising his World Cup squad. Chance said the twin tests against Australia would be a vital benchmark, with the Matlidas in the top tier internationally, having dispatched with 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 was competitive in all matches but had 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.