Soccer: Timing key factor for internationals

The All Whites will play Mexico in June but that fixture might yet jeopardise another important match - against Australia.

They might still play Australia in the double June window but would have to stitch together a seamless travel schedule to ensure the team get from the US to Australia in time to play.

New Zealand Football yesterday announced a friendly international against Mexico in Denver on June 1 (June 2 NZT).

It will be the second match against the world's 26th-ranked side in 15 months after Mexico beat New Zealand 2-0 in Los Angeles in a World Cup warmup in front of 90,000 fans last March.

It's a quality fixture for New Zealand, ranked 60 in the world, but it jeopardises their chances of playing the Socceroos in Adelaide.

NZF chairman Frank van Hattum said they were still trying to make the Australia game work, but it would require an exact travel schedule to make sure they were in Adelaide at least 24 hours before the game on June 5.

Australia are expected to confirm a match against Serbia on June 8, so they won't want a second game later than June 5.

The All Whites would need to fly from Denver to Adelaide via Los Angeles and Sydney or Melbourne. Travel is a battle for New Zealand teams but rarely would they have faced something of that magnitude.

"It sounds like a big, big ask for the players," van Hattum said, "but we are keen to see if we can make it work.

"How often do you get the chance to play two sides in the world's top 25?"

Coach Ricki Herbert had initially planned a domestic camp in June. The postponement of the friendly against Japan because of the earthquake - and the delay to the first World Cup qualifier from September until June 2012 - made it critical to find games this year.

Van Hattum said they still hoped to find a game for September but it wouldn't be in New Zealand because of the Rugby World Cup. They are still talking to Japan but a game this year is unlikely.

The game against Mexico, as well as arrangements to play Japan who are Asian champions and ranked 13th in the world, is an illustration of New Zealand's increased standing after the All Whites' impressive results at last year's World Cup.

Good opposition is easier to find than last decade, when the team was often dormant, and NZF can expect to make reasonable profits from matches of this calibre.

Herbert will call on his best available side to play Mexico, even at a time when most European-based players are on holiday. Ryan Nelsen is already one casualty - after the All Whites skipper underwent knee surgery last week and isn't expected back until August.

They did well without him in last month's 1-1 draw with China but Mexico are on a different level and they will use this as their final warm-up before starting the defence of their Concacaf title from June 5. Mexico made it through to the second round of last year's World Cup before they were beaten 2-1 by Argentina.

The crowd in Denver will be smaller than the one for last year's match at the Pasedena Rose Bowl but it still houses 76,000 fans.

"There'll be very little neutral about the venue.

"Mexico were playing in front of a home crowd in Los Angeles and it'll be exactly the same in Denver, but that's great.

"We could be back in this part of the world in 2013 trying to take that last step to Brazil," Herbert said, "so we want another taste of that type of intimidating environment."

In July, Fifa will conduct a draw to determine whether the winner of New Zealand's Oceania group will play off against Asian, North American or South American opposition over two legs for a place at the 2014 World Cup.

A decision on if the All Whites play Australia could be made as early as tomorrow.