The All Whites squad to face Australia’s Socceroos next month, in Canberra and Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, for the Soccer Ashes trophy, has been confirmed, with Ryan Thomas returning to the side for the first time since November 2019.
Thomas’s recall comes after the midfielder recovered from a long-term injury, limiting playing time over the past few seasons, and returned to first team action with PEC Zwolle in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football.
Head coach Darren Bazeley’s side also features Brisbane Roar defender James McGarry, who has been named for the first time in two years.
The 23-player squad includes seven players now based in the UK, seven in Aotearoa New Zealand, two in both Australia and the USA, and one in each of Denmark, France, Netherlands, Norway, and Serbia.
The All Whites face the Socceroos in a two-leg home-and-away series for the historic Soccer Ashes trophy, first at Canberra’s GIO Stadium on Friday 5 September (KO 9:45pmNZT / 7:45pm local), followed by a homecoming match at Go Media Stadium in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland on Tuesday 9 September (KO 7:00pm NZT).
The winner will be decided by the aggregate score across both matches, with the second leg going directly to penalties at the end of 90 minutes in the event of a tie.
The full All Whites squad is:
Kosta Barbarouses (69 caps/9 goals) Western Sydney Wanderers, Australia
Joe Bell (26/1) Viking FK, Norway
Tyler Bindon (17/3) Sheffield United, England (on loan from Nottingham Forest)
Michael Boxall (57/1) Minnesota United, USA
Liberato Cacace (35/1) Wrexham AFC, Wales
Max Crocombe (17/0) Millwall, England
Francis De Vries (11/1) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Callan Elliot (5/0) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Elijah Just (36/8) Motherwell, Scotland
Callum McCowatt (24/4) Silkeborg IF, Denmark
James McGarry (1/0) Brisbane Roar, Australia
Ben Old (14/1) AS Saint Etienne, France
Alex Paulsen (3/0) AFC Bournemouth, England
Tim Payne (43/3) 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 (21/0) Wellington Phoenix, Aotearoa New Zealand
Oli Sail (9/0) Auckland FC, Aotearoa New Zealand
Sarpreet Singh (20/3) FK TSC Bačka Topola, Serbia
Marko Stamenić (31/3) Nottingham Forest, England
Finn Surman (9/1) Portland Timbers, USA
Ryan Thomas (19/3) PEC Zwolle, Netherlands
Chris Wood (84/44) Nottingham Forest, England
