The Football Ferns will open the 2012 Olympics with a dream match-up against host nation Great Britain thanks to the draw which also threw up two mouth-watering fixtures against Brazil for both the Ferns and the Oly Whites. The Ferns will meet Great Britain at Cardiffs Millennium Stadium on March 25, two days before the opening ceremony, before squaring off against two-times silver medallist Brazil at the same venue three days later and wrapping up pool play against Olympic debutant Cameroon at the City of Coventry Stadium. The Oly Whites, captained by Ryan Nelsen as one of three overage players in an otherwise U-23 squad, will open their campaign against Belarus on July 26 in Coventry, face Egypt at Old Trafford on July 29 before facing a star studded Brazilian line up at Newcastles St James Park on August 1. Both New Zealand coaches were buoyed by the permutations, with mens coach Neil Emblen stressing the importance of the teams first two fixtures. Theres one absolute powerhouse in our group, said Oly Whites coach Neil Emblen, Brazils the game that everyone will catch the eye but theres two other strong footballing nations in our group. However we think they are games we can look at with real hope that we can go and get some points. Were playing Belarus and Egypt, as are Brazil who will be clear favourites to win the group, so a win and a draw may be enough to get you through to the next stage where anything can happen. Well have almost a full starting line up of full internationals and they wont be afraid of anyone. Womens coach Tony Readings said his team would treat the opening games as an honour but certainly wont be affording the hosts any favours. Its always a privilege to play in these events to draw the hosts to open the entire Olympic Games will be very special for our team, said Readings, but weve got three difficult games and our mission will be the same whether its opening game or final pool game. We out to get the points we need to secure a top two placing in the group. We dont know a lot about the teams well play. Weve havent seen much of Cameroon, Great Britain have never played as a unified country in the womens game and we havent played Brazil for five years. But its a group we can progress from and if we reach the quarterfinals then we are only game away from a medal. Men's Draw Group A: Great Britain, Uruguay, UAE, Senegal Group B: Mexico, Korea Republic, Gabon, Switzerland Group C: Brazil, Egypt, Belarus, New Zealand Group D: Spain, Japan, Honduras, Morocco The top two teams from each pool qualify for the quarterfinals Women's Draw Group E: Great Britain, New Zealand, Cameroon, Brazil Group F: Japan, Canada, Sweden, South Africa Group G: USA, France, Colombia, Korea DPR The top two teams from each pool and the two best third-placed teams qualify for the quarterfinals New Zealand Schedule July 25 New Zealand Women v Great Britain Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 4pm (3am, July 26 NZT) July 26 New Zealand Men v Belarus City of Coventry Stadium, Coventry 7.45pm (6.45am, July 27 NZT) July 28 New Zealand Women v Brazil Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 2.30pm (1am, July 29 NZT) July 29 New Zealand Men v Egypt Old Trafford, Manchester 2.45pm (1.45am, July 30 NZT) July 31 New Zealand Women v Cameroon City of Coventry Stadium, Coventry 7.45pm (6.45am, August 1 NZT) August 1 New Zealand Men v Brazil St James Park, Newcastle 2.30pm (1.30am, August 2 NZT)
Tweet Share