'A great adventure that turned into a dream'

The All Whites are 90 minutes away from returning to the World Cup for the first time since 1982. Among the sellout crowd in Wellington for the game against Bahrain next Saturday will be Steve Wooddin, the expatriate Englishman who was picked for New Zealand while living in Dunedin and became a key player in the great 1982 team. He talks to sports editor Hayden Meikle.

Hayden Meikle: What are you up to these days?

Steve Wooddin: Football-wise, I'm just basically an interested spectator.

HM: Were you doing some coaching?

SW: Yeah, I was. I had knee and ankle problems that finished my playing career a little bit early, so I went into coaching at Christchurch Tech. Then I went to Halswell, where my two boys were. I flagged it away a couple of years ago.

HM: Are you a good spectator?

SW: Um, I'm quite critical. Very critical, actually. But I don't find it hard being a spectator. Not now, anyway. The first few years after my career finished were quite hard.

HM: Have you lived in Christchurch for a while?

SW: Twenty-five years. I left Dunedin in 1981 and went to Melbourne for two or three years. In hindsight, that was a bit of a mistake. But you live and learn. I've been in Christchurch since. I like the city a lot.

HM: Are you going to be in Wellington on November 14?

SW: I certainly am. It's going to be great. The ground is sold out. This is the first time since 1982 that a World Cup campaign has caught the public's imagination.

HM: Did you and other 1982 players get free tickets?

SW: We did, actually. I was already going up with some others. We'd booked everything. Then they said they'd come up with free tickets for wives and partners, which was very nice. What is organised, if anything, I don't know. There was talk about maybe having the '82 squad presented before the game, but I don't know. We're not the centre of attention this time.

HM: Can the All Whites win this game?

SW: Yes. Bahrain aren't exactly a superpower. I don't think there'll be a lot between the sides, but I think we will sneak a 1-0 or 2-0 win. New Zealand have got to make sure they don't give an early goal away. I think they're experienced enough to win.

HM: Are there any players in this squad you really rate?

SW: Obviously, Ryan Nelsen is a key guy. He's so organised and experienced. Shane Smeltz is a good goal-scorer. I don't think there are any other really outstanding players. It's a good, solid team.

HM: You played with All Whites coach Ricki Herbert in 1982. Do you have some insight into how he works?

SW: I was actually just talking to Brian Turner, his assistant, this morning. With Ricki being a defender, the first thing he does is get the defence as organised as humanly possible. Then Brian has the attacking point of view. The one thing they need to improve on is the creative side. I think they'll probably create a few more opportunities in Wellington

HM: There's this perception that New Zealand football missed its opportunity to capitalise on the excitement of 1982. Is that true?

SW: Yeah, I think so. After 1982 I was in Australia, so I didn't completely get a feel for what was going on. But I remember in 1983 there was hardly any football played in New Zealand, and the enthusiasm died a bit. You've got guys like Ricki and Brian and Frank van Hattum running things now and they know all about 1982. I am sure they will do things better if we do qualify for the World Cup.

HM: We've now got an Australian league team based in New Zealand, and our under-17 team has been doing well. Is there a sense that football is getting stronger here?

SW: It's certainly getting a higher profile. Is New Zealand football stronger now? That's hard to judge.

HM: The 1982 team had to play 15 games in nine months and travelled here, there and everywhere. The 2009 All Whites are getting a cushy ride in comparison. How do you feel about that?

SW: I'm not bothered at all. I enjoyed every minute of our campaign. It is quite a lot easier now. So be it.

HM: Didn't the qualifying in 1981 and 1982 seem ridiculously long?

SW: No, it really didn't. We knew what we had to do and that was that. It was a great adventure that turned into a dream.

HM: You scored a goal in the sudden-death qualifying game against China. Remember that?

SW: Oh yeah. Basically, I just received the ball and hit it. As soon it left my boot I knew it was in. You can just tell sometimes. When Wynton Rufer scored the second goal, we knew we were going to Spain.

HM: And what was Spain like?

SW? Unbelievable. Just unbelievable. It was an experience they can never take away from us. When you're standing in a tunnel about to play Brazil, you realise you've done something right.

HM: Did you get a Brazilian shirt?

SW: Yes. They all swapped with us. I got Leandro's. He played for Flamengo in Brazil.

HM: You and Steve Sumner are in a special club of two: the only All Whites to score in a World Cup.

SW: That's right. And we're both English. Hopefully, there will be more guys join us in the next year.

HM: Did the Dunedin City club bring you to New Zealand?

SW: Yes. Les Watson brought me out in 1977. I arrived in Dunedin on September 8. It was raining. I flew in from London and I had no idea how far away New Zealand was. It took about seven flights to get to Dunedin. I was dead to the Earth. It was cold and miserable and I wondered what I'd struck.

HM: How long did you stay here for?

SW: About four years. I enjoyed it. People moaned about the weather, but it was no worse than England. I injured my ankle the game before Dunedin City made the Chatham Cup final and got beaten by Mt Wellington. Then I went to Australia the following year, so I missed the final Dunedin City won.