Haiti thump New Zealand 4-0 in ‘harsh lesson’ before World Cup
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June 2 : Haiti crushed a shambolic New Zealand 4-0 in a steamy World Cup warmup in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Tuesday, delighting a buzzing crowd of Haitian fans and spoiling a milestone match for All Whites captain Chris Wood.
Ruben Providence struck in the 12th minute at Inter Miami CF Stadium and substitute Lenny Joseph doubled the lead for the 82nd-ranked Caribbeans six minutes after the restart.
Frantzdy Pierrot grabbed a third with a header after the hour-mark before Markhus Lacroix finished the demolition job with a late, long-range rocket as the counter-punching Grenadiers dismantled the World Cup’s lowest-ranked nation.
World number 82 Haiti, only three places better than New Zealand, meet Scotland, Brazil and Morocco on their return to the World Cup for the first time in 52 years.
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Haiti’s buildup to the match had been complicated by visa trouble for midfielder Woodensky Pierre, the squad’s only player based in the Caribbean nation.
Pierre was unable to play against the New Zealanders because his visa was not approved by U.S. authorities until too late.
He landed at Miami airport around half-time with Haitian soccer officials and hoped to catch the last part of the game, a team spokesperson told Reuters.
New Zealand skipper Wood became his nation’s most-capped player with 89 appearances, moving one past Ivan Vicelich, but there was little to celebrate for the Nottingham Forest striker.
Wood all but conjured a goal early in the first half with a bicycle kick, but it was saved on the line by goalkeeper Jhony Placide.
At the other end of the pitch, Alex Paulsen had a poor audition to be New Zealand’s starting goalkeeper, while centre back Finn Surman also had a first half to forget.
Both were culpable in Providence’s goal as the Netherlands-based forward wriggled by Surman in the goal area and chipped Paulsen from a tight angle.
HARSH LESSON
New Zealand play England in their final warmup on Saturday before meeting Iran, Egypt and Belgium at their first World Cup since 2010.
Shell-shocked All Whites coach Darren Bazeley was surprised by his team’s lacklustre performance following a week in camp acclimatising in Florida.
“It’s a very harsh lesson for us, especially with tough games coming up,” he said in the post-match press conference.
“The boys are in the change room very disappointed.”
Tim Payne, New Zealand’s suddenly famous full back, went to ground in the area after contact with Placide in the 17th minute but no penalty was given and no VAR was available.
Bazeley put Max Crocombe in goal for the second half amid a slew of substitutions, but three goals sailed by the hapless keeper as the All Whites’ defence collapsed.
Joseph took a through-ball between defenders Michael Boxall and Francis De Vries and tucked his shot into the left corner of the net before an unmarked Pierrot headed in a cross from five metres on 62 minutes.
Lacroix capped the win on 87 minutes when he turned on the edge of the area and blasted into the right corner of the net, sending blue and red-clad fans into a frenzy.
Source: Reuters
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