New Zealand star Ryan Nelsen reckons his team can shock Slovakia in their Group F opener on Tuesday.
Support for All Whites can inspire win, says skipper
New Zealand star Ryan Nelsen reckons his team are capable of pulling off a shock win when they take on Slovakia in their first World Cup encounter.
Nelsen's team face their Group F opponents in Rustenburg on Tuesday and go into the clash touted as one of competition's whipping boys.
The All Whites are ranked 79th in the world by Fifa and have never won a game at a World Cup finals following their only other appearance in the event in 1982.
Ricki Herbert's side saw their preparations for the tournament boosted by a surprise win over Serbia in a warm-up match and Nelsen is hoping a result akin to that can be repeated when their campaign gets underway.
And the 32-year-old says the support his team are receiving from back home will spur them on in their quest for an almighty shock in South Africa.
The New Zealand captain said: "It's amazing for us. We have felt the support back in New Zealand. We don't usually get this publicity and support.
"It's humbling and really exciting. We will be making sure we make every New Zealander proud. That is one of our No.1 goals.
"We are very competitive. The reality of World Cup football is that you can play really well and lose all the games but we're a very good team and we want to win.
"It's as simple as that."
Plymouth's Rory Fallon, Middlesbrough's Chris Killen and Ipswich's Tommy Smith are the other English based players in the New Zealand set-up, who also take on Italy and Paraguay in their group.
