The All Whites are ready, coach Ricki Herbert declared today as they wrapped up their camp in Dubai ahead of the opening leg of their World Cup soccer qualifier in Bahrain.
He said he liked what he had seen from his 19-man squad after three days of preparations since they assembled in the Middle East.
The New Zealanders fly to Bahrain tomorrow and, after four years in charge, Herbert said the match at the National Stadium in Manama was "the real deal".
"I see the glint in the eye, I sense the hunger," he said.
"It's important to see players in that frame of mind. There's a real nice feeling."
Herbert is due to name his starting 11 tomorrow and has the luxury of almost a full-strength squad at his disposal.
Skipper Ryan Nelsen, who sat out Blackburn's 2-6 loss to Arsenal in the English premier league last weekend, was given the all-clear after a back injury yesterday.
Only goalkeeper Glen Moss, who is serving a suspension, is unavailable.
"We sit here, touch wood, 48 hours out, with no issues in the squad and that's an absolute first," Herbert said.
"Apart from Glen Moss, we're everywhere positional-wise that we wanted to be.
"We eased Ryan in and, to be fair, it's taken 3-1/2 days to make sure that he's going to be 100 percent.
"But his quality as a player, his strength of character and leadership, everything that he is going to bring to the side -- I would have played him at under 100 percent."
After four solid training sessions during the first two days in Dubai, the All Whites had a solitary afternoon run today to allow them time to recharge their batteries.
After they arrive in Bahrain, they will have one final session at the match venue.
Herbert said an advance party that included assistant coach Brian Turner and technical advisor Raul Blanco left for Manama today to ensure that all arrangements were in order.
"Once we hit the hotel, then it is kind of like lockdown," he said.
"We want the players to go through their mental preparation.
"There will be a lot of tension. There's a massive lot riding on it and we want them in the right zone when they cross the white line."
Herbert said he was happy with the choice of a European referee, Hungarian Viktor Kassai, because European officials were involved in top-level matches on a regular basis.
He said it would be a case for his players of finding the balance between being rash and being conservative.
"We have to make sure we're not putting anything at risk and making the referee make decisions," he said.
"But there's a lot up for grabs and we can't afford to hold off either."
Herbert was expecting few surprises in terms of the stadium or the playing surface.
While a partisan home crowd was in store, "it's probably not as hostile as going into Saudi Arabia", whom Bahrain beat to set up the showdown with the All Whites.
Herbert also pointed to New Zealand's only successful World Cup qualifying campaign, which both he and Turner played in.
"In '81, our team loved nothing more than playing in front of 100,000 opposition fans," he said.
"Sometimes it can be something that ignites the hunger that's always inside a Kiwi person. I think it will be no different for this group."
The return leg is in Wellington on November 14, with the winners of the tie earning a berth at the World Cup finals in South Africa next June and July.
NZPA