New Zealand won Oceania World Cup qualifying section

New Zealand are ready for play-offs after winning Oceania World Cup qualifying section with a 100 per cent record.

New Zealand have beaten Solomon Islands 2-0 with Blackburn forward Tim Payne scoring both goals to record their six win in six games from their World Cup qualifying campaign. The result means New Zealand have progressed to a play-off stage to face the fourth-placed CONCACAF team. Should they manage to outplay their opposition, they will book the place in 2014 World Cup final stages.

New Zealand manager Ricki Herbert revealed he is happy with the professional attitude demonstrated by his players. He said: “It was a professional performance and I thought the new players slipped into the system really well, they all did their jobs and it was quite comfortable in the end. We tried to stress to the players that there are opportunities to impress before the big games in November.”