All but three members of New Zealand's unbeaten football World Cup squad were recalled Tuesday to play international friendlies next month against Honduras and Paraguay.
The only members of the 23-man Cup squad unavailable for the matches against Honduras in Auckland on Oct. 9 and Paraguay in Wellington on Oct. 12 are England-based striker Rory Fallon, who is injured, and defender Andy Barron and goalkeeper James Bannatyne, who have both retired.
New Zealand-based midfielder Cole Peverley is the player selected by coach Ricki Herbert who was not at the World Cup.
Defenders Ryan Nelsen of Blackburn Rovers and Winston Reid of West Ham have both been cleared by their English Premier League clubs to play in the friendlies.
''Selecting the 23 for South Africa was among the toughest decisions I've had to make but it was of paramount importance that we give those players who went to South Africa a chance to thank the public for the overwhelming support,'' Herbert said.
''It's fantastic to have two World Cup opponents here in New Zealand so close after the World Cup. It is a great way of concluding the 2010 campaign, but it's also important to announce the start a long hard campaign towards Brazil 2014.''
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New Zealand squad: Glen Moss, Mark Paston, Andrew Boyens, Tony Lochhead, Ryan Nelson, Winston Reid, Ben Signmund, Tommy Smith, Ivan Vicelich, Leo Bertos, Jeremy Brockie, Tim Brown, Aaron Clapham, Jeremy Chritie, Simon Elliott, Michael McGlinchey, David Mulligan, Cole Peverley, Chris Killen, Shane Smeltz, Chris Wood.
