How the All Whites win rates

The five most important matches in All Whites history:

1: New Zealand 1 Bahrain 0 (World Cup playoff, Wellington, 2009)

Edges out the '82 Singapore clash which got the All Whites to their first World Cup finals simply because this one was played here before the fanatical support of a record New Zealand football crowd.

2: New Zealand 2 China 1 (World Cup playoff, Singapore, 1982)

The first feat will always have an indelible place in football fans' affections as witnessed by the standing ovation Saturday night as the '82 crew trudged around the ground.

3: New Zealand 5 Saudi Arabia 0 (World Cup qualifier, Riyadh, 1981)

Five first-half goals suddenly made the Impossible Dream seem attainable. Without the sensation in Saudi, the All Whites would never have forced a playoff in Singapore to make their first finals.

4: New Zealand 0 Bahrain 0 (World Cup playoff, Manama, 2009)

Even ardent All Whites fans were secretly predicting a Bahrain victory in the heat and humidity of the Middle East. But the All Whites' battling performance, aided at times by elements of luck, kept the tie alive and set up the denouement in Wellington.

5: New Zealand 1 Australia 0 (Oceania Nations Cup final, Auckland, 2002)

Ryan Nelsen's killer strike meant the All Whites upset their arch rivals again to qualify for a second Confederations' Cup finals.

- © Fairfax NZ News