Paston looking beyond international friendlies

Goalkeeper Mark Paston accepts he probably won't get game time in the All Whites' two international friendlies over the next 10 days, but he has his eyes on the bigger picture.
Paston played in all three matches during New Zealand's unbeaten run at last year's World Cup in South Africa and against Honduras and Paraguay in October.
However, he hasn't played since injuring a shin during an A-League match for Wellington Phoenix in December.
Having resumed training, Paston was included in the All Whites squad for friendlies against Mexico in Denver next Thursday (NZT) and Australia in Adelaide three days later.
He is one of three goalkeepers selected, along with Gold Coast custodian Glen Moss and the uncapped Jake Gleeson, who is with Major League Soccer side the Portland Timbers.
"I see it as unlikely," Paston said yesterday of his prospects of getting on the pitch.
"Obviously Mossy is fully fit and he's been playing well, and you've got a young goalkeeper who they will probably want to look at."
Paston, 34, said his recovery was going "pretty well" although he was still some way short of where he wanted to be.
"It's been a wee while, but I've taken a slightly different approach this year," he said.
"I've backed off a little bit more and taken it a little bit easier, so I can prolong my career a little bit rather than put my body through the ringer just to get fit."
While it was natural to want to play every game, he said getting back into the All Whites environment was a good start.
"I'm looking at the bigger picture rather than these couple of games," he said.
At the same time, Paston, who has 28 caps, is confident he can do the business if called upon.
Coach Ricki Herbert said Paston had trained well during the camp in Auckland this week.
But Herbert also indicated it might be too early for Paston.
"Mark's still a degree away from where he needs to be and to put him into an international fixture of the stature of Mexico is going to be a big ask," he said.
"We've also got Jake Gleeson coming in and I'm really keen to have a look at him.
"He could well feature more prominently than Mark on this tour, given Mark's medical position and no other reason. Jake might get a bit of time in both games."NZPA