Soccer: All Whites to play at Mt Smart

The All Whites are set to host Jamaica next month. Photo / Getty Images

The All Whites will make a return to Mt Smart Stadium for the first time in a decade when they host Jamaica in an international friendly next month.

The clash will take place on February 29, eight months since the side's last international against Australia in June.

New Zealand Football looked at all three major sporting venues in Auckland (Eden Park, North Harbour, Mt Smart Stadium) and opted for the rugby league ground.

The last time the All Whites played at Mt Smart Stadium was during the 2002 Oceania Nations Cup when they upset the Socceroos 1-0 to book a spot in the Confederations Cup.

The ground last hosted a major football game when David Beckham's LA Galaxy beat the Oceania All Stars 3-0 in 2007.

In 22 'A' Internationals at Mt Smart, the All Whites have tasted defeat just four times and posted notable victories over China, Japan, Israel, Australia (three times) and a then-World record 13-0 thumping of Fiji in 1981.

England visited in 1991 to celebrate New Zealand Football's centenary and the ground has also hosted matches against a USSR XI, Glasgow Rangers, Newcastle United, and Watford.

Many of New Zealand's 13 wins at Mt Smart came in 1981 during a memorable run to New Zealand's first appearance at a FIFA World Cup.

It will be a good fixture for the All Whites, although it will present difficulties for overseas-based players because of the short window, as they eye qualification for the 2014 World Cup.

With the Oceania winners due to meet the fourth-ranked team from Concacaf (North and Central America) in a playoff for a place in Brazil, New Zealand could well come up against Jamaica. The Reggae Boyz are ranked 52nd in the world and fifth in Concacaf, one spot below Honduras who drew with New Zealand in a friendly following the 2010 World Cup.

The All Whites are presently ranked 118 but a spot around 70 is more accurate. They played only three internationals last year - a 1-1 draw with China in Wuhan and 3-0 defeats to both Mexico and Australia away - which has seen their ranking slide.

New Zealand Football has confirmed that reserved seating tickets will be priced at just $29 dollars for adults and $15 for children, with equivalent seats in a family zone on the embankment set at $25 and $10 respectively. A family pass of two adults and two children in the family zone will cost $60.

Members of White Noise (aka Yellow Fever) will be given first bite at tickets on Friday during a one-day pre-sale for the White Noise zone followed by a football club pre-sale beginning on Saturday. Tickets go on public sale on Wednesday via Ticketek.

- HERALD ONLINE/APNZ