It was an emotional homecoming for stand-in All Whites captain Marko Stamenić.
Weighing heavily on his mind, not just the responsibility of wearing the captain's arm band, but also his late father.
Stamenić’s father, Nikola, passed away late last year. In a post to social media at the time, he labelled him as his "role model".
On Friday evening, Stamenić led New Zealand out in what was the first time he'd played on home soil without his dad in the stands. He was visibly emotional after the match.
“Coming out and coming home reminds me a lot of family, and family isn’t family really without my dad here and walking out singing the anthem and not having my dad there in the stands where normally I would see him was bloody difficult,” Stamenić told 1 News.
“I’ve had a huge turnout from my family and extended family as well, they’ve been so important for me in my health, my physical and mental health. I’m emotional but happy at the same time.”
Also making his family proud was debutant Lachlan Bayliss. Bayliss is of Kiwi heritage through his dad, who also passed away a few years ago.
“It means a lot to represent my family and especially my father,” Bayliss said.
As for the performance on the field, it seemed the All Whites took a step back.
You could use the excuses of key players missing and only days to prepare, but the depth in this squad suggests the All Whites can compete with higher-ranked teams, and there was nothing to suggest Finland was miles ahead of the All Whites.
At times getting rhythm into their attack, especially early in the first half, but couldn’t quite get it together consistently.
The All Whites had chances to score, and perhaps a couple should’ve been put away.
Coach Darren Bazeley is not mincing his words to 1News post-game.
“We were playing a team that didn’t qualify for the World Cup, and we’re going to a World Cup, so I think it’s a really strong reminder of how hard it’s going to be when we come up against teams at a World Cup,” Bazeley said.
“[Finland] are a good team but I feel like when we are at our best these are teams we should beat.”
The All Whites have one more game on Monday against Chile, their last on home soil before heading to North America.
Earlier in the day, Chile beat Cape Verde 4–2.
“It’s not at the levels we expect of ourselves, but the closer we get to the World Cup, we are continuously raising our standards, so the higher they are, the harder they’re to reach. We’ll move on and be better against Chile,” Striker Ben Waine said.
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