New Zealand vs New Caledonia

The All Whites are in pole position after posting a perfect record of four wins from four matches and a victory at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin will see them top the group and advance to the home-and-away playoff with the fourth-placed team in CONCACAF in November for a place at Brazil 2014.

Opposing them is a New Caledonia side that still have a chance of overhauling New Zealand and keeping their dreams of making Brazil alive.

Since the All Whites gained revenge for their OFC Nations Cup semi-final loss to New Caledonia with a 2-0 away victory in the opening round of Stage 3, Les Cagous have pulled off three high-scoring wins to sit behind New Zealand on the ladder.

New Caledonia trail the All Whites by three points and have an inferior goal differential of just one so a positive result would take Stage 3 down to the wire and mean the final round of matches on Tuesday 26 March would then become all-important.

All Whites coach Ricki Herbert has named an attacking line up to tackle Les Cagous with recognised strike power in Jeremy Brockie, Chris Killen, Marco Rojas, Shane Smeltz and Chris Wood all named in his starting eleven.

"I'm excited by the side I have named, and if we get enough of the ball I think we'll cause them a lot of problems.

"We've still got Kosta (Barbarouses) on the bench and the likes of Louis Fenton and Tyler Boyd, who both scored for the Junior All Whites in their opening win in Fiji, waiting in the wings," Herbert said.

At the other end of the pitch Herbert has named West Ham defender Winston Reid as All Whites captain following the retirement of Ryan Nelsen who has hung up his boots to concentrate on his new career as coach of Major League Soccer club Toronto FC.

Wellington Phoenix captain Andrew Durante has also been included in the squad, but he will not make his debut for his adopted country in tonight's match.  Ben Sigmund, Durante's defensive partner at the Phoenix, is suspended for the match.

Experienced defender Tony Lochhead fractured his leg in the Phoenix's 2-1 away win over Perth Glory, while Glen Moss picked up a knee injury in the first training session in Dunedin.

Despite the minor setbacks Herbert is pleased with where his side sits in the lead up to their biggest match in the last four years.

"It's been one of the best camps we have had leading into the match and I think the players realise the importance of the match," Herbert said.

The match with New Caledonia kicks off at 7.45pm on Friday at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin, with the All Whites jetting out to Honiara for their final match with Solomon Islands on March 26.