The All Whites have sent home Brisbane Roar teenager Dane Ingham from their Auckland camp after the four-cap fullback arrived out of shape.
All Whites Dane Ingham has been sent home after failing fitness tests in the team camp. Photo: Photosport
The team is preparing for the opening home game of their two-leg World Cup qualifying campaign against the Solomon Islands.
The first game is in Auckland on Friday night with the return match in Honiara next Tuesday.
Coach Anthony Hudson said 18-year-old Ingham hadn't met the All Whites' fitness standards and he has decided to send him home.
He said midfielders Clayton Lewis and Bill Tuiloma had both been left out of this week's World Cup qualifier squad for the same reason.
Ingham's departure makes him the fifth Kiwi player to miss Friday's match in Albany, north of Auckland, along with Winston Reid, Tommy Smith, Shane Smeltz and Marco Rojas.
The winner of the two game series moves through to an intercontinental playoff match against the fifth placed South American team. Argentina are currently in that slot.
