The Indian men’s national football team are set for a historic assignment as they prepare to take on New Zealand in the first of two international friendlies in Auckland on Thursday, November 12. The match, scheduled to kick off at 11:40 AM IST at the Go Media Stadium, will mark the Blue Tigers’ first-ever visit to New Zealand.

The upcoming encounter will also be only the third senior international meeting between India and New Zealand, with their previous clashes taking place in 1981 and 2018.

While the trip represents unfamiliar territory for most members of the Indian squad, forward Ryan Williams is one player who already has some experience of playing football in New Zealand.

The Australia-born attacker previously travelled to the country during his time with A-League side Perth Glory. One of those visits came in January 2023, when Perth Glory played out an entertaining 2-2 draw against Wellington Phoenix in Palmerston North in a fixture popularly associated with the unusual name ‘Distance Derby’.

Interestingly, David Williams, who is well known to Indian football supporters for his stints with ATK and ATK Mohun Bagan, was among the standout performers in that contest, scoring both goals for Perth Glory.

Reflecting on the challenges of travelling to New Zealand, Ryan Williams explained how the considerable distance and time difference can make such trips particularly demanding for footballers.

“Every time I’ve come to New Zealand to play, it’s always been difficult because of how far away it is from everything. From Perth, it’s a long way. The time difference is something you have to manage as well,” Ryan Williams said.

The 33-year-old’s previous international and club experiences across Australia and the United Kingdom have given him considerable exposure to long-distance travel. That experience has proved useful as the Indian squad adjusts to Auckland’s time zone, which is seven and a half hours ahead of India.

Williams also revealed the strategy he followed during the journey to ensure his body adjusted to the new schedule as quickly as possible.

“My plan was to sleep for the first part of the flight, which was to Malaysia. I slept a couple of hours, then pretty much didn’t sleep until we got here. It kind of resets your whole body clock, so you can come here, go straight to sleep and try to sleep through the whole night. I feel good. I’ve done this plenty of times before, so it definitely helps in situations like this,” he said.

Apart from the long journey and time difference, the weather conditions have presented another interesting challenge for the Indian players.

Auckland’s chilly and rainy climate was not particularly surprising for Williams, who has previously experienced similar conditions during his football career. However, several of his teammates had a rather different introduction to the local weather during India’s training session at the North Harbour Stadium Outer Oval on Tuesday.

What initially began as a comfortable afternoon session with pleasant weather soon turned into a cold, rain-soaked training exercise.

Williams found the experience amusing, particularly while watching his teammates deal with the sudden change in conditions.

“Having trained in pouring rain, cold and on wet, muddy ground, I’m used to it. But these boys came out, and it was quite funny. It was like a scene out of Cool Runnings,” he joked, referring to the 1993 comedy film about Jamaica’s unlikely journey into competitive bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics.

Despite the unexpected weather, Williams felt the session provided a valuable experience for the squad.

“Everyone enjoyed it, though. Testing yourself in different climates, temperatures and parts of the world is what we want to do as footballers. It’s really exciting. Everyone is happy, glad that we’re here, and thankful that these games have been put on.”

Interestingly, the upcoming fixture will not be Williams’ first encounter with New Zealand footballers at the international level.

The forward previously represented Australia’s Under-20 team against New Zealand’s junior side in a friendly played in Wollongong in June 2013. Australia registered a convincing 5-0 victory over the Junior All Whites as both teams prepared for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey.

However, Thursday’s encounter will provide Williams with his first opportunity to play an international match on New Zealand soil.

For India, the two friendlies offer another important opportunity to test themselves against quality international opposition. The Blue Tigers recently faced Panama, Brazil and Uruguay during the previous international window, gaining valuable experience against teams that have competed at the FIFA World Cup.

Williams believes those encounters have given the Indian team greater confidence and a clearer understanding of the improvements required to compete against stronger opponents.

“It’s a really cool couple of games for us. Coming off the back of playing Panama, Brazil and Uruguay, we’ve got that taste for wanting to play teams that have been in the World Cup. We’ve learned a lot from those games and know how we can improve,” he said.

The forward also stressed that India must focus on maintaining their best performances for longer periods when facing teams of a higher international standard.

“There were periods in those three games when it didn’t look like there was much difference. Our goal is to take that forward and try to sustain those good periods for longer against equally strong teams. These are teams that have all played in the World Cup, and that’s where we aspire to be as a country. The more games we play against these big teams, the better it will be for everyone.”

Following Thursday’s opening encounter in Auckland, India and New Zealand will meet again in the second friendly on Sunday, November 15.

The final match of the tour will take place at the One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch, with kick-off scheduled for 8:40 AM IST.

For the Blue Tigers, the two matches represent more than just another international assignment. They offer an opportunity to gain valuable exposure, measure their progress against World Cup-level opposition and take another step towards competing more consistently on the global stage.