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February 23, 2004 Captaining country against China quite ironic for "Maia-mi Vice" by Jeremy Ruane You could be forgiven for thinking it was meant to happen!! When New Zealand captain Rebecca Smith succumbed to a hamstring strain at half-time in her country's Australia Cup clash with the host nation, vice-captain Maia Jackman took on the task in impressive fashion. Leading her young colleagues by example with a massive individual performance was made even more noteworthy by the fact that it was her first appearance in a central defensive role since New Zealand's match against the USA at the 2000 Pacific Cup, when Jackman kept Mia Hamm scoreless during the then world champions' 5-0 win. With Smith ruled out for the China fixture in the Brisbane-based tournament the captain's armband was again handed to Jackman, and the sense of irony was uncanny. For among the raft of experiences which the most capped international in New Zealand's squad boasts is a spell playing professionally for Dalian Shide in the 2002 Chinese Women's Super League. "It was somewhat ironic", said the acting captain, "but it was disappointing not to seethe game out." For in the 67th minute of a match which China won 3-0 - three first half goals - Jackman hobbled off with a knee injury, as the curse of the captain's armband struck New Zealand for the second successive game. "I fell on my knee quite awkwardly in the second half of the Australia encounter, and aggravated it during a couple of the hard training sessions we've had since that game. The medical staff thought I'd fractured my kneecap, but I'm fairly certainly it's just bone bruising."said the physiotherapist by trade. "I'll definitely be okay for the North Korea game, but it is quite sore at the moment." said New Zealand's number five, as she tenderly nursed the strapped and ice-packed injury For Jackman to come off injured in a game is a measure of how painful her injury must be, because she is one player who regularly plays through the pain barrier in the interests of the team. It's something which has earned her the respect of both opponents and team-mates alike, including those of recent vintage. For as we conducted this post-match interview, a couple of her Dalian colleagues came up to her to see how she was. "Three of my Dalian team-mates are in the Chinese squad", said Jackman afterwards. "I brought my Chinese dictionary with me, and when I go visiting them - China and North Korea are staying in the same hotel as ourselves - there's generally a bit of silence, and lots of picture-drawing! They tell me my Chinese is pretty bad, and I must admit I'm a little rusty. But then, I can say exactly the same about their English!!." she giggled. Of the squad embarking on this new era in New Zealand soccer, Jackman is most impressed. "Everything's coming together really well, and that situation will improve still further as we play together more and get more international football experience. We seem to be fairly nervous in the first half of games at present - it seems to take us a half to settle down. But it's good to see we can turn it round in the second half of games."said Jackman, emphasising a fact borne out by New Zealand's scoreless second spell performances against both Australia and China - the goals scored by these teams against their inexperienced Kiwi counterparts have all come in the first forty-five minutes of their clashes. New Zealand's defensive efforts are highly commendable given that, as well as Jackman, Brooke Rangi is another player for whom a rearguard role is foreign - as with the vice-captain's performances in Brisbane, you certainly wouldn't know it!! "It's a bit of a learning curve for a lot of us at the back, but we're picking things up quickly."said Jackman, including, in her case, another nickname to add to her collection, following her appointment to the vice-captaincy role of her country. No prizes for guessing - it's "Maia-mi Vice"!!