There's a club versus country drama playing out in Lithuania as the All Whites prepare for their second football friendly in three days.
New Zealand coach Danny Hay's not resting the Phoenix players who started against Ireland on Friday despite releasing his big stars back to their European clubs.
But Nix coach Ufuk Talay might be pleased that Hay is benching the Wellington outfield players, who started in Dublin.
Talay wants his five players to return fresh from Lithuania, having played big minutes in just one of two internationals.
"Tim Payne will start, Alex Rufer will start," Danny Hay told Newshub.
"They didn't start in the fixture against Ireland and if we need to bring on the likes of Callum late in the game that will occur.
Talay's concerned about combining match fatigue with 40 thousand killer-metres of All Whites travel in nine days.
The Phoenix players will land just three days before their home game against the Roar.
"True to my word I'm going to start with a different 11 and just being fair to ensure we're sending them back in reasonable shape."
That's a move that'll keep Talay happy and help Hay build the relationship he needs with the Phoenix.
Hay confirmed to Newshub that Phoenix goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic is also set to start.
