They left it quite late, but in France 2019 the Netherlands took the win. The European champions were stirred by a notable touring army of orange-clad supporters, but they struggled to build against a well-organized side of New Zealand. The Football Ferns had, in reality, given Jill Roord’s stop-time winner some of the best possibilities for the game.

“It was a difficult match and we found it tough to create openings. New Zealand defended well and it was not our best match, that’s clear. But I think we’re able to handle these kind of difficult matches as we have quite a lot of experience now. It was important for the team that we started with a win and now we’ll look back and analyse where we can do better.”
– Lieke Martens, Player of the Match

Three of the four FIFA World Cup objectives in the Netherlands have now been achieved after the 87th minute-and the three are all replacement objectives! The last second thrilling. And what a will a replacement can give to the distinction! The Dutch players and the employees will be speaking a lot, but relief will be the biggest emotions in New Zealand following a 1-0 victory over Jill Roord.

An extra time for the Football Ferns was unfinished as one of the bravest defenders you will see. It will hurt to close up to a popular draw, but Tom Sermanni’s side can take plenty of trust in their next game in Grenoble against Canada.

“We’ve got to look at the positive things we did. We had a game plan and the players adhered to that magnificently. Their effort, courage and discipline was first class. We’ve got to take those positives away and look at the 90 minutes as a whole. The Dutch were the dominant team but we created some great chances. The players will be absolutely devastated but we’re a resilient group and I’m pretty confident we’ll bounce back.”
– Tom Sermanni, New Zealand coach.

Worrying signs for football fans Erin Nayler, who was struck in his head and neck while he attempted to save, towards the end of the first quarter. She stayed a while, but she didn’t have to finally be treated.

The first half is happy with Football Ferns coach Tom Sermanni. Although he only owns over 30%, his side produced some excellent opportunities-mainly on the counter. With their long-range efforts Liv Chance had the greatest chance, while Rosie White was forcing Sari van Veenendaal to save. However, the defense of New Zealands is the half story with the involvement of Abby Erceg and Rebekah Stott.

“I think we can play better than we did today. But we were looking for a win and New Zealand were looking for a draw, and I’m very glad we finally got what we wanted. I’m very relieved, of course. Let’s hope that we play better in our next match – that’s our goal. We want to create more scoring opportunities than we did today.”
– Sarina Wiegman, Netherlands coach.

Image: Kane Oosty / FIFA