On a day that began with tragedy, the Football Ferns triumphed.
Hannah Wilkinson scored to open the second half and New Zealand went on to upset Norway 1-0 on Thursday for its first-ever win on the Women’s World Cup, hours after a taking pictures in downtown Auckland shocked the host nation.
A gunman stormed a high-rise building website close to Norway’s workforce resort and opened hearth, killing two folks. The gunman was discovered useless after a police shootout.
There was elevated safety at Eden Park stadium, the place 42,137 — a file crowd for a soccer match in New Zealand — have been available to cheer on the house workforce, co-hosts of the event with Australia. New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins was amongst these on the recreation. He went into the locker room after the sport and thanked the workforce for an inspirational efficiency.
After a gap ceremony that honored New Zealand’s Indigenous heritage, there was a second of silence for the victims of the taking pictures. Five folks have been wounded within the assault, together with a police officer.
New Zealand’s Football Ferns had performed in 5 earlier World Cups, however hadn’t received a match.
“We actually needed to encourage younger ladies throughout the nation and I feel we did that tonight. We confirmed that something is feasible,” said captain Ali Riley, who had happy tears in her eyes.
Norway couldn’t finish off its chances in the first half while the Ferns defended well. Ada Hegerberg’s attempt in the 37th minute was deftly defended by Rebekah Stott and the match was scoreless after the first half.
The first woman to win the prestigious Ballon d’Or award, Hegerberg has 43 goals in 77 international appearances. Currently playing professionally for Lyon, she has scored a record 59 goals in the Champions League. But she couldn’t find the back of the net in Auckland.
Instead, Wilkinson scored in the opening moments of the second half. Jaqui Hand moved up the right side and placed a perfect cross at Wilkinson’s feet for the goal. While the home crowd wildly celebrated, Norway goalkeeper Aurora Mikalson stood with her hands on her hips.
Norway won the World Cup in 1995. At the last tournament in 2019, the team fell to England in the quarterfinals. At the Women’s Euro in 2022, England routed the Norwegians 8-0. In the run-up to this game, winger Caroline Graham Hansen called the World Cup a chance to “start fresh.”
“(It’s) the opening game, they are the hosts. We have talked about this. We knew they were going to go out there and be aggressive,” Norway midfielder Guro Reiten stated. “We knew exactly how they wanted to play but still, we were so poor, especially in that first half. I’m very disappointed.”
Tuva Hansen nearly tied it for Norway in the 83rd but her shot caromed off the crossbar. The Ferns had a chance to double their lead in the 89th after video review awarded them a penalty, but Ria Percival’s attempt hit the post.
Stoppage time stretched for more than 10 minutes before the whistle blew and New Zealand’s bench rushed the field in celebration. Riley pounded her chest for the electrified fans.
“It’s really hard to put into words, but absolutely surreal,” Ferns defender Katie Bowen said of the droughtbreaking victory. “I mean we made history tonight, but we can’t rest on that. Our goal is to get out of the group.”
Bowen said she was awakened by an early morning call from her brother, checking if she was OK after hearing about the Auckland shooting.
“I think everyone was just pretty taken aback, because this doesn’t really happen in New Zealand,” Bowen said. “But I feel, particularly on a recreation day, down to only every particular person doing what they wanted to do to course of it and ensure they might give attention to the sport on the similar time.”
New Zealand got the nod to stage the World Cup’s first game, although co-host Australia’s match against Ireland in Sydney started about an hour after fulltime in Auckland.
Considered the favorites in Group A, the Norwegians went into the game 5-1-1 all-time against New Zealand, with the only loss coming in a 2019 exhibition match.
Norway coach Hege Riise said her players were not impacted by the shooting, despite the incident happened near their hotel.
“We knew it was under control, we felt safe. Some players slept through it,” Riise stated. “We had an early morning assembly with everybody. It hasn’t had an impact on how we carried out within the recreation.”
New Zealand had struggled within the run-up to the event on residence soil, with only one win in its final 11 matches.
The two groups had met simply as soon as earlier than on the World Cup: Norway beat the Ferns 4-0 in 1991.
UP NEXT
Group A play continues Friday with Switzerland enjoying the Philippines in Dunedin. New Zealand’s subsequent match is Tuesday towards the Philippines in Wellington, whereas Norway performs Switzerland in Hamilton. The prime two groups within the group will advance to the knockout stage.