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Football Ferns celebrate draw with Mexico - Source: Reuters
Two last-gasp goals earned the Football Ferns a dramatic and historic 2-2 FIFA Womens World Cup draw against Mexico in Sinsheim, Germany on Wednesday morning (NZT).
Trailing to first half goals to Stephany Mayor and Maribel Dominguez and heading to injury time, Rebecca Smith nodded home a 90th minute corner from substitute Kirsty Yallop before 18-year-old substitute Hannah Wilkinson briefly knocked out from a head clash moments earlier slammed home an Ali Riley cross with the final kick of the game.
The draw sees the Football Ferns claim their first-ever Womens World Cup point in their ninth match over three tournaments since 1991.
The pre-match talk of the Mexicos lethal counterattacking ability was right on the money and from their first turnover in midfield barely a minute into the game Moica Ocampo played in Stephany Mayor to clinically finish through Jenny Bindon for the games opening goal.
Mexico were chasing a large victory as part of their equation to qualify for the quarterfinals and their cause was helped when their prolific captain Dominguez got a jump on the kiwi defence in the 29th minute and was left to beat Bindon one on one.
But New Zealand, who had split possession evenly throughout the game, started to get more of a foothold after halftime as Mexico sat deeper and although the Football Ferns had already enjoyed more chances than their opposition they became more threatening in the final 15 minutes.
Substitute Ria Percival, flashed two shots over the bar before Smith went just wide with a header in the dying minutes.
She made no mistake with her next chance, towering over the Mexican defence and directing her header low inside the far post.
With time running out and Wilkinson back on the field after seeing stars from a clash of head and heavy fall, the teenager drifted off her marker, chested Rileys cross down and finished high into the top left corner to seal a dramatic fight back.
These girls couldve got on the aeroplane at halftime and gone home, said New Zealand coach John Herdman, that was the reality.
They had nothing to play for other than their pride and their own identity as footballers and boy, did they go out there and show Mexico. It was magic.
We got some really experienced players in the team, including our captain Rebecca Smith shes right at the spine of it. But weve got a very young team. That was an 18 year old that scored the equaliser that scored the equaliser for New Zealand.
Meanwhile England topped the group with a 2-0 win over Japan, earning a quarterfinal against France who lost 4-2 to Germany to finish behind the hosts in Group A.
The Football Ferns are eyeing international matches against top tier nations in September as part of their build up for the 2012 Olympics.
As champions of Oceania via last years eight team World Cup
qualifying tournament New Zealand will play off in early 2012
against the winner of a preliminary Oceania qualifying tournament
to qualify for the London games.
GROUP B RESULTS AND STANDINGS
Mexico 2 (Mayor 2, Dominguez 29) New Zealand 2 (Smith 90, Wilkinson 90+4)
England 2 (White 15, Yankey 65) Japan 0
Group
B GP
W D L GF
GA Pts
England
3 2 1
0 5
2 7
Japan
3 2 0
1
6 3
6
Mexico 3
0 2 1
3 7 2
New
Zealand 3
0 1 2
4 6 1
