Can you link the highlights? Search on FIFA+ just does not work.
Edit: never mind, https://www.plus.fifa.com/en/content/new-zealand-v-japan-game-1-international-friendly-highlights-2024/be8a1586-9ad5-401d-8a60-57eab0afa19c
Marking for the 2nd goal in particular was pretty poor, they had no clue The player was even there.
Japan are a much better ranked team so 2-0 doesn't seem too bad, but we really need to be able to create something going forward because we offered nothing in the final third all match. For the most part the defence was good we just need to find ways to deliver that for the full 90
The 2nd match should be the real litmus test, having just had 90 minutes of up close experience against them. I want to see us find some solutions up front that actually means we test their defence a few times
This game really didn't make much of an impression, did it? Just saw a 9+ mins highlights vid on NZF YouTube. Showed one decent chance the Ferns created. And obviously showed just how soft the Japanese goals were. Michaela Foster in particular with some of the worst ball watching/losing your marker you'll ever see in the lead up to the first goal.
Is everyone just completely apathetic to the Ferns after this latest coaching drama?
I basically jinxed the Ferns. Wilko came on at the start of the second half and played poorly giving the ball away often. The second goal was very, very poor. The starting XI wasn't bad but as the older players came on for the younger starters, the Ferns got worse and worse.
The Ferns got forward often but either played poor balls to our forwards or played them to Wilko who messed up time and time again.
Hannah is a great artist and flat track bully, but she is no international footballer. Like Naylor she needs to be put out to pasture.
This game really didn't make much of an impression, did it? Just saw a 9+ mins highlights vid on NZF YouTube. Showed one decent chance the Ferns created. And obviously showed just how soft the Japanese goals were. Michaela Foster in particular with some of the worst ball watching/losing your marker you'll ever see in the lead up to the first goal.
Is everyone just completely apathetic to the Ferns after this latest coaching drama?
Think plenty have been apathetic to the Ferns after the World Cup, jumped on the bandwagon, realised they weren't very good, hopped off again.
But also games like these do nothing to foster support - 2am against a much better team that we aren't going to score against. And yes I understand that there are other reasons for scheduling such matches (i.e. preparing for France and Canada).
I watch heaps of NZ football/futsal national sides but even for me it was a hard nope - not worth losing sleep for.
