Japan	England	Mexico
Football Ferns coach John Herdman was typically philosophical in his post-match comments, praising the victors while at the same time giving his disappointed charges the sort of public boost they needed with all to play for in their next two games. "It was a good game for the spectators to watch", said Herdman. "Japan mesmerised us as we all know they can, particularly in the last twenty-odd minutes with the introduction of Iwabuchi. I don't think the world's really seen that player yet, and I think this tournament's going to be an exciting stage for that girl to flourish. "It seemed like the momentum had shifted slightly in New Zealand's favour for a good 10-15 minutes in the second half, but then that run by Iwabuchi and the goal (which resulted) … I think from that there was no coming back really, although having said that New Zealand might have hung on for a point - we were hoping for a Winston Reid moment in the last couple of minutes, but it didn't come. "We rode our luck a little bit. If you try and play through Japan, they are technically better than any team here, so you have to deal with them physically and try and play a more physical game. New Zealand started with that, but I think the heat was a major factor for our team today. We certainly looked as if we'd slowed down towards the end. "We landed in Switzerland on 13 June and played in a four-team tournament, but the temperatures never got beyond something like 22-23 degrees. We've been in Germany for the last four days and it's rained - it's like a Kiwi winter. So we haven't really had a chance to get a feel for that heat until yesterday afternoon. We were hoping it was going to rain today, but it wasn't to be. "Hopefully against the other teams it'll be a little bit easier. I don't think Mexico and England have the collective quality of the Japanese. The Mexicans rely heavily on Dominguez and the English have a style of play that I think will suit New Zealand. "The Japanese, in 30-odd degrees heat, playing the style of football they play, doesn't really suit any team! This team can go on and be a major threat at this tournament. They were pretty close at the Olympics. "I'm proud of the girls today. I felt they showed a typical Kiwi spirit, and never really gave up. To get back into the game that quickly was excellent, and shows that this team's come a long way. Usually we haven't recovered from goals like that, and we'd go on to leak a few more. "I thought that the girls stuck to the task, and got back into the game. If anyone had seen us up in the stand, I was jumping around like a big kid. It was exciting to see. It was a good sign for New Zealand, and a good goal as well from Amber Hearn. She's off the mark, and hopefully she can be a threat for the next couple of games. "But Japan are a formidable opponent. Their form has been fantastic this year. They constantly play against top teams, and they've either won games or been within a goal or two of teams who are sitting on top of the world rankings. "We've got the toughest one over today. I would like to have had a point from it - it would have been a major result for New Zealand on the world stage, but it wasn't to be. But we're ready for England and Mexico, two teams that New Zealand, although we're the underdogs, think we can have a good crack at".	"I hope you enjoyed it!" quipped Football Ferns coach, John Herdman, immediately after his team's clash with England. "It was a bit of a nail-biter. It was a really solid performance from the girls. I'm really proud of them. I don't think any of them have left a bit of Kiwi out on the pitch, and I think that's all you can ask of your team. "We led one of the powerhouses of football for an hour, and looked like we may have held on or even struck one (an equaliser) towards the end. I just think the tournament's not over for us. We've got a massive game coming up against Mexico. "It's about the country's pride. It's about New Zealand pushing for its first three points at a World Cup, so it's back to business in the next couple of days". For the 'colonial upstarts' to take the lead against the Motherland was not something England coach Hope Powell had anticipated, but Herdman certainly wasn't complaining when it happened. "We were all jumping around and hugging each other with the goal. It's a nice feeling. "I think the most important thing is we knew that England were going to come out firing, and it was about composure, about sticking to our plan, about defending well, and then hitting them on the break. We had a feel that they'd come out and send people forward, and hopefully we'd be able to capitalise on a little lack of concentration, and we did. "The rest's history now, but it was a great feeling - for us to be leading England, a country with a 4m population, a rugby nation, to be leading a powerhouse of football. This is a great feeling for our team, but it's not one that we accept anymore. We've got to win football matches. We've built credibility up over the past few years. It's about winning games, and unfortunately we couldn't do it for our people at home today. "We're just getting sick of being the nearly team. It's happened to us a couple of times now, but we're getting better. We led one of the world's best teams for a good hour, and looked like we had a couple of chances when we could have gone 2-0 up, or (levelled at) 2-2. We rode our luck a bit towards the end, but I'm proud of the lasses, and just sorry we couldn't pull it off for you all". The result will be seen in the annals as another narrow defeat for the Football Ferns against higher-ranked opponents. Is the day going to come when the post-match celebrations will be led by the Kiwis in such encounters? "It can't be long till we smash through that glass ceiling. The girls give everything they've got. At some point, it comes down to quality, and England just had that bit more quality across the pitch. If we can build up to that, with young players coming in - we've got some young players that will only get better. Give us some time - it'll happen". Asked about how the Football Ferns came to let slip their lead, Herdman was philosophical on matters. "The game opened up quite a bit in the final half-hour. We always knew England had quality, but they hadn't really found their rhythm throughout the game. But they found it for a good 15-20 minutes, and I think NZ managed to get a bit of a foot-hold back in the game. "But big Jill Scott, who had been causing a few problems breaking forward from midfield, got up, rose up and headed (the equaliser). The girl's 6 foot, probably jumps 7 foot, and put the ball in the back of the net. There's nothing you can do about that - good goal. "I think once momentum starts shifting, it's not easy to get a foothold. England are experienced - that's an experienced England team out there, you know. Euro finalists, they know their stuff, so they know how to kill a game off, but what was great was that the NZ girls just kept going. In the end it could have been 3-1, or 2-2". The English media were keen on pursuing the Jill Scott factor, so Herdman obliged them. "We talked about Jill Scott at half-time. She was making some of those runs from deep, and we talked about trying to address her and pick her up early. But re the goal, what can you do? Players are getting tight to her, but that's the threat she has. "They have got some quality players, Jill being one of them. But for ninety minutes, Kelly Smith and a few other key players of England were contained. I've got to be proud of the girls. They'll be pretty dejected with that performance because they lost the game against a powerhouse which they might have won or even got a draw". Looking ahead to the final games in the group, and with New Zealand now out of quarter-finals contention, Herdman is backing the land of his birth to go on and make their mark on the biggest stage in women's football. "I think both England and Japan will be pretty smart (when they play). I would say Japan would be smart to rest players and get themselves ready for the next round. England will want to build on this momentum. "My heart's now with England - we're not going to go through to the next round, so I'm hoping the three lions push on. It's exciting times for them. I think that experience will come through for them. For Japan, it'll just be about momentum and getting ready for Germany or France - good luck! "As for us, Mexico - it is our World Cup Final. We want to be the first senior team to grab three points from a win at a World Cup. It's on the cards - it's a reality. We believe Mexico have everything to play for still, so we've just got to make sure it happens".	1-0 down after 67 seconds - "Not in the game plan!"  2-0 down after twenty-odd - "Definitely not!!" Still 2-0 down after 89 minutes, and then … talk us through it. "Well, that's where big players come and do big things, and I think when you've got a captain like Rebecca Smith, with all the experience she's had - this is why she's captain. Cometh the hour, cometh the woman. She's got that ability to take a team where they need to go at the right time. "She missed one a few minutes earlier, but she's got that composure to get up and do it again, and that's the exciting thing - she stepped up and did what she had to do. That was a moment that I'll cherish. "Obviously we were very excited on the touchline at this point. I was asking the players to contest the drop-ball, because I knew if we didn't, Mexico would have launched it forty or fifty yards down the pitch and out for a throw-in. "I don't even think young Wilky knew where she was at, bless her! She came on as a substitute, and almost got concussed. Her job was to make an impact, and what an impact for an 18-year-old - last kick of the game. Unbelievable! Some composure in the box and just quality with her finish - outstanding. "It was one of those moments - these things happen in World Cups. The minnows step up. We're a little country, but with a big heart and that big heart comes through at times when it needs to - the captain on 90 minutes, Wilkinson on 92. It's what football's about, isn't it?" Of course, Herdman was hoping for more from the match. "We wanted to get three points out of this game, and be the first New Zealand team to win at a World Cup at senior level. It wasn't to be today. But when you get your captain stepping up in the 90th minute to head the ball into the net, it tells you something about not only the individual but the team. "For us, it's like winning the World Cup when you come back from a two-goal deficit. Just the character of the players, the resilience to keep going. If there was another five minutes, I'm sure we would have nicked it - I was praying for more time. "I've been in those games where the fourth official has put five minutes up on the board, and teams have punished us in that time. If only we'd had another two minutes - it might have been 4-2!" Instead, the 2-2 draw marks a fond farewell to the Football Ferns from Germany 2011, with the prospect of returning to England for the 2012 Olympics their top priority between now and Canada 2015, when the next FIFA Women's World Cup Finals take place. Needless to say, Herdman is proud of his team's efforts, particularly the great strides they have made since China 2007, and has a clear idea of the direction they need to follow now. "I think it's just keeping the momentum going now. "I'm really hoping that some of these players are going to be signed by top clubs. That's the key for the players now. They've shown at this stage that they're ready for top-level football, and that's where you get the added value to our team now. "We've done what we can in NZ. They've got to fly the nest. They've got to go and experience top-level football in Germany, the USA, Sweden, et al, and if they can foot it there they'll bring that experience back to the Football Ferns. Like Bex did today, being able to step up and do that in the 90th minute, that's the experience we need. "We've got some really experienced players in the team now, but we've got a very young team - that was an eighteen-year-old that scored the equaliser for NZ. It is an exciting future. We've got an Olympic Games just sitting round the corner, and this event was about making sure that the right players got the right exposure moving into that competition. "It's not the last you've heard of the Kiwis. This tournament, we really didn't want to go out. We fought hard to stay in it, and today, these girls could have got on the aeroplane at half-time and went home, and that was the reality - they had nothing to play for but their pride and their own identity as footballers. And God, did they go out there and show those Mexicans - it was magic!" That it most definitely was.