Veteran striker Hannah Wilkinson has evoked a collective sight of relief from the Football Ferns, scoring their first goal of the year in a 1-1 draw against Iceland at Antalya, Turkey.
Pitted against a team sitting 11 spots higher on FIFA world rankings, the NZ women fell behind in the first half, but responded within 10 minutes, when Wilkinson met a Michaela Foster corner at the far post and nodded it past Iceland keeper Telma Ivarsdottir to equalise.
The Ferns forced six corners throughout the encounter, without finding the goal to secure a much-needed victory, but coach Jitka Klimková is overjoyed with the result, which reverses an alarming string of five scoreless defeats in 2023.
"I am very, very happy about how we performed," she said. "It was very solid from our team, playing against strong opposition like Iceland.
"We agreed, as a team, that we want to be gritty and united in our defence, and we could see that today during the game. If we perform this way, we can have very positive outcomes.
"I feel the draw against Iceland is very, very positive from out side."
New Zealand had last scored in a 1-1 draw against South Korea last November, and the drought had begun to eat away at players and fans, with the home World Cup looming in July.
"Oh my gosh, we were waiting for this moment for so long," admitted Klimková. "During our sessions, we were putting the ball in the net, so we were more confident coming into this game.
"I am very happy for Hannah Wilkinson that she scored the goal - for herself and our team and everyone in New Zealand."
Dagný Brynjarsdóttir scored Iceland's only goal, when she rose above a goalmouth scramble to head home a long throw-in.
With players arriving into camp at different times during the preceding days, preparation for the match wasn't perfect, but Klimková is happy to see the continued development of her players, as she identifies who will make the cut for the World Cup squad.
Teenager Milly Clegg made her international debut for a few minutes at the end of the game.
"It's incredible how quickly she adjusted to the speed of play and how natural she looks on the field," said Klimková. "During our training sessions, you wouldn't recognise that it's her first time with the Ferns.
"She really deserved to play today. Her performances with the [Wellington] Phoenix and youth teams were asking for this moment, and she's grabbing it.
Foster - daughter of All Blacks coach Ian Foster - impressed in her first start for the national team, after coming off the bench in previous games.
"She actually had on her the best player of Iceland [Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir], very quick. We knew she's a threat, but how she dealt with her and how aggressive she was in her one v one defending was another positive from today's game.
"Not just defensively, she really helped us to keep the ball as well - she is very composed on the ball and both footed - so it was nice to see that she can fit into our team so nicely."
The NZ women will now prepare to face top African nation Nigeria - ranked 42nd in the world - on Wednesday (NZ time), with Klimková seeking consistency from her team.
"We can see we can really well perform well against strong opposition," she said. "Nigeria will be a little bit different - we haven't played a team from the African federation, so we know they will be physical and very athletic, and we need to be prepared for a different style of play.
"It is another great test for this team to be prepared for the World Cup."
New Zealand 1 (Wilkinson) Iceland 1 (Brynjarsdóttir)
