New Zealand are headed to Brazil for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup after narrowly defeating Papua New Guinea in the Oceania qualifiers.
Betty Sam had made several saves, and the woodwork came to PNG’s rescue three times.
Sunderland’s Katie Kitching scored the only goal 10 minutes into the second half in Auckland, heading home a cross from Gabi Rennie.
The Football Ferns sailed through the semi-final with a 5-0 win against Fiji, as tournament top scorer Kelli Brown got her fifth goal of the qualifiers.
Kate Taylor, Michaela Foster, Kitching, and Durham’s Hannah Blake also made it onto the scoresheet, the latter with her fourth of the Oceania competition.
PNG, who had topped their group and edged America Samoa 1-0 in the knockout round, still have a chance to qualify for the finals through the two-phase inter-confederation play-offs at the end of this year.
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