Football Ferns hang on for draw against Korea Republic

Gabi Rennie of New Zealand attemps a shot at goal by Jungmi Kim of Korea Republic during the Football Ferns New Zealand V South Korea, Orangetheory Stadium, Christchurch, New Zealand, 15th November 2022. Copyright photo: John Davidson / www.photosport.nz

The Football Ferns have avoided defeat against Korea, though they had to ride their luck to do so.

They battled to a 1-1 draw on Tuesday in Christchurch, mainly thanks to a wonderful performance from goalkeeper Victoria Esson.

Esson saved a late penalty and denied Korea on several other occasions as the Asian team were almost completely dominant.

The Ferns took a 13th-minute lead through Olivia Chance, with a brilliant finish to capitalise on a goalkeeping error.

But they didn’t really come close again, while Korea had a hatful of chances. They equalised in the 57th minute and much of the second half was a rearguard action from the Ferns.

With just five more matches before next year’s World Cup, the Ferns still have a long way to go.

They were missing a number of frontliners on Tuesday but the lack of cohesion and combinations is a concern, along with their inability to nail basic passes.

The Ferns at least showed more conviction and energy than in Saturday’s 1-0 loss, with a robust, physical approach.

Katie Bowen did well again as a makeshift centre back, while Malia Steinmetz was tidy in midfield.

Ferns coach Jitka Klimkova made two changes from Saturday’s starting XI, with Grace Jale and Gabi Rennie coming in for Emma Rolston and Indiah-Paige Riley.

Just like the first match, Korea were slicker from the start, forcing a strong early save from Esson, but the Ferns went ahead thanks to a classic goalkeeping howler.

Veteran Korean custodian Jung-Mi Kim left her pass way short, allowing Gabi Rennie to intercept.

Rennie’s effort was saved but Chance lashed the rebound home from just inside the area for her second international goal.

That gave the Ferns a boost but the rest of the half was a similar pattern to the first match.

World No 18 Korea played most of the football, while the Ferns mostly relied on long balls for Paige Satchell to chase.

The windy conditions didn’t help but there was a lack of composure on the ball and they struggled to knit anything together, not helped by errant passing.

Korea could have equalised just before halftime but midfielder Guem-Min Lee blazed over after a neat build-up.

Riley was introduced for Satchell after the break but Korea maintained their ascendancy.

They missed another golden chance, heading over from a few metres, after a corner snuck through, before they finally got their reward in the 57th minute.

The Ferns were caught napping from a short corner and Ye Eun-Park cleverly deflected a driven shot past Esson.

There were more chances, with Esson coming to the rescue, while Meikayla Moore managed a desperate clearance – just avoiding her own net – after another attack.

Esson was the hero late on, with a magnificent penalty stop in the 84th minute, springing to her right to deny Hwa-Yeon Son.

The keeper had earlier been left stranded after a long ball exposed the Ferns defence and she brought down the Korean attacker in the area.

Korea continued to push but the Ferns hung on.

Football Ferns 1 (Olivia Chance 13)

Korea Republic 1 (Ye Eun-Park 57)

Halftime: 1-0