A 25th minute goal from captain Matt Garbett was important, after a slalom run through the defence and an emphatic finish. It was also a show of mental resilience, after Garbett had missed a penalty two minutes earlier, dragging his shot wide of the left hand upright.
Ben Waine then got the winner, after Guinea had equalised midway through the second half. New Zealand were fortunate. They were guilty of sitting back after they took the lead, and Guinea appeared to have equalised 15 minutes after the break, with a superb run from their right full back, their first Olympic goal since 1968.
But that goal was struck out for a marginal offside in the buildup, which was tough on the African team. Garbett was a standout, along with Finn Surman, while Sarpreet Singh had some nice touches.
New Zealand should have been further ahead, with Jay Herdman unable to connect with a Ben Waine cross. The Guinea wingers were coming down the flanks with pace, but the structure and discipline of the Kiwi side made the difference.
They were awarded a soft penalty – via VAR – but Garbett looked nervous and didn’t convert. Guinea finally got a deserved equaliser in the 72nd minute – with a shot from outside the area slipping past Paulsen. But this team is made of stern stuff, and just four minutes later they were back in front, with Riley Bidois setting up Waine.
New Zealand began to tire in the last 10 minutes – in the 30 degree heat – before a ridiculous 11 minutes of added time.
New Zealand 2 (Matt Garbett 25, Ben Waine 76) Guinea 1 (Amadou Diawarra 72)
