'Pretty gutting': All Whites reflect on 3-1 loss to Egypt

The All Whites have lost their first World Cup game since 1982, suffering a 3-1 loss to Egypt in Vancouver today.

New Zealand looked to make history after Finn Surman found the back of the net in the 15th minute, giving the All Whites an early lead.

Read our match report on the All Whites v Egypt here

But a dominant Egyptian side bounced back in the second half to secure the win and their spot at the top of the group G standings.

Speaking after the match, Surman said the result was "pretty gutting" for the hopeful All Whites.

"It's pretty disappointing on our behalf. I think we let them into the game too much," Surman conceded.

"After the first goal, I guess we opened up a little bit."

The 22-year-old said he believed the some of the calls from the referee were "really rough", with New Zealand on the receiving end of 14 fouls and three offsides during the game.

"We shouldn't be counting on that sort of stuff, but it definitely has an effect on the game," he said.

It was a bittersweet outcome for Surman, who scored his first World Cup goal during the first half — a feeling he described as "pretty awesome".

"Just super disappointing not to carry that out and win the game," he said

"Good thing is, we've got one more game against Belgium to turn this around and go get a result there."

'Tough pill to swallow'

Speaking after the match, All Whites goalkeeper Max Crocombe said New Zealand's performance simply fell short of Egypt's in the second half.

"Egypt ramped it up, We had to have a perfect game and we didn't have that," he said.

Reflecting on the positives, he said it was good New Zealand had managed to score and get ahead in both games.

"I think we were punished in moments, and individually we just have to get better."

Midfielder Callum McCowatt said the team were as a collective feeling down after the result.

"At times, we looked great but, at other times, we looked very naive," he admitted.

"It was a tough pill to swallow."

All Whites head coached Darren Bazeley dubbed the result "disappointing" for his side, who will now need a win against ninth-ranked Belgium if they hope to stay in the tournament.

"We were good in the first half, dominated possession and created a lot of chances," Bazeley said, reflecting on New Zealand's performance.

"We came out in the second half, I thought we were OK but we didn't quite get to the level of the pace of the game.

"Egypt upped the tempo, and we couldn't replicate what we did in the first half."

‘Incredible game’

Former All White Ivan Vicelich said New Zealand’s performance in the first half was “a great thing for the country”.

“To take the lead again in the World Cup and to lead at half-time is something that is very rare.

“Expectations are very high in New Zealand because of the draw in first round but, if you actually if you put it all into context, it’s an incredible first-half and an incredible game all round.

"Disappointing to come away with a loss, but to be in a position where you're leading against Egypt, such a top ranked team with quality players, to perform that well and be in the game for so long is really impressive."

Vicelich said the next All Whites game on Saturday against Belgium would be of similar difficulty to Egypt.

“They’re a great side, and I think we’ve seen that over the World Cup so far. They haven’t been able to get a win, so they will be all out guns blazing trying to get three points.

“For us, I think it’s an opportunity now to do the same thing, to continue with the game plan we had we should have a lot of confidence from those games. The players should have full confidence and disappointment from today’s result but, hopefully, that can drive an incredible result for the final game.”

Asked if New Zealand could get a win or a draw against Belgium, Vicelich said, “anything is possible”.

“The longer the game goes, the more pressure will be on Belgium to get a result because they’re hot favourites, so the ball is in our court.”

The All Whites will face Belgium at BC Place, Vancouver at 3pm on Saturday (NZT)

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