Football Ferns coach Jitka Klimkova is bullish about the future – even if the pain of their World Cup exit might take a long time to heal.
Klimkova admits the scars are still raw, 10 days on from the 0-0 stalemate against Switzerland in Dunedin, which saw New Zealandeliminated on goal difference.
In some ways the manner of their exit was an anti-climax, after the stunning win over Norway at Eden Park had set them on course to reach the knockout stages for the first time.
It didn’t happen – mainly because of the shock 1-0 defeat to the Philippines in Wellington – which made their final group assignment much harder.
Even with time to reflect, it doesn’t get any easier.
“I’m thinking about it a lot,” Klimkova told the Herald. “I imagine that will go around my head for a long time. I always look in the mirror first and ask myself if there is anything that I could change, if any [substitutes] coming earlier on the field could help us, if some other formation could help us. “I’m asking all those questions, but [also then] if we would do it, what would happen? It could go both ways, you know.”
In hindsight, Klimkova admitted that it wasn’t easy for the team to refocus after the epic opening night victory, which captivated the country.
“That would be my biggest lesson learned,” said Klimkova. “Like what can we do mentally to be more prepared for that second game and be more prepared for our performance and not just thinking about how we can win that game.”
After the Ferns arrived back in Auckland on July 31, there was something akin to a grieving process. Teams usually disperse immediately once they are eliminated but most of the staff and around 10 players remained at their Pullman Hotel base for a few days.
“We couldn’t go home - I was not ready to go home,” said Klimkova. “So we stayed there, just recovering, a lot of the players and staff.”
But spirits were lifted when they attended two Eden Park matches – including the Spain versus Switzerland round of 16 match which the Ferns could have been part of - and were surrounded by well-wishers and grateful fans.
Football Ferns coach Jitka Klimkova. Photo / Photosport
“On one side it was tough to watch the game,” said Klimkova. “On the other side seeing how much that fans were appreciative and thankful, that was not something I was expecting at all, but it was so generous and absolutely coming from their hearts.”
It was the same whenever Klimkova and others ventured outside the hotel.
“We were walking with our New Zealand football gear – we didn’t have any other [clothes] - and people just loved us,” explained Klimkova. “Not just at the stadium but in the city, everywhere. I was going grocery shopping and people were stopping me and they are saying, ‘oh my gosh, guys, you’ve done so well, you guys are awesome’ and I was like wow, thank you.”
That was a window into what had been achieved, which Klimkova hopes is a foundation to be built upon.
NZF will soon commence a detailed campaign review and debrief, but the coach is already thinking further ahead. There is set to be four more matches this year, with two games in the September international window and another couple in early December, before the Oceania Olympic qualifying tournament next February.
“We need to find a way to keep getting better,” said Klimkova. “But this World Cup will definitely help us to grow and we showed the world that we can play good football. And that means so much to us.
“We created so many chances. We had the most shots we’ve ever had. We had everything. We scored, we hit the post. Even if we could be more courageous, we could be braver and we could get forward even more. We were so close and our performance was actually still inspiring.”
