Any flickers of hope following the 1-1 draw with Iceland on Saturday were extinguished with this effort.
It wasn’t so much that the Ferns were outplayed - which they were, after a decent opening half hour - it was the lack of intensity and fight and desire and passion.
It almost felt like a training run - and not in a good way.
And this from a Ferns group that are about to play in a home World Cup, the opportunity of a lifetime which will likely never come again for Kiwi footballers.
They are also probably the most highly-resourced team in NZF history.
And it was off the back of poor performances in February, with the home losses to Portugal and Argentina (twice), which should have been a sharp, campaign-defining shock.
But NZF made no alterations or additions to the coaching or support staff, before coach Jitka Klimkovápicked virtually the same squad for these fixtures.
New Zealand's Rebekah Stott in action against Nigeria. Photo / Photosport
That is the way it seems to be with the Ferns.
They are, and have been for a while, a team with no consequences.
No one - especially from the senior core - ever gets dropped.
Play poorly? It doesn’t matter, you’ll be back for the next window.
Get a string of bad results? Don’t worry, you’ll be there for the next trip.
And even if the team underperforms at a World Cup or Olympics, there’s another shot in two years, thanks to the generous qualification route through Oceania.
It’s become a cycle of mediocrity - and no one has come up with a circuit-breaker.
Nigeria are a handy team - with their world ranking of 43 probably a bit low - but they are not at the level of Norway and Switzerland, who the Ferns will face at the World Cup, along with the Philippines.
And the African team were all over the place early on - with some naïve defending in their penalty area - but the Ferns couldn’t take advantage.
Once Nigeria scored their first - a sloppy concession from a corner - they gained in confidence and the New Zealand side didn’t have too many answers.
There are several areas that could be highlighted again - passing, movement, technique, cohesion, anticipation - but it’s the foundations that are of most concern.
The Ferns don’t look like a team. The body language is all wrong. And they don’t have leaders who lead.
Football Ferns captain Ali Riley in a team huddle after their loss to the US in January. Photo / Photosport
Veterans like Ali Riley, Katie Bowen and Hannah Wilkinson should be standing out - given their massive experience and number of caps - but they were as culpable as any against Nigeria.
There are a few signs of hope, especially with some of the younger players, but the overall recipe isn’t working.
Klimková and the coaches have the biggest questions to answer.
Why can’t they get consistent performances out of individuals? Why is their preferred XI still a mystery? What is the masterplan and why is the defence still so brittle?
After the match, Klimková lamented the lack of defensive grit, saying it was a major work-on.
“For me, the biggest improvement that we need to now look for is our gritty defending in the box and putting bodies on the line - the same way they did,” said Klimková. “How many crosses did they block from our side? How many times did they win those battles in our final third?”
It’s a strange conclusion. Surely being resolute and solid and tough is an automatic prerequisite of an international football team, something that goes without saying and should have been fostered since the start of Klimková’s tenure.
But it’s not there and like many things with the Ferns, seeing is believing.
