Qualification was sealed after a dramatic 1-0 home win in front of a capacity 35,000 crowd at Westpac Stadium in Wellington. Rory Fallon's 45th-minute header and a sensational penalty save from goalkeeper Mark Paston was enough to send the All Whites to their second World Cup, their first since 1982.
The All Whites celebrate Rory Fallon's goal during their 1-0 win over Bahrain in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Wellington on 14 November 2009. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Here's how the Herald reported the match: All Whites qualify for World Cup
Read more on the dramatic turn of events in the Herald feature: All Whites v Bahrain - One Night in November
The draw
The pools were drawn at a glitzy event in Cape Town on December 5, 2009, which was opened with a video message from Nelson Mandela.
The Herald covered the draw with rolling live updates -
Soccer World Cup draw: Live coverage
At 7.34am (NZT), the All whites pool was announced. The team's fixtures were:
Tuesday, June 15, NZ v Slovakia, at Rustenburg
Monday, June 21, NZ v Italy, at Nelspruit
Friday, June 25, NZ v Paraguay, at Johannesburg
Game One: All Whites v Slovakia
The Wall St Journal said this would be the biggest dud of the tournament. How wrong they were. The All Whites trailed 1-0 going into injury time, but a dramatic 92nd-minute header from Winston Reid earned New Zealand a draw and with it a competition point. As Herald reporter Brown pointed out in his report: "That's the first point New Zealand have ever grabbed at a World Cup. Ever." - Soccer: All Whites defender rises at the death
Winston Reid and Rory Fallon celebrate after Reid scores an injury-time equaliser against Slovakia. Photo / Brett Phibbs
See more photos of the match: Photos - All Whites 1 Slovakia 1
Read more on the game and Winston Reid's goal:
• Winston Reid: 'This was the most important goal of my life'
• Soccer: All Whites make history with late goal
• Stuart Dye: Faith, hope ... and sports glory
The Herald's front page on the day of the match.
Game two: All Whites v Italy
The All Whites were buoyed by the result against Slovakia, but they faced a formidable foe in their next match - reigning World Cup champions Italy. Prime Minister John Key was in the stands in Nelspruit to watch the team hold the Italians to a 1-1 draw, a result he described as "just sensational".
Herald reporter Michael Brown summed up the result in the following terms: "Little, old New Zealand with just 25 professional footballers - Italy has 3541. A country which had played just four World Cup matches before this morning drew with one which has won four World Cup titles. Crazy." - Soccer: All Whites hold on for stunning draw
The All Whites celebrate Shane Smeltz's goal against Italy. Photo / Brett Phibbs
See more photos of the match: FIFA World Cup: All Whites v Italy
Read more on the game:
• Stuart Dye: We wanted a result... we got one
• All Whites v Italy: And the Oscars go to...
The Herald's front page on the day of the match.
All Whites v Paraguay
Almost unbelievably, the All Whites went into their third pool game with a genuine chance of qualifying for the second round of the tournament. The formula was simple - win and progress. They couldn't quite do it, but managed to hold on for a 0-0 draw to come away from the tournament with an unbeaten record.
Herald reporter Michael Brown summarised the All Whites' achievement: "The All Whites' run at the World Cup was one of the most wonderful rides in New Zealand sports history and there is no disgrace in going out of the tournament in the manner they did. They go home undefeated - who picked that before the tournament - and put New Zealand football on the map. Some people around the world might now know exactly where on that map New Zealand is." - All Whites' World Cup dream ends
New Zealand striker Chris Killen in action against Paraguay. Photo / Brett Phibbs
See more photos of the match: FIFA World Cup: All Whites v Paraguay
Read more on the match:
• Soccer: How the All Whites rated against Paraguay
• All Whites exit World Cup as heroes
• Stuart Dye: We wanted a result... we got one
The Herald's front page on the day of the match.
