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Wilkinson earns NZ opening night World Cup triumph

Hannah Wilkinson's goal gave New Zealand a memorable 1-0 win over Norway in the Women's World Cup. (AP PHOTO)

Co-hosts New Zealand have upstaged former champions Norway in the opening match of the Women's World Cup with a 1-0 triumph delivered by striker Hannah Wilkinson.

Wilkinson finished Jacqui Hand's superb cross just after half-time to thrill a capacity and record crowd at Auckland's Eden Park.

The Football Ferns wrote themselves into local sporting history as the first senior Kiwi team - male or female - to win a World Cup match, in front of New Zealand's biggest-ever attendance for any football match.

Ria Percival could have sewn the game up with an 89th minute penalty but sent her shot onto the goalframe to give the 42,137 crowd late jitters.

The Football Ferns withstood more than 10 agonising minutes of injury time to claim the win, rising to the grand occasion.

The whole Kiwi squad then raced onto the pitch as if they'd won the tournament.

"I still have goosebumps," coach Jitka Klimkova said an hour later.

"We have waited for this moment for such a long, long time ... it's an unforgettable moment for me as a coach and all the players." 

Klimkova's outfit looked nothing like the side that endured 10 winless matches in the 10 months before this one.

Defying predictions as easy-beats, the Ferns can now raise their sights and look to qualify for the last 16 when they next face the Philippines in Wellington.

Norway, who crashed out of last year's European Championships at the group stage, will need a sharp reversal to avoid a similar story.

New Zealand frustrated their higher-ranked opponents in the opening half, with Malia Steinmetz excellent in the middle and captain Ali Riley sharp at left-back.

However, the chances didn't come early: both sides combined for eight shots without hitting the target.

Superstar Ada Hegerberg tried an overhead kick, Frida Maanum blazed over from a knockdown, and Rebekah Stott arrived at the 11th hour to block Hegerberg at close range.

Willed on by the crowd and playing with more desire, New Zealand brought the worst out of Norway, who committed a series of fouls. The first-half count read 10-0 against the Scandinavians.

Many gave the Kiwis a standing ovation as they left for halftime, and on 48 minutes, they were all on their feet.

Wilkinson produced a first-time finish after Hand's pulsating run and cross, then ran to the corner bashing the fern on her shirt in wildly emotional scenes.

The goal nearly opened the floodgates, with a VAR check for handball dismissed before Indiah-Paige Riley's effort drew a smart save from Aurora Mikalsen.

Norway did come for the Ferns late, with Tuva Hansen's looping shot gloved onto the bar by Victoria Esson.

Percival had a golden chance to put the game out of reach when a VAR check revealed a cross was blocked by Hansen's hand marginally inside the box.

The New Zealand co-captain's shot cannoned off the woodwork but the Ferns stood strong for a famous victory.

Norway coach Hege Riise lamented a listless showing but said they could "absolutely" still qualify from the group.

"We didn't get the momentum. We didn't win the first ball, the second ball so we were on the back foot, and New Zealand the opposite," she said.

Riise and captain Maren Mjelde said the team were not adversely impacted by a shooting in the city earlier that morning that left three people dead.

The Norweigan team was staying on the same block as the incident.

Players linked arms around the centre circle for a well-observed minute's silence in honour of victims of the shooting.

As the opening match of the tournament, Eden Park also hosted the opening ceremony, which was rich with indigenous culture.

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