VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — New Zealand defender Finn Surman made a surprise appearance on the score sheet, burying the opening goal in his team’s 3-1 World Cup loss to Egypt on Sunday night.
The loss puts New Zealand at the bottom of the group with just one point, but the team can still advance to the knockout round. If the Kiwis pull off an upset victory over Belgium in Vancouver on Friday while Egypt defeats Iran in Seattle, they can move on with an improbable second-place finish.
New Zealand carried much of the momentum through the first half against Egypt thanks to Surman’s goal. On a 15th-minute corner kick from fellow defender Tim Payne, Surman tracked the ball and knocked in a header from just outside the 6-yard box.
“It was a pretty big jump,” Surman said. “I definitely felt that it was a good goal, so I’m pretty happy about that.”
The Kiwis held that 1-0 lead into halftime, but a second-half flurry of Egyptian goals took New Zealand from potentially leading the group to sitting in last.
“I think it shows the highs and lows of football,” he said. “That first half, I thought we played really well.”
Surman added that his parents were in attendance for the goal, hoping it was “something they remember and something that they’re proud of.”
Goal-scoring is not generally an emphasis of Surman’s game, having scored just three professional goals on record. His first came with the Wellington Phoenix in Australia’s A-League prior to his move to the Portland Timbers in 2024. He had also scored twice before for New Zealand, most recently in a 2025 friendly.
Surman is one of just four players to have played the entirety of both of New Zealand’s World Cup games so far. Although his goal gave the Kiwis hope early, the backline has struggled, as New Zealand has allowed five total goals in the World Cup.
“We just got to believe,” team captain and starting striker Chris Wood said. “We’ve done extremely well on the world stage already, but we’ve got to believe we can go take it with one of the best teams in the world.”
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Ben Kule is a student in the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.
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