New Zealand took the three points in the Group A opener after beating Guinea 2-1 at Allianz Riveria in Nice this afternoon.
Olywhites captain Matthew Garbett opened the scoring, just moments after missing a penalty which was given by VAR.
Guinea thought they levelled early in the second-half scoring through Aliou Balde but VAR intervened and ruled it out for an offside in the buildup. Amadou Diawara got the equaliser for his nation through a deflected effort which just beat Alex Paulsen.
Plymouth Argyle forward Ben Waine got the winner for the OlyWhites after debutant Michael Bayliss squared the ball across to Waine. Waine smashed home into an empty net to grab the winner for his country.
Guinea and New Zealand will now have a 48-hour break and prepare for the second match. Guinea face hosts France, needing a positive result. New Zealand face USA hoping to build on their start to Group A
Story of the Match
Guinea manager Kaba Diawara named his team for their first Olympic appearance since 1968, with former Liverpool player Naby Keita captaining the side from midfield alongside Abdoulaye Toure.
New Zealand lined up with newly signed Alex Paulsen between the sticks. Plymouth Argyle forward Ben Waine and Reading defender Tyler Bindon were given starts. Former Charlton boss Darren Bazeley gave Lachlan Bayliss his debut for the OlyWhites. Matthew Garbett captained the side.
Both managers opted for as much experience as possible with full use of over 23-year-old players. Experience defender Michael Boxall, Sapreet Singh and Joe Bell were included from the start. Former Roma and Napoli player Amadou Diawara started at centre-back.
Aliou Balde gave the Olywhites an early scare within the first five minutes, with the Nice winger bursting down the right-hand side and firing a low shot which was saved well by Alex Paulsen and cleared away from danger.
Amadou Diallo proved a threat on the break early in the game having a few shots at goal, but not testing Alex Paulsen enough. Mohamed Soumah missed a header from six yards out when unmarked from a corner.
New Zealand just before the 15-minute mark, had their first big chance from a wide free-kick which found Michael Boxall who headed the ball back across the six-yard box but neither Finn Surman nor Ben Waine who was sliding in could get a final touch.
The first VAR check was in play when a long cross-field ball found Sam Sutton who took a heavy first touch and was brought down by Guinea goalkeeper Soumalia Sylla. In the first action, it was deemed offside but after a long VAR check, the referee Adel AL Naqbi gave a penalty to New Zealand. Their captain Matthew Garbett stepped up and missed the target, dragging his shot wide of the post and keeping the game goalless.
Matthew Garbett redeemed himself just moments later, picking up a loose pass from Soumalia Syllia and drove into the box and fired the ball through the legs of the goalkeeper to give his side the lead in the 25th minute.
Jay Herdman nearly doubled the lead, when Ben Waine was played in behind the Guinea defence and played the ball across the box towards Herdman who couldn't connect with it, with many Guinea defenders sliding to stop the pass.
Up the other end, Algassime Bah was picked out from a cross from Amadou Diallo but missed the ball which came across him letting off the OlyWhites. Paulsen denied Guinea from an equaliser with a great save, from a long-range effort from Abdoulaye Toure.
Moments before halftime, Paulsen denied Amadou Diallo with a double save at his near post with his feet which was celebrated by his teammates. Algassime Bah was played through but his shot was stopped by an oncoming Paulsen who was at the rescue for New Zealand as the first half ended with Guinea pressure building.
Aliou Balde had the first chance of the second half, as he cut in from the right side and tried a curling effort but the shot was wide of the goal.
The increased pressure was building from the North African side and the New Zealand defensive wall seemed to be broken. Ilaix Moriba found Aliou Balde to his right, who cut inside beating two defenders and an unfortunate slip from Michael Boxall gave the Nice forward time to fire an effort which beat Paulsen. The goal was then checked for a few minutes by VAR and an offside in the build-up was found and the goal was ruled out.
Amadou Diawara got Guinea on level terms with under twenty minutes left, after he received a pass from Aliou Balde. Diawara struck his effort well and it caught a slight deflection and beat Paulsen.A few minutes after Guinea levelled the game, New Zealand took the lead for the second time. Lachlan Bayliss was found down the right side and played the ball across to Ben Waine and with an empty net in front of him, he made no mistake and smashed it into the net. Waine celebrated his second successive Olympic tournament goal.
Guinea's momentum continued after their second setback. Algassime Bah cut onto his right foot and shot towards the goal and Paulsen parried it into the feet of Aliou Balde who took a first-time shot which was also denied in a great double save from the Olywhites goalkeeper.
Ben Waine had a big chance to double the lead but was denied by a great save from Soumalia Sylla kept his nation's hopes alive. With eleven additional minutes, Guinea kept pushing men forward but the equaliser did not come.
Player of the Match - Alex Paulsen
An inspired performance from Paulsen in between the sticks helped earn three points for his country in their group opener.
Paulsen, who has signed for Bournemouth last month showed his quality by making seven important saves including two double saves. The goalkeeper who won the best goalkeeper in Australia's A-League last season was dominant in the air claiming crosses from wide areas.
Paulsen was unfortunate to be beaten and have his clean sheet taken away due to the deflection which took it just past him. His performance was deserving of Man of the Match.
