New Zealand Prime Minister John Key led national celebrations on Monday after football minnows the All Whites achieved an astonishing 1-1 World Cup draw against reigning champions Italy.
"It was just sensational - my heart was racing for the last 30 minutes, it was just an incredible atmosphere," Key told Television New Zealand.
"They just played with guts the whole way didn't they? They had so much courage, it was just incredible," said Key, who travelled to South Africa to watch the match Sunday at Nelspruit.
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Last Wednesday New Zealanders were celebrating the 1-1 draw by their 78th world ranked team against Slovakia and describing the result from the first World Cup clash as one of New Zealand's greatest sporting feats.
Early Monday - the match started at 2:00 am New Zealand time - fans had reached new heights of ecstasy as the All Whites held out the world's fifth-ranked Italy.
John Adshead - who coached the All Whites at their only other World Cup finals appearance in 1982 - likened the result to Edmund Hillary reaching the top of Mount Everest for the first time with Tenzing Norgay in 1953.
"It was like waking up and hearing that Everest had just been climbed by Hillary. It had that same effect this morning," Adshead said.
The New Zealand Herald described the result as "crazy".
"Little, old New Zealand with just 25 professional footballers - Italy has 3,541," the Herald said.
"A country which had played just four World Cup matches before this morning drew with one which has won four World Cup titles. Crazy."
