New Zealanders rejoice:

South Africa and England have been knocked out of the FIFA Under 17 World Cup tournament, sent packing in the last day of matches in Group E and F.

France, New Zealand, Australia, Russia, Costa Rica and Korea DPR all qualified for the knockout stages.

Ruthless France consolidated their position at the top of Group F by making light work of Syria, scoring twice in each half and eliminating the Asian side.

In the other match in that section, New Zealand snatched second place from Paraguay in stirring fashion, grabbing a well-worked goal in stoppage time for a hard-fought 2-1 victory.

The South Americans finished third, and were forced to wait for the results in the later matches to see if they had done enough to advance.

Unfortunately for them, Korea DPR took a leaf out of the Kiwis’ book, notching a winner in injury time to beat Costa Rica 2-1, a result that not only qualified both teams but that sent the Paraguayans home.

Elsewhere in Group D, Russia put paid to South Africa’s hopes with an early penalty and a stunning last-minute free-kick.

Finally, the New Zealand result had the additional knock-on effect of eliminating England (Group B) and, combined with Syria’s defeat, helped send Australia (Group C) through to the last 16.