Under-20s Stars Make Their Mark In Premier League
Story by Jeremy Ruane

Some of the stars of New Zealand’s U-20 Women’s World Cup Finalists made their mark on their return to Northern Premier Women’s League action on Easter Sunday, with the star of all the star turns in Apia, Ria Percival, leading the way in fine style.

The Lynn-Avon United flier fired home a hat-trick in her team’s 4-0 rout of Papakura at Ken Maunder Park, supplementing her twelfth minute strike with two goals in the last eighteen minutes of the match, the reigning champions’ other goal netted just before half-time by Sarah Gregorius.

New Zealand Under-20s vice-captain Katie Hoyle proved the difference on the scoreboard as Claudelands Rovers maintained their perfect start to the campaign with a 1-0 win over Eastern Suburbs at Galloway Park.

Hoyle’s 64th minute strike maintained Rovers’ two-point advantage over Glenfield Rovers, who were disappointingly gifted three points by league newcomers Hibiscus Coast.

Suffice to say, defaulting matches on the morning of the game might be the done thing in social grade soccer, but once you commit to the northern region’s elite women’s league, you also commit to the standards practised in that competition, and should act accordingly.

Absentee-hit Three Kings United began their Premier League campaign by impressively downing Western Springs 4-1 at Seddon Fields. The scoreline doesn’t tell the full story, however, as United were reduced to ten players after thirty-five minutes, and played out the last twenty minutes with just nine on the park, one of whom was the only player available from the side’s reserve grade team, who had a bye this weekend.

Zoe Thompson fired United’s first shot in anger just seventeen seconds into the match, one Pam Yates watched creep past her left-hand upright. The goalkeeper was called upon five minutes later, saving low to her right from Roseanne Cox after Annalie Longo had broken down the right wing.

This was the result of a counter-attack launched by Jenny Bindon, United’s debutant goalkeeper having denied Penny Chapman’s twenty-five yard drive seconds earlier. The lively opening continued unabated, with the visitors’ pace on the counter-attack proving a real threat to Springs’ particularly down the left-hand side of the Manson Property Developments-sponsored home team.

One such raid, in the fourteenth minute, saw Merissa Smith scooting away before finding Kristy Hill in support. Her cross was sliced wildly by Emma Kete, but the visitors endured far better return five minutes later, as they opened the scoring.

Smith scampered down the right once more before whipping in a cross to the near post. Thompson beat Yates in the air to flick the ball on, but Cox was lurking beyond the far post, and at the most oblique of angles to even contemplate letting fly. But let fly she did with a rip-snorting strike, the ball crashing into the net off the inside of the post by which Yates and Thompson were now stunned onlookers.

Two minutes later, United were celebrating their second goal, another screamer which had its roots on the right wing. Smith once more maraudered down the flank, but Thompson and Kete were unable to capitalise on her cross this time round. The ball was cleared to Hill, who let rip from twenty yards and leapt with delight as the sphere soared over Yates’ flailing figure into the roof of the net - 2-0.

Springs’ responded quickly, Maya Edgerton-Bachmann and Leah Tagaloa combining to set up Chapman for a shot which Bindon turned round the post in the 23rd minute.

Three minutes later, United’s captain was beaten by Chapman, who swooped on a slip by Hannah Rishworth to round the prone defender and evade the covering figure of Hannah Leaper before slotting home past the advancing Bindon - 2-1, game on.

Back came United, Thompson and Betsy Hassett combining to release Smith inside the penalty area. Yates smothered her shot well, and just as well, too - any spills, and Kete would have said ‘Thankyou very much’.

Which is what she did in the 33rd minute. By this time, Leaper was nursing a head wound arising from an aerial duel with Chapman, a blow from which she wasn’t to return.

Smith was soon to join her as a permanent absentee from this match, for as she whipped in a cross having skipped past Poppy Binning en route, the young fullback caught the speedster with a despairing lunge, as a result of which Smith will be spending the next few weeks with her ankle in plaster.

While this was going on, all attention was on Smith’s cross, which Thompson just failed to meet with a diving header. Her presence at the near post had attracted Yates’ attention, however, so when the ball went beyond her to the far post, Kete was in like Flynn - 3-1.

Seconds after play had resumed following Smith’s departure, Binning caught Thompson late as she streaked down the right flank. The resulting free-kick from Cox was a beauty, with Yates again struggling to deal with the high delivery. The ball cannoned off the underside of the crossbar and bounced down, with Hannah Valentine eagerly scrambling the ball clear as a posse of United players looked on by the far post.

After Chapman had chanced her arm from distance once more - Bindon easily dealt with her long-range effort, the teams turned round with the ten women of United now enjoying the breeze at their backs.

It’s not out of order to say that the Springs youngsters were given a bit of a footballing lesson by a team missing four of their New Zealand internationals (senior and Under-20) in an at times niggly second spell.

Despite their numerical superiority, Springs failed to make it count, primarily because United sought to starve them of possession at every opportunity, then keep their opponents at arms’ length through the clever play of Longo and Hassett.

What few chances which materialised inside the first twenty-five minutes of the half fell Three Kings’ way. The two most noteworthy efforts saw Kete through on goal, only for the striker to be well thwarted on both occasions by Yates, who also dealt capably with a couple of inswinging corners from Cox which tested her resolve under the high ball while surrounded by friend and foe alike.

With twenty minutes remaining, United were reduced to just nine fit players, Rishworth having suffered a blow to ribs already tender after a similar knock in the Oceania U-20s final.

Binning wasn’t far behind in heading to the dressing rooms, the Auckland rep having copped a wee bit of pay-back from Three Kings players who were upset with the role the combative Springs star had played in Smith’s premature departure from the fray. Referee Trevor Bradford opted for the man-management approach to handle things as tempers simmered - perhaps a card or two wouldn’t have been out of order at times.

As United adjusted to Rishworth’s absence, Springs enjoyed a ten-minute spell when they carved out three chances to reduce the deficit. But Chapman shot wide of the mark either side of clearing the crossbar of an open goal, Bindon having been forced to race off her line to thwart Tagaloa as she sought a goal to mark her eighteenth birthday twenty-four hours previously.

The visitors regrouped, and in the 89th minute, delivered a stunning coup de grace - a classic counter-attacking goal to wrap up a hard-earned win. To quell a Springs raid, Abby Erceg played the ball back to Bindon from half-way, and dropped back to receive a return pass from the goalkeeper once Tagaloa had chased to within shouting distance.

Erceg carried the ball forward, then hoisted it towards Kete. Both the striker and the covering figure of Valentine misjudged its flight, unlike Longo, who had darted forward in anticipation of just such an opportunity, and was duly rewarded. Yates also saw the danger, but was rendered helpless by Longo’s deft lob, the fourteen-year-old wheeling away in delight before the ball had even crossed the line.

Both goals survived scares in stoppage time, Bindon’s splendid one-handed stop low to her left to deny Chapman matched by Yates’ fine stop at the feet of the incoming Hassett, as the youngster darted in to meet a low cross from Thompson. The visitors had to be satisfied with a 4-1 triumph in the face of adversity - it was a performance of which they can be proud.

Springs: Yates; Binning (Drumm, 72), Valentine, Nelson, Verdon (L. Thompson, 60); Edgerton-Bachmann (MacFadyen, 86), Bramwell, Wood, Robinson; Chapman, Tagaloa

TKU: Bindon; Leaper, Rishworth, Erceg; Smith (Ballagh, 35), Hassett, Hill, Longo, Cox; Kete, Z. Thompson

Referee: Trevor Bradford

Next Sunday’s action sees two of the three teams boasting perfect records clashing at Keith Hay Park, with Three Kings hosting Claudelands. Eastern Suburbs entertain Glenfield, while Papakura travel to Birkenhead on a weekend when Western Springs are sidelined.

Meanwhile, in light of their Easter weekend disappearing act, reigning champions Lynn-Avon will be hoping Hibiscus Coast are on deck for their engagement at Stanmore Bay. All four matches kick off at 1pm.

Details:
Claudelands Rovers 1 (K. Hoyle (64)), Eastern Suburbs 0 HT 0-0

Glenfield Rovers 3 (“oggies” (3)), Hibiscus Coast 0

Lynn-Avon United 4 (R. Percival (12, 72, 89), S. Gregorius (42)), Papakura 0 HT 2-0

Western Springs 1 (P. Chapman (26)), Three Kings United 4 (R. Cox (19), K. Hill (21), E. Kete (33), A. Longo (89)) HT 1-3