Eastern Suburbs eked out a 3-2 win over Western Springs in their final round-robin National Women's League clash at William Green Domain on December 9, a night on which both teams did their level best to keep their players injury-free ahead of their Grand Final encounter in nine days' time. With their finishing positions already determined, both teams needed this match like a hole in the head given next Sunday's far more significant engagement, but if you thought that would mean a mild-mannered tussle would ensue, you don't know these teams - this game mattered to both of them, and for around an hour, a right ding-dong go ensued. "The Lilywhites" enjoyed the greater share of possession, and first threatened in the fourth minute when Nicole Cooper's burst of acceleration caught Lily Jervis napping. The sight of Springs' skipper stumbling as she looked to make amends wasn't one fans of "The Hoops" would have liked, but their fears were eased when Nicole Mettam, to whom Cooper presented the chance to break the deadlock, directed her shot straight at Angelique Tuisamoa. Suburbs were clearly eager to make an early statement in this match, for two minutes later, Deven Jackson's determination to make a searching ball hers found Celia Mayo wanting as the fullback committed the cardinal sin of waiting for the ball to come to her. Jackson duly linked up with Erinna Wong, whose cross found Cooper racing in on the far post, from where she steered a shot across goal and narrowly past the opposite upright. The first chance Springs got to flex their attacking muscles was stymied by referee Lindsey Robinson, who was guilty of some poor refereeing in the eleventh minute. Charlotte Wilford-Carroll was doing everything she could in the centre circle to prevent Sofia Garcia from getting away from her and accelerating over halfway. But the powerful striker escaped the midfielder's clutches - literally - and surged into Suburbs' half, only for referee Robinson to stop Garcia in her tracks by blowing her whistle for the foul, and subsequent issuing of a yellow card to Wilford-Carroll, something she could have done during the next break in play, had she done the right thing - applied the advantage. For someone in Robinson's position - her day-job is NZ Football's Referee Development Manager - to not apply an advantage for the attacking team when they clearly enjoyed one in this situation is particularly poor form. Better is expected of an official who has as prestigious an appointment as an FA Women's Cup Final to her name. Much better! Suburbs heeded the warning and pressed again in the fourteenth minute via Wong, Mettam and Jackson, who evaded a challenge before whipping in a cross which struck the retreating figure of Jervis and was heading for the corner of the net by the near post when Tuisamoa produced a superb reflex save to turn the ball round the post and save a certain goal. It was only delaying the inevitable, however, as sixty seconds later, Suburbs opened the scoring. Once again, Jackson's desire and hunger to make the ball hers saw her turn a 30-70 situation with Mayo into one which the former age-grade international exploited brilliantly. Having beaten Mayo once, she then did her a treat in the penalty area before picking out Mettam with a low cross. The attacking midfielder duly picked out the top far corner of the net - 1-0 - then struck the bar with a dipping twenty-five yarder six minutes later as the premiership phase winners looked to consolidate their lead. After "The Lilywhites" went close again through Wilford-Carroll in the 27th minute, Garcia decided enough was enough from Springs' perspective and proceeded to drag "The Hoops" back into a contest in which they were a distinct second-best to this point in time. The American's fierce passion to succeed was there for all to see on the half-hour. After getting the better of Wong, she was ably abetted by Sophia Dyer, who took on two opponents in her usual all-action style before slipping the ball back to Garcia, who nutmegged Kenya Brooke, only to find no one up in support to exploit the opportunity, a situation which prompted Springs' co-captain to make her displeasure known in no uncertain terms. The message was clearly heeded by her team-mates, for within four minutes, "The Hoops" were back on level terms. Arisa Takeda's desire to win the ball in the air saw her turn an adverse situation to her advantage as she rose above all-comers to get her head to a Brooke Bennett clearance. Sammi Tawharu was the beneficiary of her Japanese team-mate's endeavours on this occasion, and took the ball on for a few strides before fair hammering a twenty-five yard missile beyond Bennett and into the far corner of the net - 1-1, and how! And very nearly 2-1 to the visitors three minutes later. Garcia and Rina Hirano combined to win possession for Tawharu, who invited Jess Innes to chance her arm from twenty-five yards, a shot which flew past Bennett's right-hand post. From the resulting goal-kick, the 2-1 scoreline became a reality as Suburbs regained the lead. Mettam rampaged down the right - Mayo endured a night best forgotten - before slipping the ball inside

to Jackson, whose first-time shot through a phalanx of footballers found its way past an unsighted Tuisamoa and into the far side of the net in the 38th minute. Springs weren't put off by this setback in the slightest - they simply kept on coming, with Garcia leading from the front. Only some superb covering defensive play by Rebekah Van Dort thwarted the striker in the 42nd minute, while sixty seconds later, Suburbs' skipper was again to the fore, Hirano this time succumbing to Van Dort's defensive prowess, a corner the outcome. Innes has been delivering some delicious inswingers in recent matches, with at least one seeing her score direct from the corner quadrant. This one didn't find the net, but was an invitation to score which Garcia couldn't possibly turn down from point-blank range - 2-2, a fitting finale to a riveting first forty-five minutes of action between these great rivals, both of whom opted to conduct their half-time team talks on the pitch, rather than in the overheated dressing rooms. Having been in the ascendancy just before the interval, it was no surprise to see Springs fire the first salvo in the second spell. Takeda latched onto a Bennett clearance and quickly brought Tawharu into play. Her pass invited both Dyer and Garcia to bear down on goal, but Suburbs' recovering goalkeeper redeemed herself by saving at the feet of Springs' feisty front-runners. Back came Suburbs, Brooke - enjoying a rare start, and a terrific tussle with Garcia throughout the latter's time on the park - won an aerial duel which benefited Aimee Atkins, who endured a first half injury scare when treated for an ankle issue. The fullback combined with Wilford-Carroll and Jackson, whose return pass invited the game's only booking recipient to let fly from twenty yards. This effort flew past the post, while a dipping twenty-five yarder from Mettam sixty seconds later drew a fine plunging save to her right from Tuisamoa. The 'keeper was powerless to prevent Suburbs from taking the lead for a third time in the 56th minute. Jackson once more bamboozled "The Hoops"' rearguard when cutting in from the right to the by-line, from where she pulled the ball back to Cooper. She steered the sphere under Tuisamoa's dive - 3-2 to "The Lilywhites". And very nearly 4-2 on the hour, Jackson's shot blocked by Lily Taitimu after Suburbs' goalscoring trio had caused more mayhem in the visitors' penalty area. At this point, Springs opted to give a couple of their youngsters their head, withdrawing Garcia from the fray in the process. Her departure saw a lot of Springs' attacking impetus disappear - Dyer's phenomenal pace was now their prime attacking weapon - but was partly compensated by a thirty-minute cameo from debutant fullback Anya Stephan, about whose display there was an awful lot to like. Yet another highly promising prospect from Springs' homegrown production line of footballing talent - do not be at all surprised if this young lass finds herself heavily involved in the Young Ferns' 2024 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup campaign. A big call based solely on a half-hour of first-team football, but Stephan took to the challenge like a duck to water, and showed enough in her time on the park to suggest that she's got what it takes to succeed in the best league in the land, and beyond. Defences largely dominated the final half-hour of play, with Keely Taylor - Springs gave their reserve 'keeper a run-out for the last twenty minutes - confidently plucking a Mettam cross from the sky in front of Lucas, prior to Bennett keeping out a twenty-five yarder from Takeda with ten minutes remaining. Taylor then saved at the feet of Cooper, who got through on goal only to fall victim to cramp at the worst possible moment. "The Hoops" mounted a late charge for a third equaliser, Lara Colpi lighting the touchpaper with a pass which invited Sydney Sparks to pick out Dyer with a cross from the right. Had it been any other defender, the speedster's goalbound drive would almost certainly have seen Springs celebrating another goal. But Van Dort's willingness to put her body on the line for Suburbs has saved "The Lilywhites" on numerous occasions in recent seasons - herewith further evidence for the prosecution, as she flung herself in the way of Dyer's drive to deny a certain equaliser. The rebound was latched onto by Sienna Kirk - it was hard to determine exactly who, given the limitations of the William Green Domain candlesticks - whose shot was directed straight at Bennett, the last act of an intriguing encounter between two teams who'll have all guns blazing when they meet again in nine days' time, with the honour of National Women's League champions at stake as this incredibly demanding season - for all involved in it - finally draws to a close. Suburbs:     Bennett; Wong, Van Dort, Brooke, Atkins; Wilford-Carroll (booked, 11) (Head, 67), Mettam (Benson, 79), Yashida; Cooper (Page, 90), Lucas, Jackson Springs:     Tuisamoa (Taylor, 72); Takeda, Jervis (Stephan, 61), Uluvili, Mayo; Hirano (Colpi, 61), Taitimu, Innes (Kirk, 79); Dyer, Tawharu, Garcia (Sparks, 72) Referee:     Lindsey Robinson