2018 Grand Final 161218

The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website | home

Canterbury Come From Behind To Claim Fourth Title

by Jeremy Ruane

Canterbury United Pride scored a come-from-behind 3-2 extra time win over Northern Lights at Trusts Arena on December 16 to claim a fourth National Women's League Grand Final triumph.

The Cantabrians have now appeared in six consecutive finals, but found themselves on the back foot from the outset in this one as Northern hit the ground running. Nicole Stratford and Liz Savage worked an opening down the right in the second minute, with the latter's cross picking out Dayna Stevens beyond the far post.

While her looping volley landed on the roof of the net, the back of it bulged when Northern attacked four minutes later, Jane Barnett opening the scoring with a vicious drive past Victoria Esson after the premiership phase winners had worked an opening down the left flank.

Canterbury responded well to that setback, so much so that they were back on level terms nine minutes later. Tahlia Herman-Watt - she had a terrific game - worked a one-two with Cody Taylor on the left before whipping in a wicked cross. Northern failed to clear it, and were mercilessly punished by Annalie Longo, who strode onto the loose ball and thundered it home from ten yards.

How Canterbury have missed their Football Ferns duo. They are a completely different animal with Esson and, particularly, Longo in harness, and the latter was at her mesmeric best once more in the 25th minute.

Latching onto a loose ball, she worked a one-two with Macey Fraser before surging forward, Longo ultimately bringing Gabrielle Rennie into play before racing forward in support of her team-mate, who turned past an opponent before angling a ball across to the Football Ferns' midfield maestro.

Longo promptly charged a couple of stripe-shirted rivals before playing the ball inside to Taylor, who rattled the crossbar from twelve yards. Canterbury kept pressing from the rebound, but Northern survived, then chanced their arm via Saskia Vosper, whose twenty-five yarder was gobbled up by Esson.

On the half-hour, Canterbury piled on more pressure. Herman-Watt's break culminated in a tantalising cross from Rennie which Marisa Van der Meer rose to meet with a glancing header, only to fail in her bid to make adequate contact with the ball.

From the resulting goal-kick, Rennie caught Hannah Mackay-Wright in possession and promptly set up a chance for Longo. While she sent this one searing over the bar, she made no mistake in almost identical circumstances inside the next forty seconds.

Once more, Anna Leat opted for Mackay-Wright as her outlet ball from the goal kick, and once more Rennie was all over the defender like a rash, forcing an error which Longo gleefully capitalised upon, waltzing through Northern's spread-eagled defence before belting home her second goal of the game from eight yards past Leat.

Anything you can do … Northern responded to Canterbury's go-ahead goal by pegging them back five minutes before half-time. Captain Claudia Bunge literally threw herself at Barnett's corner, and the ball spun off some part of her anatomy to leave Esson clawing at thin air as the sphere crept into the net by the far upright - 2-2.

Quite the Grand Final, this one, and there were more chances before half-time, both for the hosts. Stratford, Barnett, Emma Turnbull and Savage produced a delightful interchange of passes in the 42nd minute, culminating in the overlapping figure of Stratford whipping in a low cross which Stevens dummied, only to discover Ava Pritchard wasn't darting in behind her.

Then, on the stroke of half-time, Stevens set off on a mazy run before Savage took charge of the attack on the right, from where she unleashed a sizzling cross-shot which beat the diving figure of Esson, but flew narrowly past the far post as well.

While the first half enjoyed incident aplenty, the second spell was a lot more attritional, with a tactical battle of wills taking precedence over goalscoring chances, the first of which materialised in the 54th minute when Leat saved with her legs from Taylor, after Fraser's free-kick into the danger zone had been headed down by Rebecca Lake.

That was the only opportunity to break the deadlock in the first twenty-five minutes of the half, and the match had long been in need of an inspirational individual moment of magic to break it open and recapture the open nature of the first half.

Many expected Longo to be the player to come up trumps in this regard, but once Northern turned to their bench and unleashed Helena Kelderman for the remainder of the match, that gave the home team added momentum, from which the unlikely figure of Stratford would seize the moment.

Afer Malia Steinmetz had pounced on a poor Whitney Hepburn pass and set up Barnett for a thirty yarder which careered past the post, Stratford secured possession on half-way in the 71st minute and set off downfield.

Five players later, Canterbury still hadn't managed to contain her. Cue a thunderbolt of a shot from Stratford which had 'Goal!' written all over it until Esson produced the save of the Grand Final - a spectacular fingertip denial at full stretch - to divert the ball over the bar and maintain the status quo on the scoreboard.

Instantly, Northern stepped things up, with Lake's timely tackle preventing Kelderman from beating a

fourth Cantabrian on a run before Vosper belted a shot past the post after United failed to clear a Barnett free-kick.

Suddenly it was all on for young and old, with chances at both ends inside twenty helter-skelter seconds in the 74th minute. Kate Loye - a surprise choice as substitute for Northern - picked out Stevens, whose shot was blocked by Lake.

The rebound was pounced on by Longo, who instantly sent the ball downfield for Monique Barker to latch onto. But Mackay-Wright stepped in to avert the danger, albeit temporarily.

For within seconds, Taylor was on the charge, careering in off the right towards goal. But a superb piece of defending by Bunge, even though she was injured in the process, allowed Leat to save at the feet of the fast-approaching figure of Taylor, whose last contribution of the Grand Final this was to be.

Arna Roberts was introduced in her place, and once up to speed, delivered a cross which Leat punched off the head of Barker, prompting a Northern counter-attack which culminated in Steinmetz's through ball for Stevens, who was denied by Esson at the second attempt as the 'keeper saved at the striker's feet.

Into stoppage time the game moved, with Northern's hopes of victory at the death dashed by the sight of the offside flag foiling Loye's match-winning bid. There was still time for Hepburn to hoist a twenty yarder over the bar, following concerted pressure from an Amelia Abbott corner.

But time was the enemy of all-comers, referee Morgan Archer - who could have been a little less pedantic on occasions, but otherwise performed soundly - ensuring a further thirty minutes of action in this captivating conclusion to the National Women's League season by blowing the full-time whistle.

The hot conditions were challenging work for the players, and there were some - Savage most notably - who were visibly wilting at the commencement of the final thirty minutes of this lengthy season, one which, for some, hasn't offered much respite since pre-season training commenced in February.

There was no respite in the challenges either, with Annie Gilchrist leaving Kelderman in a crumpled heap in the 93rd minute after the substitute had combined with Stevens to get around the formidable figure of Lake, who had a fine game in Canterbury's defence.

The stricken striker took her time recovering from this bone-shuddering challenge, with Steinmetz stepping up to the plate in Kelderman's absence via a dazzling run past four opponents before Chloe Jones stepped in to block her shot.

Northern continued to press, with Stratford and Steinmetz both sending the ball over the bar after Esson had cut out Loye's cross, which had Kelderman as its intended recipient.

In the 99th minute, Savage fed Kelderman, whose steepling cross was splendidly controlled with one touch by Stevens. Gilchrist and Lake were able to prevent her from making the most of the opportunity, however, something which Canterbury hadn't had in extra time up to this point.

That all changed two minutes later. When women's matches of this intensity reach this stage of the contest, i.e. extra time with all to play for, the likelihood of a moment of individual brilliance deciding things is minimal.

More often than not, it's an individual error which emerges when the pressure is well and truly on, and unfortunately for one of the stars of the Young Ferns' sensational exploits in Uruguay, 'twas her misfortune to succumb to the situation, ironically at the hands of one of her international team-mates.

Mackay-Wright's misjudgment was pounced on by Rennie, who then lured the central defender out to the flank before doing her a treat and picking out the unmarked figure of Barker with a cross which the substitute swept past the exposed figure of Leat, despite the despairing attempt of Bunge to deny her, an attempt which aggravated the injury Northern's captain suffered earlier in the match. This time, she didn't recover.

Trailing 3-2, the onus was on the home team to come again, but Northern had nothing left to give. Indeed, there was just one more opening in the contest, and it was contrived by Longo with five minutes remaining.

She turned two opponents brilliantly before bringing Roberts into play, the substitute duly delivering a vicious low cross which the freshly introduced figure of Jayda Stewart just failed to get on the end of.

It mattered not for Canterbury, as when the final whistle of this ground-breaking National Women's League season sounded five minutes later, it meant they were champions for the fourth time in six campaigns, having won the national title just once prior to this avalanche of honours, way back in 1996 in the days of National Tournaments.

Northern: Leat; Stratford, Mackay-Wright, Bunge (McCarroll, 104), Vosper (booked, 53); Savage, Steinmetz, Turnbull (Loye, 56); Pritchard (Kelderman, 67), Barnett (Tawharu, 85), Stevens (booked, 38)

Canterbury: Esson; Van der Meer (Abbott, 58), Lake, Gilchrist, Jones; Fraser (Barker, 58), Longo, Hepburn, Herman-Watt; Rennie (Stewart, 112), Taylor (Roberts, 76)

Referee: Morgan Archer

Classic Matches Northern Classics