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27/06/04
Suburbs Succumb To Five-Star Second Half Showing
by Jeremy Ruane
Three Kings United, with Zoe Thompson in inspirational form, produced a five-star second half showing to conquer Eastern Suburbs 5-0 at Madills Farm on June 27, all but sewing up second place in the Northern Premier Women’s League in the process.
It was a scoreline which you would never have picked coming to pass at the end of a scoreless first half, although how this helter-skelter affair had remained devoid of goals for the first forty-five minutes rather defies logic, so plentiful were the chances at either end in what was a highly entertaining encounter.
Three Kings dominated the early exchanges, with Vicky Butterworth shooting over after the first of numerous Thompson raids down the right, the second of which saw her released by Priscilla Duncan. The resulting cross to the far post proved just too far in front of the incoming Sarah Gibbs, who flung herself in vain at the ball as it zoomed across her bows.
Two saves from Ginny Tan, to thwart Butterworth and Gibbs, followed, before Suburbs launched their first raid of note, a Melanie Gooch charge down the right which culminated in Stacey Fraser slicing her volley wildly off-target in the sixteenth minute.
Renee Dale’s pass sent Thompson powering down the right nine minutes later, and after sweeping past Janet Groves, the striker fired in a cross which again flew just too far ahead of the incoming Gibbs once more. Seconds later, a vital tackle on Duncan by Groves prevented United’s playmaker from releasing Thompson through a thread-bare defence, in which Kimberley Lewis was battling manfully on, despite a groin strain.
Suburbs spurned two chances to open the scoring just shy of the half-hour mark. Vicki Chong and Flora McLeod combined to play the ball back to Bobbie Moore, whose hanging cross attracted Gooch, Dale and Wendy Horneman towards the ball like moths to a flame. Cue a collision, with the defender and the striker bouncing off the one-time "A Team" striker.
The bounce of the ball favoured United on this occasion, and Horneman again rode her luck seconds later, as Grace Vincent played the ball through for McLeod to pursue. The ‘keeper, despite being outside her area, directed her clearance straight at the incoming striker, but again enjoyed a favourable bounce and was able to get it right second time around.
Back came United through Thompson, only for the combined efforts of Groves and Tan to thwart the goal-hungry striker. Cue another Suburbs raid, Gooch holding off Dana Humby down the right this time, before whipping in a low cross for Fraser inside the six-yard box.
How she failed to turn the ball home Lord alone knows - even more bewildering was Horneman’s goal-line clearance, when she could easily have used her hands to pick up the ball and avert the danger in the manner to which goalkeepers are more accustomed.
Lewis picked up the pieces from this let-off for United and hoisted in another hanging cross which lured Horneman out of her goal. Chong was right in the thick of this aerial contest, and did enough to ensure the goalkeeper failed to take the ball cleanly, the sphere falling instead to Gooch. Her hard, low drive fizzed past Chong but past the upright with the goal gaping.
United’s response was to dominate the last eight minutes of the half, during which they carved out four great chances. Gibbs’ cross from the left saw Thompson’s header blocked by Melanie Hansen, before the striker’s acceleration turned a nigh-on non-existent opportunity into a desperately close call five minutes before the interval.
Giving Groves a three-yard advantage as they pursued Hannah Rishworth’s through ball, Thompson quickly closed the gap and won the race for possession, before taking control and letting fly past the advancing Tan. The striker deserved far better fate for her enterprise than to see her shot hit the crossbar.
Prior to half-time, Butterworth shot straight at Tan after Thompson had again rampaged down the right, before the striker, at the end of a neat interchange involving Humby, Duncan and the inexperienced Abby Erceg, opted to lay the ball back for team-mates when she was the best-placed of all United’s players to make the most of the opportunity.
Three Kings began the second half by applying pressure aplenty, but it was Suburbs who had the first chance to break the deadlock in this spell, Vincent - a top performance - dispossessing Rishworth before playing the ball to McLeod, who, in turn, released Gooch through a short-handed United
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back-line.
But with the hesitant Horneman retreating, the striker fired wide of the target - the despairing groan of Suburbs’ coach, Richard Wilson, could have been heard from the Sky Tower!!
Worse was to come for the home team’s mentor, as United promptly changed down a couple of gears, and proceeded to put on a bit of a clinic. Just shy of the hour mark, a Gibbs corner was headed out by Chong to Butterworth. Her shot was blocked by Groves, with the rebound finding its way out to Humby. From twenty-five yards, she unleashed a screamer, hard and low through the crowded penalty area, the ball only just flying past the far post.
Five minutes later, the deadlock was broken. Another Gibbs corner was cleared to Butterworth, who evaded the challenges of McLeod and Moore before unleashing a bullet into the top left-hand corner of Tan’s net from twenty yards on the angle - a great strike.
In the 66th minute came one of the best solo goals this writer has seen this season, gender irregardless. Gibbs played the ball forward from half-way to Thompson, who latched onto it and stepped on the accelerator big-time! First Lewis, then Groves, found the pace being set too quick to maintain, before Thompson swerved inside and beat Tan all ends up at her near post prior to celebrating in a manner fully befitting such a memorable strike.
With Suburbs reeling from this double-strike, United kept the hammer down. Thompson roared away again, this time down the right just seconds after her goal, before crossing for Butterworth. Her sliced volley looped perfectly into Duncan’s path, and a quick interchange of passes with Butterworth presented Sarah Ropati with a shooting chance. Tan saved well to her left.
She didn’t have a prayer in the 71st minute, however. Duncan evaded a couple of challenges before slipping the ball to Butterworth, who played in Gibbs. Although forced wide by Moore, she managed to curl a great cross away from Tan to the far post, where Thompson was arriving bang on cue - 3-0.
Make that 4-0 five minutes later. Butterworth was the creative inspiration again, this time releasing Gibbs into space down the left which the former Takapuna player made the most of. As Hansen came across in cover, Gibbs let fly, only for Tan to get her fingertips to the shot. But fortune favoured United once more, as the ball went into the net via the inside of the ‘keeper’s left-hand post.
Five minutes later, United strung together a splendid move, which involved six players as it swept from left flank to right and back into the middle again, with Ropati’s cross arcing just beyond Gibbs, with the incoming Butterworth unable to turn the ball home.
Suburbs cleared the ball upfield, with Tarena O’Neill releasing McLeod on the counter-attack. Her tame shot at Horneman summed up Suburbs’ half, which was to take another adverse twist six minutes from time.
Butterworth, Gibbs, Kim Rowney and Thompson worked an opening down the left, with the last-mentioned laying the ball back for the second-mentioned to whip in a cross to the far post. United’s players had been looking a little the worse for wear in this match, the reason being a belated 21st birthday party for Duncan the night before. As if having a sore head from that wasn’t enough, the chief celebrant compounded her pain by heading home the final goal - 5-0.
It should have been six, however. Rishworth sparked a last-minute raid which culminated in another teasing cross from Duncan to the far post. Thompson, who had started her run on the blindside of Chong, turned home what would have been a richly deserved hat-trick, but referee Alex Paterson deemed her to have been offside when the ball was played … the photographic evidence presented immediately afterwards would suggest anything but!!
But 5-0 was United’s lot, one they would have happily settled for if given the choice before the game. Their second half showing certainly reflected it, but Suburbs, after largely matching their opponents during the first spell, in the second spell looked a shadow of the team which had run Lynn-Avon United so close in the Uncle Toby’s Women’s Knockout Cup just a week ago.
Suburbs: Tan; Moore, Lewis (Hemming), Groves (Wilson), Hansen; Fraser, Chong, O’Neill, Vincent; Gooch, McLeod
TKU: Horneman; Dale, Humby, Rennie; Erceg (Ropati), Duncan, Rishworth, Rowney (Barnett), Gibbs; Thompson, Butterworth
Referee: Alex Paterson
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