Grand Final 2019

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Grand Final 2019

Suburbs End 48-Year Title Wait In Style

by Jeremy Ruane

Forty years after being relegated from the National League, and 48 years after winning their maiden title, Eastern Suburbs are national champions again after comprehensively outplaying and outsmarting Team Wellington 3-0 in the 2019 ISPS Handa Premiership Grand Final at QBE Stadium on March 31.

"The Lilywhites" were swiftly into gear, with strong penalty claims being waved away by referee Nick Waldron in the fourth minute as Taylor Schrijvers bundled Andre de Jong over inside the penalty area.

Three minutes later, Suburbs opened the scoring. A fine break on the left by overlapping fullback Dalton Wilkins saw him reach the edge of the penalty area before discovering he was in nosebleed territory.

Wisely, he retained possession, and upon spotting Callum McCowatt's lung-busting run outside him, lobbed the ball over three defenders for the league's Golden Boot winner to hit on the volley.

The ball wasn't goalbound, but very soon was, as it ricocheted off the retreating Mario Ilich and flew past Scott Basalaj before striking the inside of the far post and rebounding into the net on the opposite side of the goal.

The early goal certainly bolstered Suburbs, who went close again soon after, with Schrijvers blocking McCowatt in the act of shooting. Further "Lilywhites" pressure soon followed, with Basalaj grabbing a de Jong shot after Elijah Just's enterprising work on the left flank.

Team Wellington were still in the starter's gates, by comparison, and failed to trouble Andrew Withers unduly throughout the entire first half. They enjoyed a brief spell of pressure around the half-hour mark, but not before Suburbs had gone close yet again, with de Jong and McCowatt causing mayhem aplenty in and around the Wellington penalty area half-way through the first half.

A second Suburbs goal seemed inevitable, and it duly arrived nine minutes before the break. Just's hard work earned its rewards when the ball broke to de Jong, whose pass invited McCowatt to unleash a twenty yard curler which was bound for the top far corner of the net from the second it left his boot.

Wellington had to score next, but they came close to conceding a third before the interval, with Bill Robertson blocking a McCowatt drive following de Jong's industry, before "The Lilywhites"' attacking triumvirate combined again in the shadows of the half-time whistle, with Basalaj preventing Just's lob from putting the game beyond the reach of the reigning Oceania champions.

Suburbs carried on from where they left off at the start of the second spell, with the clever interplay of de Jong and McCowatt causing Wellington all sorts of problems before a subtle pass from the former, intended to arrive in the stride of the charging figure of Just, was instead grabbed by Basalaj at his near post.

The visitors finally forced Withers into a save in the 51st minute, Suburbs' 'keeper grabbing the ball under his crossbar to deny Nathaniel Hailemariam's looping header from a cross provided by substitute Ross Allen, one half of a double-change made by Team Wellington coach Jose Figueira as he sought a way back into the contest for his side.

He was soon forced into a third and final change when a collision between de Jong and Aaron Clapham left the midfielder out cold - he had to be stretchered off the park, and with his departure, all momentum instantly switched to Suburbs.

They swiftly capitalised upon it. After Just had seen a shot deflect through to Basalaj, a charge-down of a clearance on half-way by the Suburbs player broke for McCowatt in the 57th minute.

Downfield he surged, Schrijvers back-pedalling hastily in an effort to hamper his progress. But the arrival of de Jong on the scene added another element to the attack, his run drawing a defender away from McCowatt, thus allowing the striker to check inside and unleash a twenty yard missile past the diving figure of Basalaj into the bottom corner of the net for his second goal of the game - 3-0.

That strike all but put the game beyond Team Wellington, but they set about striving to get back into the contest nonetheless. Ilich twice went close from Andy Bevin corner, while Bevin himself was denied by Withers soon afterwards, Suburbs' 'keeper then snatching a Hailemariam shot driven at his near post in the 66th minute.

The Wellingtonians were always open to being caught on the counter-attack, however, and in between these efforts, McCowatt led them a merry dance before picking out Just in yards of space on the left. The covering figure of Alex Palezevic blocked his shot, but there was more to come from "The Lilywhites" in this regard.

Nineteen minutes from time, Schrijvers' vital block prevented Dominic Wooldridge from benefiting from the enterprise of Suburbs' triple-edged sword in attack, after which Team Wellington should have pulled a goal back sixteen minutes from time.

Tim Payne was caught in possession by Angus Kilkolly, who had the unmarked figure of Allen in support as he charged towards goal, with just Withers and Nando Pijnaker standing between the striker and a consolation goal.

Kilkolly went solo - a big mistake, as Pijnaker got across and tackled him in fine style. If anyone was in any doubt before this, there was no doubt now - Suburbs were destined to be the 2019 ISPS Handa Premiership champions, and join Auckland City in representing New Zealand in the 2020 OFC Champions League.

Payne's error which led to this opportunity clearly rankled with Suburbs' captain, for in the 78th minute he set off on a swashbuckling run from inside his own half which took him past all-comers all the way to the byline, from where he picked out the supporting run of de Jong.

He blazed his effort wildly over the bar - Payne's raid deserved far greater reward - while after a Jack-Henry Sinclair cross eluded both Kilkolly and Bevin, McCowatt - announced post-match as the winner of the Steve Sumner Trophy as Grand Final MVP - was twice denied by Basalaj as he went in search of his hat-trick in stoppage time.

There was still time for Withers to twice deny Kilkolly as Team Wellington sought a late consolation goal, but even that proved beyond the former champions, who were a well-beaten side come the final whistle, much to the delight of the majority of the 2,155-strong crowd, many of whom were cheering for the newly crowned champions, Eastern Suburbs.

Suburbs: Withers; Kalua (Built, 90), Payne, Pijnaker, Wilkins (booked, 76); Wooldridge (Strong, 88), Just (Awad, 81), Edge, Parker-Price; McCowatt, de Jong

Wellington: Basalaj; Palezevic, Robertson (Allen, 50), Schrijvers; Stevens (Molloy, 50), Clapham (Mulholland, 54), Ilich, Sinclair; Kilkolly, Bevin (booked, 38), Hailemariam

Referee: Nick Waldron

National League