2020 Grand Final 201220

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Canterbury To The Four As They Clinch "Three-Peat"

by Jeremy Ruane

Canterbury United Pride became the first team in ISPS Handa Women's Premiership history to win three successive Grand Finals on December 20, thrashing Capital Football 4-0 at English Park to retain the title in what was their eighth successive Grand Final appearance.

United carved out the game's first chance inside seventy seconds, Alyssa Whinham's through ball inviting Britney-Lee Nicholson to work a one-two with Gabrielle Rennie which was only foiled by Ellen Fibbes' timely challenge on the former, who was the Mainland Federation's Player of the Year in 2020.

The home team were briefly reduced to ten when Mikaela Hunt went down with a head knock - she was eventually forced to succumb to the injury, and this allowed Capital the chance to exploit their hosts' temporarily reduced numbers.

Anna Green's probing balls forward invited both Michaela Robertson and Kaley Ward to take on Rebecca Lake and company, with Capital's strike force unable to make much headway, not aided by the fact they were playing into a stiff southerly also.

United soon started to settle into their stride, and in the tenth minute, Nicholson slipped a ball through which allowed Rennie to hurtle past comparatively static defenders en route to unleashing a shot which Georgia Candy turned round the post.

Four minutes later, hesitance by Hope Gilchrist and Candy was pounced on by Lara Wall, who instantly teed up Nicholson for a chance on the edge of the area. Gilchrist swiftly recovered her poise to prevent the striker from opening the scoring.

United pressed again two minutes later, this time via a Lake free-kick. Rennie headed it down for Nicholson, whose looping twenty yard volley arced narrowly past the far post with Candy beaten.

There was no let-up from the home team, with Nicholson releasing Wall down the left moments later. Her low cross arced behind Rennie but perfectly into the stride of Kate Taylor, who had stormed out of defence to join this attack. Candy dashed out and bravely blocked at the defender's feet on this occasion, but it seemed only a matter of time before the home team would make the breakthrough.

The chance to do so presented itself in the 23rd minute. Seconds after Nicholson had lashed one over the bar, Wall was felled in the box by a late challenge from Fibbes, prompting referee Sarah Jones to point to the spot.

Up stepped Lake, whose penalty-taking record in round-robin play had been impeccable. But on this occasion, she met her match, Candy saving with her legs to keep Capital on even terms.

Buoyed by this let-off, the visitors engineered a rare opening of their own in the 28th minute, with Jemma Robertson intercepting a Taylor pass and powering forward from half-way. But she failed to test Una Foyle with her finish, and on occasions such as this, such shortcomings can't be afforded.

Rennie's rampaging run down the left in the 33rd minute forced Candy to save at the feet of Wall seconds later, while the full-of-running Rennie was in again seconds later, this time tearing through the inside right channel at pace before opting to cross when shooting appeared the more likely option. Wall was unable to get on the end of the delivery.

Five minutes before half-time, a clash of heads between Charlotte Wilford-Carroll and Jemma Robertson saw both players requiring treatment, briefly reducing the visitors' ranks to nine.

During this time, Fibbes and Katie Barrott didn't aid their team's cause by trying to play out from the back, with the captain's pass back to Candy putting the 'keeper under enormous pressure, with Emma Clarke, Hunt's replacement, storming in to add to the confusion.

Somehow Candy came up trumps, saving with her legs to maintain the scoreless scoreline - her part in that being the case cannot be understated. Little wonder she was later named as the 2020 competition's Most Valuable Player - she's had a superb season twixt the sticks.

'Twas at the other end of the park where the next noteworthy event took place, and this time Capital were furious that a penalty wasn't awarded - they certainly had a strong case.

Green sent Jemma Robertson racing through the inside left channel, but on ploughing into the penalty area she was clipped by Clarke, who instantly applied the Italian sign of innocence - hands raised in protest; a sure sign, in this writer's experience, that you're guilty as charged of the offence you've committed.

Referee Jones sided with the defender on this occasion, but when she's reviewing the game on video later on, methinks she'll realise she made an error of judgement on this occasion. This was just as much a penalty as that she awarded earlier in the contest.

Unperturbed, Capital pressed again, this time via the personification of perpetual motion that is Tui Dugan, who once again got through a truckload of work in midfield without gaining a great deal of reward for her tireless efforts. On this occasion, she saw her deflected shot ricochet to safety as Capital finished the half strongly.

But the visitors had to be wary of Canterbury's counter-attacking potential, with Wall, Nicholson and Rennie each capable of turning defence into instant attack should they be the beneficiary of a clearance. As was the case deep in stoppage time, when the charging figure of Rennie powered past Green, only for Candy to career out of her penalty area to avert the danger.

More was forthcoming for Capital from the resulting throw-in, this time in the form of another penalty, awarded by referee Jones after Fibbes had gone through Wall in an effort to avert the danger the winger posed.

Nicholson took on the spot-kick-taking duties this time round, but Candy responded by producing a brilliant save, plunging to her left to turn the last kick of the half to safety and give Capital a huge boost as the half-time whistle blew.

They looked to build on that momentum early in the second spell through Michaela Robertson, who was thwarted by some fine covering defensive work by Tahlia Herman- Watt as the fullback matched the striker stride for stride across the penalty area before blocking her fiftieth minute effort to safety.

Canterbury's response, two minutes later, coincided with the introduction off the bench of Annalie

Longo. Thirty seconds after she entered the fray, Amelia Abbott threaded a delightfully weighted pass through the heart of Capital's rearguard to send Rennie sprinting through on goal. The approaching figure of Candy proved no obstacle for the striker, whose finish was unerring - 1-0.

Capital had it all to do now, but now had the added burden of Longo's presence to contend with. In the 54th minute she got in between Wilford-Carroll and Dugan and set off on one of her jinking runs through midfield, despite being matched stride for stride by Dugan.

Eventually Longo laid the ball off to Clarke, then took up a position which allowed the fullback to work a one-two with the playmaker, whose return pass invited Clarke to fire in a vicious cross which Nicholson just failed to capitalise upon.

The game soon became a bit of a midfield tussle, with Whitney Hepburn's presence more noticeable - the veteran of all Canterbury's National Women's League triumphs had been rather anonymous in the first spell, Capital's boxed midfield quartet rather negating her influence on the home team's play.

Not now, though. With Capital needing to snare an equaliser, Hepburn's influence was growing, as was that of Lake, who, on the hour, careered over half-way in swashbuckling fashion before working a one-two with Nicholson and playing in Rennie, who was denied by Candy's save at her feet.

Seconds later, Nicholson played in Wall, who outfoxed Barrott before seeing her shot blocked by Gilchrist. This was Capital's captain's last contribution to the contest in a season which saw her make her fiftieth appearance for her federation, a milestone Michaela Robertson realised in this match, one which Capital never expected to find themselves playing a fortnight ago.

They had given a good account of themselves to this point, but when Canterbury doubled their advantage nineteen minutes from time, the game was up for the visitors. Hepburn picked out Longo's darting run through the inside left channel, from where the Football Fern's clipped cross arced over Nicholson.

Racing in behind her was Rennie - a fabulous front-running performance - and she met the dropping sphere with a first-time drive which ricocheted off the retreating figure of Green and arced over Candy, whose despairing attempt to keep the ball out proved fruitless.

2-0 became 3-0 seven minutes later. As she had with the first goal, Abbott split the defence with a peach of a pass, this time for the benefit of Nicola Dominikovich. The substitute swiftly set up Nicholson, whose confident finish arrowed across Candy and into the far corner of the net.

The reigning champions twisted the knife still further four minutes from time with a quite terrific goal. Longo was its principle architect, her lofted ball over the top with backspin from half-way bounced perfectly for Rennie, whose first time lobbed pass took a defender out of the equation.

Nicholson was the beneficiary, and continued the move with a further lobbed pass which picked out Dominikovich. One touch to control, the other to thrash the ball unerringly into the corner of the net from the edge of the penalty area - little wonder Candy was rooted to the spot. She would never have saved this quite splendid team goal.

And still they pressed, Hepburn twice going close in stoppage time, but only her first effort gave Candy cause for concern. Not that either attempt mattered, for the damage had long since been done, and when the final whistle sounded, chants of "Three-peat" resounded from the Canterbury players, champions once again.

Canterbury: Foyle; Taylor, Lake, Hunt (Clarke, 21), Herman-Watt; Abbott (Bray, 79), Hepburn, Whinham (Longo, 52); Rennie, Nicholson (Firth, 84), Wall (Dominikovich, 65)

Capital: Candy; Gilchrist, Fibbes (booked, 45), Green (Woodhead, 89); Dugan (Ingham, 79), Barrott (Errington, 63), Kondo (Blackham, 79), Wilford-Carroll; M. Robertson, Ward, J. Robertson

Referee: Sarah Jones

NB This match brings to a conclusion thirty seasons of women's football coverage by this writer, a labour of love which commenced in May 1991. Back in those days, Eric Pritchard was the only scribe in the country who provided dedicated coverage of the women's game, and after he retired in the mid-nineties, it was down to me to do the necessary for well over a decade.

Those weren't easy days for the women's game, either, as there was no NZ football publication, no internet, no mainstream media interest, and at times, not even the support of the national body - NZ's failure to even enter the 2004 OFC Olympic Women's Qualifying Tournament ranks as one of NZ Football's most unforgettable decisions, for all the wrong reasons. (Imagine the outcry if that were to occur today!)

What changed everything, perceptions particularly, was New Zealand's successful bid to host the inaugural FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup Finals in 2008. Suddenly there was an obligation to grow the women's game here, both on and off the park. The legacy of that event is still being felt today.

Witness, for example, the unprecedented media coverage of this season's NWL, with everyone being able to watch every single match on their laptop or phone. Inconceivable as recently as ten years ago, never mind in 1987, when I first became involved in the women's game in this country.

Such technological advances won't stop me adding to the approximately $220,000 (not adjusted for inflation) I've spent over the course of the last thirty years to ensure our foremost female footballers enjoy the degree of detailed independent coverage I'm able to provide via my reports, reviews and my now all too rare interviews. (Due to the demands of my paid employment, unfortunately).

After all, we've a FIFA Women's World Cup Finals to co-host in roughly thirty months' time, and truckloads of work to accomplish to ensure that goes ahead as smoothly as possible. And there'll be plenty of other women's football events and activities taking place both before and long after AsOne 2023 has graced our shores.

God willing I'll carry on doing what I love and contributing what I can for the benefit of our many inspirational female footballers for quite some considerable time yet. Meantime, have yourselves a Merry Christmas and a 2021 which is far better than 2020 has been for us all, LFC's Premier League title triumph excepted! :-)

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