Eastern Suburbs confirmed their place in the National Women's League Grand Final in three weeks' time in stunning fashion at Riverhills Park on November 27, overcoming Northern Rovers 4-2 in a tremendous advertisement for women's football which was laden with superb goals. The result has dealt a near-fatal blow to Rovers' own hopes of reaching the Grand Final. They now have to win both their remaining matches while hoping that Western Springs, who are five points ahead of Ben Bate's charges, stumble in their quest to meet "The Lilywhites" on December 18. Throughout the first half-hour of this contest, Rovers certainly didn't perform like a team with Grand Final aspirations. Their opponents, however … Suburbs set out to make a statement in this match, and it was evident inside the opening three minutes of play that they had no intention of suffering a second successive defeat, having had their unbeaten run ended by Canterbury United Pride a week ago. Captain Rebekah Van Dort led the first attack, intercepting Suya Haering's third minute pass and storming downfield in response before threading a pass through to Juliette Lucas. Ellie Blount raced out of goal to bravely save at the striker's feet, at the expense of a corner. Nicole Mettam delivered it to the near post, and Van Dort rose to meet it with a powerful header which Blount could only divert into the roof of the net - 1-0 Suburbs, a dream start for the home team on a pitch on which they were handed a 6-1 drubbing by Rovers way back at the beginning of this marathon campaign, on April 3 in the Lotto Northern Premier Women's League. Suburbs had no intention of enduring a reprise of that encounter. They were on a mission, and at times it seemed like Blount was the only obstacle between "The Lilywhites" and their objective. Rovers' 'keeper produced a string of super saves to keep her team in the contest, the first of them materialising in the tenth minute. Deven Jackson was well in the mood in this match, her charging run ending when she brought Tayla O'Brien into play. She fed Lucas, whose progress was thwarted. Rovers failed to clear their lines, however, allowing Jackson the chance to pull the trigger. Blount blocked the ball, then foiled Ella Findlay seconds later as "The Lilywhites" laid siege to Northern's goal. Blount then took out the rampant figure of Jackson, a foul for which she was rightly booked by referee Anna-Marie Keighley, but Suburbs squandered the resulting free-kick. That allowed Chelsea Elliott to pick up the pieces and bring the pacy Rene Wasi into play, with Kelli Brown running on ahead of her. The striker sent a cross-shot careering across the face of goal, just beyond the fast-arriving Danielle Canham on the far post. Heeding the warning, Suburbs came again, O'Brien, Arya Blackler and Olivia Page combining for the benefit of Jackson, whose fiercely struck dipping drive was superbly saved low to her right by Blount in the sixteenth minute. A brief lull allowed Northern the opportunity to press for goal again, aided by a stray Rachel Head pass. Canham swooped on the sphere and sent Leanna Ryan racing away down the left, the winger leaving Blackler trailing in her wake as she surged into the penalty area, from where she fired a shot which Brooke Bennett turned round her near post. Brown's resulting corner flew right across the face of goal and just past the far post - it needed but a touch, but none was forthcoming. Cue another Suburbs surge, Jackson working a one-two with Mettam, whose gorgeously weighted return pass allowed Jackson to poke the ball past the approaching figure of Blount but just past the far post. Rovers were all over the shop defensively at times in this match - when you've played a solid back four all season, this was hardly the time to switch to a back three! That lack of cohesion was exploited by Suburbs once more in the 27th minute, this time with telling consequences. Blackler played the ball forward to O'Brien, whose deft lay-off invited Jackson to race through the inside right channel and smash an unerring and unstoppable twenty-five yard missile between the diving figure of Blount and her near post - 2-0, and how Suburbs celebrated. The way this was shaping up, a rout was in the offing, but Rovers are made of stern stuff, and responded in the best manner possible, drawing level within eleven minutes of Suburbs doubling their lead. Their first goal materialised in the 32nd minute. Ryan played the ball forward into a space in behind Blackler and successfully regathered possession before the defender could recover. Ryan then played the ball back to Haering, who was coming up in support behind her. The immensely talented fullback - make no mistake, Haering is Ali Riley's heiress apparent in the Football Ferns, and should hold down the left-back spot for many years, all being well - cut inside before uncorking a twenty-five yard gem of a right-foot curler beyond the diving figure of Bennett and into the top far corner of the net. 2-1 - a gorgeous finish! Six minutes later, the roles were reversed. Haering gathered in a deep cross from Brown and looked up to find Ryan arriving in support. She did Blackler a treat - another case of a player being deployed in a position to which she is not suited - before beating Bennett all ends up with another delectable curling effort into the top far corner to make it 2-2. Suburbs were stunned, but swiftly set about looking to re-establish their hard-earned lead. O'Brien fed Jackson five minutes before the break, and she took the ball on before letting rip from thirty yards, a rocket of a shot which Blount tipped onto the crossbar. Rovers scrambled the danger clear on this occasion, but on the stroke of half-time Jackson resumed her personal duel with Blount, the 'keeper this time turning a twenty-five yard piledriver round the post to bring an enthralling half of football to a close. The second half started in lively fashion, Mettam earning herself a booking in the 48th minute, then a final warning nine minutes later, prompting Suburbs to withdraw her from the fray before she lost the plot completely and cost the team dearly.

In between times, plenty of action took place at both ends of the park. Brown got the ball rolling with another cross-shot across the face of goal, to which Suburbs responded via both Findlay and Jackson, both of whom were thwarted by Blount before the 51 minute mark had passed. Blount's save from Jackson came at the expense of a corner, which Mettam delivered into the goalmouth. Talisha Green fouled Lucas in the ensuing melee, prompting referee Keighley to point to the penalty spot - she doesn't give them if she's not completely certain, so Rovers were wasting their time protesting. Up stepped Van Dort, and as Blount dived low to her right, she looked back and up, for Suburbs' skipper steered the sphere well over the bar, so much so that passing traffic on Ti Rakau Drive was in danger of being hit! 2-2 it remained, but the home team had every intention of altering that scoreline in their favour. Another shot on the run from Jackson fizzed past the post in the 55th minute, while three minutes later, O'Brien played her through once more. Blount raced out of goal to clear off the striker's toes, sparking a counter-attack in which Brown got the better of Head, only to see Bennett grab the resulting shot. Cue more Suburbs pressure, O'Brien, the league's leading markswoman, leading the charge. Her terrific run created another opening for Jackson, but once again, Blount slammed the door shut - the 'keeper was having a terrific game, but was a relieved figure when Erinna Wong just failed to meet a teasing cross from Mettam's replacement, Zoe Benson, in the 64th minute. Back came Rovers, Green releasing Ryan with a raking pass which allowed her to get the better of Blackler and burst into the penalty area. Suburbs substitute Annie Byrne, racing back, slid in and tackled the Rovers raider from behind - a penalty, surely! Referee Keighley, who, to her credit, was in a great position to make the call, thought otherwise, prompting Rovers coach, the usually mild-mannered Ben Bate, to vent his spleen in a big way, even throwing his cap to the ground in anger, an act which earned him a yellow card on the advice of the fourth official! Rovers came again, Elliott picking out the ever-mobile Canham - one dreads to think the number of kilometres she runs during the course of any given match! On this occasion, her through ball invited Ryan to let fly once more, but this time, Bennett was equal to the task, as the game moved into the final twenty minutes. Back came Suburbs, Benson leading the charge. Her cross was blocked, but she was given a second chance, and wisely invited O'Brien to chance her arm. Her shot on the turn flew past Blount, but went narrowly past the far post as well, prompting O'Brien to pound the ground with her fist in frustration. Seconds after Elliott had eventually cleared a teasing Jackson cross, another from Byrne picked out the head of O'Brien, who guided the ball onto the roof of Northern's net. Back came Rovers via Elliott, who had one idea only in mind when the visitors were awarded a free-kick ten yards inside Suburbs half. To the astonishment of the Sky TV commentators, but not those who know the shooting range of this former striker, she let rip from around fifty yards out on the angle. Bennett was mightily relieved to see the dipping ball clear her crossbar by a matter of inches - she would have struggled to reach it had its intended target, the top far corner, been found, make no mistake. Eleven minutes from time, the deadlock in this intense tussle - unquestionably one of the best games seen in the National Women's League this season - was broken in brilliant fashion by O'Brien. Van Dort picked her out with a pass which invited the leading Golden Boot candidate to dash past two opponents before rounding the advancing figure of Blount in the penalty area. The 'keeper's presence forced O'Brien well wide of the target, but from the most acute of angles, and with two defenders back covering the goal, she still managed to thread the needle and put Suburbs back in charge, 3-2. Rovers were rocked by this blow, and hadn't recovered when "The Lilywhites" delivered the coup de grace in the 83rd minute. In a game laden with superb goals, this was arguably the best of the lot! Van Dort was again the instigator, picking out Benson on the left, where she got the better of Mackenzie Longmuir before sweeping the ball across field to Byrne. Latching onto it, the winger took a couple of strides forward before battering an absolute thunderbolt from fully thirty yards which screamed over Blount's head, crashed down off the underside of the crossbar and up into the roof of the net - WOW!! You'll go a long way to see a more emphatic finish, one which deserved to be the match-clinching goal, as well as one which ensured Suburbs of winning the league - with two rounds remaining, their points haul is unassailable. 4-2 down, and with time running out, Rovers knew the game was up, but to their eternal credit they kept on coming. As the game entered stoppage time, Wasi was on the charge, threading a ball through for Canham to latch onto, only for Bennett to save at her feet. Suburbs responded via O'Brien and Jackson - a slick one-two, with O'Brien then feeding Benson. Her shot was goalward-bound, but the retreating figure of Green diverted it back to Blount, who was relieved to see another shot from the substitute fly past her right-hand post, seconds after Brown had gone close at the other end of the park, the last attacks in a breathtaking game between two of the best teams in the land, one laden with goals of the highest quality. Suburbs:     Bennett; Blackler (Brooke, 86), Head, Van Dort; Page (Byrne, 62), O'Brien, Findlay, Wong (Atkins, 86); Mettam (booked, 48) (Benson, 62), Lucas (Yoshida, 56), Jackson Northern:     Blount (booked, 11); Sheldon (Cook, 68), Elliott, MacIntosh; Green, Wasi, Durham (Longmuir, 80), Canham, Haering (booked, 70) (McConnell, 86); Brown, Ryan (Noble, 86) Referee:     Anna-Marie Keighley