Northern v NZ Dev Squad 291115

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Northern Advance To National Women's League Final

by Jeremy Ruane

Northern Football booked themselves an ASB National Women's League Grand Final clash with Mainland Pride at Christchurch's ASB Park in a week's time after holding off a fast-finishing NZ Development Squad 4-3 in semi-final action at the QBE Stadium Oval on 29 November.

The youngsters hit the ground running as they looked to repeat the efforts of last season's Development Squad in reaching the Grand Final, but only after Katie Rood, after beating Ally Toailoa, took the wrong option in passing to the offside Emma Rolston when the speedster only had Ashleigh Emery to beat.

The shadow U-17 squad took advantage of that early let-off - and another soon after when Jess Innes directed her shot on the run straight at Emery - to twice go close to opening the scoring before the twelfth minute of play.

Jacqui Hand led the charge on both occasions, firstly being thwarted by Corina Brown's save at her feet following Emery's clearance, then outpacing Tessa Berger, only for Northern's defensive lynchpin to recover her ground and combine with Brown to thwart the league's leading markswoman.

A right battle royal ensued after this opening stanza, with Gareth Turnbull's charges giving plenty of cheek to their older opponents, demonstrating how much they had grown as a team since they last played Northern at this venue on October 18, when Northern prevailed 6-3.

It certainly didn't look as if that scoreline would be repeated come the half-way point in the first half, at which junction Rolston fired a free-kick over the bar after Rood had been taken out by a Development Squad defender, who should have been booked by referee Debbie Stevens, such was the rugged nature of the challenge.

Two minutes later, Estelle Harrison was caught in possession by Sam Tawharu - she had a fine game, with possession being swiftly transferred to Nicole Mettam. Her twenty-five yard strike was tipped away by Brown.

Harrison's revenge was imminent, however, but only after Rood had been thwarted by Toailoa's well-timed tackle - if this lass had a yard or two more pace she would be the prototype central defender, 'cause she has all the other attributes required in abundance.

This writer mentioned to a fellow scribe inside the first ten minutes of the match that the prospect of Harrison scoring direct from a corner in this game wasn't out of the question, based solely on doubts re Emery's prowess under the high ball, despite her height - her selection ahead of Nadia Olla for this match certainly raised eyebrows.

Call me Nostradamus! After Tayla O'Brien - a whale of a game - had seen her shot deflected over the bar, Harrison scored direct from a 27th minute corner to break the deadlock, exploiting the 'keeper's perceived weakness to a tee.

That goal rocked the Development Squad, and they were still reeling when a defensive blunder handed Northern a massive boost on the half-hour. Emery played a short ball to Toailoa, whose poor touch was pounced on by Rolston. The stranded 'keeper hadn't a prayer of recovering her ground to stop the striker - 2-0.

Straight from the kick-off, however, Northern dodged a bullet. Berger doesn't stay down once she hits the deck without reason, but stay down she did in the 31st minute, allowing Tawharu to pounce on possession and, with Brown outside her penalty area, let rip from forty yards.

The retreating goalkeeper was last seen heading for the nearest Lotto outlet, the ball striking her heel and ricocheting to safety as she made a hasty dash back towards goal in reaction to Tawharu's shot.

Had that gone in, it would have made life very interesting indeed, because Berger, once back on her feet, was moving more than a little gingerly - how Turnbull must have wished he had the pacy Hannah Blake on the park at this point, as her absence was a key factor in this match, no question.

As was the nervousness in the Development Squad's rearguard. Had Rolston and Rood been better able to co-ordinate their runs, they would have exposed and, doubtless, exploited a few weaknesses which were found by the probing play of, in particular, O'Brien and Rebecca Burrows.

As it was, Northern were being aided by their opponents' doubts, such as in the 34th minute, when Emery directed a clearance straight to Milly Hawkins, who fired a twenty-five yarder straight back at the target.

The recovering 'keeper did well to tip the ball round the post and make amends for her error, which proved to be one too many for coach Turnbull's liking - he introduced Olla to the fray for the second half.

Before then, however, Mettam sent a twenty-five yarder flying narrowly over Brown's goal after Innes had needlessly conceded possession. Stray passes have been a feature of this league in 2015, suggesting a need for increased work on developing players' option-taking abilities and reading of the game when in possession, particularly at

representative level, where there is less scope for inaccuracy compared to club level.

As legendary LFC boss Bob Paisley said, "It's not about the short ball or the long ball. It's about the right ball". That particular aspect of the women's game in NZ requires attention, based on the evidence on display in this competition.

The second half saw Northern take charge of proceedings from the outset, with Innes and Rolston both stinging Olla's gloves inside the first nine minutes of the half, both having benefited from Hawkins passes. The save Olla made from Rolston was a beauty, diving to her right to deny the OFC U-20s Golden Boot winner.

Back came the U-17s, Michaela Foster's corner on the hour prompting a scramble in which Saskia Vosper looked to pick out Tawharu for a close-range finish, only for Brown to intervene in timely fashion.

The youngsters wouldn't be denied, however, and in the 69th minute reduced the deficit. Vosper and substitute Sarah Krystman combined to release Hand on half-way, and she set sail for goal. Three defenders later, she tucked the ball past Brown to set up a grandstand finish - 2-1.

Northern's response to this was clinical. Rolston squandered a glorious chance to restore their two-goal advantage straight from the kick-off - there is no truth to the rumour that she has picked up the nickname "Air Emma" after this particular air-shot!

In the 72nd minute, O'Brien carved open the youngsters' left flank before delivering a cross which Olla spilled under pressure from Rood. Georgia Martin scrambled the ball clear, but only as far as Innes.

She angled a pass to Harrison, whose chip of Olla saw the ball slip through the 'keeper's hands and over the line behind her - a horror goal to concede, not that that concerned Northern one jot, as they celebrated for a third time after mercilessly punishing their opponent's errors.

They butchered a glorious chance to make it 4-1 straight from the kick-off, Rolston failing to do justice to Innes' industry after she had beaten Olla in a foot-race for the ball.

Belinda Van Noorden was then introduced to the fray, and wasted no time in introducing herself to the Development Squad's defence, blazing over within seconds of entering the pitch after Rood had tangled with Martin.

The newcomer then picked out Rolston with a cross which she headed over the bar before Innes sent one sizzling past the post from distance, seconds before she, too, missed the target by not a lot with a headed effort from twelve yards.

The pressure had to tell, and in the 83rd minute, Northern booked their expensive Air NZ tickets for Christchurch - return fares have increased by around $300 since the round-robin clash between Mainland and Northern - with a fourth goal, Harrison releasing Rolston the inside-right channel, from where she fired past Olla with aplomb.

Only the offside flag prevented Rood from wrapping things up with an absolute thunderbolt three minutes from time, after which the Development Squad looked to finish with a flourish - incredibly, they came very close to taking the game to extra-time.

Vosper led a counter-attack which saw her lob of Brown headed to safety by the fast-retreating Kate Seatter. The resulting corner from Foster wasn't cleared, and Hand headed home her second goal of the game from close range.

4-2 very quickly became 4-3 in stoppage time, Foster hammering home a penalty after Burrows had brought down Hand in the area. Referee Stevens didn't hesitate in pointing to the spot, but controversially left it at that - there wasn't even a card for Northern's captain, who was the last defender, and could very easily have been seeing red in the dying stages of this encounter. Another Lotto shop visitor this week …

Sadly for the Development Squad, they ran out of time to pull off the most unlikely of comebacks, but the progress they've made over the course of this league will certainly stand them in good stead ahead of the OFC U-17 Women's World Cup qualifying tournament in Rarotonga in January.

Northern, meanwhile, face a repeat of the 2013 ASB National Women's League Final, and will be bidding to end Mainland Pride's two-year reign as champions, a reign which began with a 4-2 victory over Northern.

Will history repeat next Sunday at ASB Park, or will Paul Greig's charges bring an end to Mainland's reign and return north celebrating their first national title since 2012?

Northern: Brown; Stratford, Berger, Seatter, Harrison (Wilson, 88); O'Brien, Burrows, Hawkins (Van Noorden, 75); Rood, Rolston, Innes

Dev Squad: Emery (Olla, 46); Bunge, Williams, Toailoa (Martin, 62), Foster; Steinmetz, Bloomfield (Uluvili, 86), Mettam (Krystman, 62); Vosper, Tawharu (van der Walt, 86), Hand

Referee: Debbie Stevens

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