Glenfield Rovers reclaimed North Harbour bragging rights over Forrest Hill-Milford United at McFetridge Park on June 18, downing their arch-rivals 3-1 in an at times intensely contested Lotto Northern Premier Women's League derby encounter. There certainly wasn't any quarter given by either side during the opening exchanges, with Rovers' Katie Rood in particular the subject of decidedly close attention by United's Saskia Vosper, who indulged in a few of the "dark arts" to restrict the impact of her ever-lively opponent. Remarkably, referee Beth Rattray chose to ignore these incidents, this choice of phrase being rather pertinent given the first of them, just three minutes into play, happened just three metres away from the official's vantage point, and left both players prone on the pitch, Vosper having clipped Rood from behind. Straight away, you could see the players collectively thinking, "Hello, it's going to be one of those games, is it?" Sure enough … the official's best game this most definitely was not! The first shot in anger was fired by "The Swans", Sammi Tawharu curling one narrowly past the post after Arabella Maynard's cross on the run had been headed out to the striker by Emma Turnbull. The visitors were certainly well up for the contest, with Milly McWhirter's through ball for Malia Steinmetz to chase three minutes later indicative of their ambition. Rovers' 'keeper Hayley Bindon was swift to deal with the danger on this occasion, and sparked a counter-attack. Leading the charge was a by now visibly angry Rood. Already she'd been taken out from behind, once off the ball, and her complaints to the referee had gone unheeded. How to vent one's frustration in such circumstances? Secure possession, go for a run with the ball, see where it leads you. Not all are as gifted as Rood in this regard, nor at channelling their aggression for the greater good. The combination of these strengths saw the striker weaving her way through six opponents at pace in an area confined to roughly ten yards, all the time inspired by a rage burning within, one fuelled, in this case, by a sense of injustice. Eventually Rood slipped the sphere sideways to Tessa Berger, whose fiercely struck twenty yard drive was turned away well by Emily Couchman, the only save she had to produce in an opening half-hour dominated by the team in their change kit. Maynard was central to much of that which United did in an attacking sense. In the sixteenth minute, she worked an opening on the right from which she picked out Jasmine Waldren with a cross. Her header crept just past the near post, while Maynard herself was narrowly astray sixty seconds later, before the roles were reversed in the eighteenth minute, Waldren's left flank foray culminating in a cross which found Maynard arriving on cue, only for the promising youngster to sky her effort wildly from fifteen yards with Bindon badly out of position. The sort of tackle which typified this hard-fought derby saw Chloe Knott and Turnbull going for the ball in the twentieth minute. No malice, no ill intent, just two opponents fully committed towards winning possession for their side. As it should always be. The vast majority of such tackles see both players swiftly rising from the ground to get on with the game. On this occasion, however, only Knott got back into the groove - Turnbull remained prone, unmoving. She was eventually helped to her feet and hobbled off, her day done, her replacement Liz Milne. Before she got up to speed, McWhirter and Tawharu combined for the benefit of Steinmetz, who evaded a challenge before lashing her 26th minute effort past the upright. Two minutes later, Maynard set off on a mazy run in-field from the right, McHale Perkins dogging her every step of the way. Eventually, Maynard made a sharp move inside, into the penalty area and towards the target. She never got the chance to fire a shot, because Perkins couldn't help but run into the midfielder and send her sprawling, such was the angle of her run across the defender. It looked for all the world a penalty, but remarkably, referee Rattray - again, she was right there - bravely waved play on, to the disbelief of all-comers. Frustrated, Tawharu, Maynard and McWhirter combined again sixty seconds later, the last-mentioned's teasing cross being parried by Bindon, who recovered to gather the ball before anyone in white could capitalise. McWhirter landed a shot on the roof of Glenfield's net soon afterwards, before Knott's driving run culminated in a pass to Maynard and a shot blocked by Sydney Mitchell. Maynard swiftly latched onto the rebound and, spotting Bindon off her line, attempted a chip which the 'keeper grabbed beneath her crossbar, ten minutes before half-time. Rovers were certainly second-best to this point in proceedings, but that's a situation which can change rapidly when Rood takes up the baton. Off she charged in the 36th minute, Kate Loye in support, the midfielder eventually receiving a pass which

allowed her to wriggle through a couple of challenges in the penalty area. The angle for a shot was too acute, but a cross to the far post was always on the cards. Dayna Stevens was lurking with intent, and hit a terrific shot which beat Couchman and her colleagues all ends up, only to crash back into play off the inside of the near post angle - you very rarely see that happen when such a shot is executed, the outcome almost always being in off. Not on this occasion, however, a statement which could just as easily apply to the outcome of United's next raid. Knott again led the charge, and fed Tawharu before going for a return pass in the penalty area which, while it came, she never reached, Knott the victim of an ill-timed challenge which took her legs out from under her. To say United were irate at having a second seemingly clear-cut penalty denied them by referee Rattray is something of an understatement! The official's mind was not for changing, however - on play continued. This served Rovers well, and Hannah "Sumi" Hoeksema made good use of the extra space afforded her three minutes before half-time to send Mitchell scooting down the left, from where she delivered a cross intended for Berger or Stevens. Aneka Mittendorff wasn't having a bar of it, however, intervening to prevent Rovers from taking the lead against the run of play, something which they were to do with virtually the last kick of the half. Mitchell again made in-roads down the left before playing the ball inside to Berger. With McWhirter on her back, and Stacey Martin close at hand, the former age-grade international had no option but to retain possession while cutting across the top of the penalty area. The unmarked figure of Stevens suddenly materialised in her sights, and Berger duly slipped a pass into the speedster's stride which the newly named Junior Fern wasted little time in thrashing into the top far corner of the net from fully twenty-five yards. Coming as it did on the stroke of half-time, the goal came as a hammer blow to United, who had been the better team throughout the first forty-five minutes. Truth be told, it was a blow from which they never really recovered. Rovers were certainly the team in the ascendancy throughout the bulk of the second spell, and after a few more strange calls for incidents at the start of the half, the sight of Rood landing a twenty-five yarder on the roof of United's net in the 53rd minute served its purpose. So did her next intervention, four minutes later - it doubled Glenfield's lead. Hannah Mackay-Wright fed the fleet-of-foot front-runner, who cleverly flicked the ball around her eternal shadow, Vosper, and swept past Martin before directing a delightfully angled shot across Couchman and into the far corner of the net - a typical virtuoso goal from Rood, this one leaving "The Swans" with a mountain to climb. After Rood and Mitchell had combined to present Milne with a headed chance which she directed over the top, the visitors dragged themselves back off the canvas with a fine goal, in the 63rd minute. Steinmetz sent Waldren scampering down the left, from where she picked out Maynard with a  cross. From the edge of the penalty area, the flank player steered a gem of a shot over the diving figure of Bindon and high into the net - 2-1. Could United recover? Not if Rood could help it. One through ball from the striker for Stevens was thwarted by Couchman saving at the first goalscorer's feet, while Rood herself rattled the crossbar from twenty yards in the 72nd minute, upon receipt of a short corner from Loye. A crunching tackle from Knott seconds later left Rood in a heap and walking gingerly for a few moments thereafter. But once more she channelled her inner fire for the greater good within minutes of this incident, leading the charge before releasing Milne through the inside left channel, from where the some-time Football Fern left Couchman beaten all ends up - 3-1, with fourteen minutes left to play. United looked to reduce the deficit again straight away. Knott fired a terrific free-kick into the heart of the penalty area which had Bindon flapping wildly. A looping header from Waldren was headed off the line by Perkins - a solid performer throughout - to put paid to those prospects, after which there was no way back for "The Swans". They went close again in the dying minutes via the combination of Maynard and Waldren, but Mackay-Wright dashed across in cover to avert the danger and ensure Glenfield would enjoy North Harbour bragging rights for 2017, having won by the same 3-1 scoreline when the teams met at Becroft Park earlier in the campaign. Glenfield:     Bindon; Mackay-Wright, Bunge, Perkins, Mitchell; Hoeksema (Strachan, 90), Turnbull (Milne, 23), Loye; Stevens, Berger (Oosterhof, 86), Rood FHMU:     Couchman; Vosper (Wilson, 63), Martin (Flynn, 82), Mittendorff, Klyn; McWhirter (Reddy, 70), Knott, Steinmetz; Maynard, Tawharu, Waldren Referee:     Beth Rattray