New Zealand’s Young Ferns scored another come-from-behind victory to clinch their three-match series with the NZ Secondary Schoolgirls squad on the North Harbour Stadium Tigerturf on 16 December, this time by a wild 6-4 scoreline. The chaos commenced just two minutes into the match, Olivia Chance’s free-kick to the far post being headed wide from point blank range by Hannah Wong, when scoring appeared to be the easier option for the Young Ferns striker. The schoolgirls struck back straight away, taking the lead in the fourth minute. Jesse Mathews wriggled her way through three challenges before slipping Stephanie Skilton through the inside left channel. The striker got the better of Kate Carlton en route to the by-line, from where a flighted cross found its way to the far post. Katie Rood was on hand to direct a downward header into the net - 1-0 to the students. They held that advantage for twelve minutes, playing tidily, as was the case throughout proceedings for Paul Temple’s charges. But they were undone by a slick one-two on the left flank between Jessica Oulaghan and Chance which saw the fullback fire in a wicked first-time cross onto the head of Evie Millynn, whose deft flick allowed Kate Loye, looming beyond her on the far post, to level the scores with a close range header. Katie Bowen’s powerful sixty yard surge through midfield two minutes later put the schoolgirls on the back foot, and the midfielder combined with Millynn and Tiffany Paterson before Loye lashed a twenty-yarder over the crossbar. A fine fingertip save by Young Ferns ‘keeper Jessica Reddaway thwarted Elise Mamanu-Gray’s rasping twenty-yarder in the twentieth minute, to which the younger team responded with a raid which saw Millynn evade the offside trap but rattle the side-netting. After Erin Nayler had grabbed a Bowen volley under her crossbar, the schoolgirls regained the lead in the 29th minute in soft fashion. Sarah McLaughlin floated a free-kick into the danger zone from wide on the right, and Reddaway completely misjudged its flight, her reaction to the threat far too late to prevent the ball ricocheting off her hands into the roof of the net. Referee Graeme Gallop must have taken pity on the young ‘keeper - it’s the only logical reason behind his decision to award a penalty to the Young Ferns just ninety seconds later. Players from both teams were looking at each other in astonishment as the official pointed to the spot, having seen a push in the middle of a tussle for possession on the edge of the area. Chance grabbed the ball, plonked it on the spot and left nothing to chance with a fiercely struck shot which Nayler was still diving for when it hit the net, 2-2 then, a scoreline which was unchanged come the half-time whistle, despite the best efforts of both teams to alter it. McLaughlin came closest, her left foot drive arrowing into the midriff of Reddaway after a strong run from Mamanu-Gray through the heart of the Young Ferns midfield. The second half was barely ninety seconds old when Grace Parkinson maintained her rich vein of goalscoring form with a crisp finish across Nayler from the edge of the area to put the Young Ferns in front for the first time in the match. After half-time substitute ‘keeper Bernadette Anderson had maintained her team’s lead by grabbing a Skilton shot at her near post, the Young Ferns extended their advantage in the 54th minute courtesy another soft penalty, referee Gallop ruling Renata Gottgtroy had handled the ball in attempting to get the better of Wong in the area. Parkinson made no mistake from the spot - 4-2. Anderson grabbed another shot - a twenty-five yarder from Mamanu-Gray after Sivitha Boyce had gifted possession to McLaughlin - soon after, before the goal-fest continued in the 64th minute as the Young Ferns went nap.

Olivia Chance shields from Elise Mamanu-Gray Rebecca Brown heads clear from Grace Parkinson Alisha Lovrich under pressure from Rosie White Steph Skilton shadowed by Kate Carlton Danielle Hareb chased by Olivia Chance

Chance broke down the left and fired in a cross which beat Nayler and found Parkinson. The striker took too much time to set herself for a shot, allowing Hannah Wilkinson to close her down, the ball ricocheting off the defender to Loye, who was up in support. Her  twenty-yarder fizzed in off the underside of the crossbar to make it 5-2 to the 2010 FIFA U-17 World Cup Finals hopefuls. The crazy nature of the game continued five minutes later, with the schoolgirls pulling one back through a returning warrior. Emily Cooper’s terrific control and angled pass on the touchline sent Skilton scampering away down the left, and she fired in a cross to the near post. Anderson failed to come for the ball, an error Rosie White punished in merciless fashion as she headed home to make it 5-3. Back came the Young Ferns, Loye’s slide-rule through ball releasing Brittany Dudley-Smith through the inside left channel. Nayler blocked at her feet, but the substitute, Parkinson and Megan Lee all had chances to restore the Young Ferns’ three-goal cushion in the ensuing scramble. The schoolgirls held firm on this occasion, but were unhinged once more fifteen minutes from time as their young opponents made it 6-3. Lee raced clear down the left as Loye played the ball through, and the substitute fired home early and confidently across the advancing Nayler into the far corner of the net. Despite having played well, the schoolgirls were stunned at having yielded six goals, and the confidence-laden Young Ferns weren’t slow in looking to add further to their rivals’ frustrations. Nayler saved well from Loye after Eloise Morris had gifted the midfielder possession on the edge of the penalty area in the 83rd minute. The ‘keeper promptly hoisted the ball forward, and both Tessa McPherson and Alisha Lovrich failed to heed the other’s call as the sphere dropped from the sky. Their collision meant Rood suddenly had acres of space in which to roam, and the Northern Premier Women’s League’s Player of the Year did so at pace and to devastating effect, storming down the left into the penalty area before rolling the ball across to White. She deftly touched it on into Wilkinson’s stride, and she fair buried her shot beyond Anderson’s despairing dive - 6-4, and a goal which was arguably the most stylish strike of the entire ninety minutes. Rood should have done better just sixty seconds later, after Nayler had saved at the feet of Mary Fraser. The ‘keeper picked out White with her clearance, and the Oceania Women’s Player of the Year sent Rood scooting through the Young Ferns’ defence, only for the striker to shoot at Anderson when making the scoreline even crazier than it looked appeared certain. Three minutes from time, Lee’s run and shot from the left deserved better fate than to crash off the inside of the far post back into play. Fraser hoisted the flags with a three-pointer from the rebound, with the goal at her mercy. 6-4 the wild scoreline remained, however, the Young Ferns winning the three-match series with a game - from 4pm on Friday at the same venue - to spare. The victors have certainly been involved in some spectacular scorelines in the last month, following up a 3-2 loss to Auckland with wins over Football South - 8-3 - and the Secondary Schoolgirls - 4-2 and 6-4. Nine months out from Trinidad & Tobago 2010, they have attacking qualities aplenty, but coach Dave Edmondson has plenty of work to do in terms of defensive solidity if the full potential of this young side is to be realised. Young Ferns:     Reddaway (Anderson, 46); Carlton (Lovrich, 54), Boyce, McPherson, Oulaghan; Millynn (Parkinson, 36), Bowen, Loye, Chance (Lee, 67); Paterson (Dudley-Smith, 33), H. Wong (Fraser, 65 (Millynn, 88) Schoolgirls:     Nayler; Hareb (Carter, 69), Gottgtroy, Wilkinson, Brown; Cooper (E. Wong, 69), Mamanu-Gray (Morris, 80), Mathews (White, 55); Rood, McLaughlin, Skilton Referee:     Graeme Gallop