13 WOMENS MATCH REPORT

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WOMEN'S FIRST TEAM: LATE GOAL BY LEAGUE LEADERS SINKS PONIES

Our Footballing weekend was kicked off by our Women’s First Team taking on Western Springs at Seddon Fields in our first Friday night fixture of the season, a big crowd rocked up to watch what turned out to be a fascinating contest as Springs missing a few players came up against a Ponies team who had been showing a big improvement in this second round and could sense an upset.

Ryan Shiffman’s Ponies came into the game on the back of a loss in the #battleofeastauckland last weekend but at pretty much full strength as Maddy McCormick came back into the side and Tayla Hawes had recovered from her knock last weekend.

Looking at the Springs team who have been on fire all season who were missing a couple of players in this game, but they have a more than capable bench and the Ponies were not going to take them lightly.

It was quickly obvious once the game kicked off that Ellerslie were going to play a bit more direct than the home side, who themselves were concentrating on getting the ball to their playmaker Rina Hirano, who was central to their best moments. Ellerslie’s all action style seemed to bother Springs early on and the home side who have netted an average of 2.3 goals per game initially looked to struggle to break down the Michaels Ave side’s defence.

It took all of 10 mins for the game to get it’s first real shot as Rina picked up a loose ball in midfield after a flick on from an Erin Simperingham clearance was picked up and a long shot from well outside the box was fired in by the Japanese star. Erin was alert however and pushed the ball out with a dive to her right and got two strong hands to the ball and pushed it out for a throw in.

That action seemed to spur the Ponies into their stride and they immediately threatened with a half chance of their own as Britney got onto a ball over the top by Annabelle and then some neat passing and some lacklustre clearances from Western Springs resulted in Kim Mesias having a shot on the turn from the left side of the box, but her right footed effort just couldn’t curl enough to worry the Springs GK.

Leigh Aitken was the next to have a shot, Britney again in the buildup making the most of a ball forward as she robbed the Springs fullback and then checked back and found the Ellerslie #4 about 10 meters outside the box. Leigh’s shot was low and hard and dealt with easily enough by Alisha Perry.

From that save Alisha played short and Springs won a free kick at halfway which was taken quickly and Ellerslie struggled to recover as a Springs player helped the ball into the box from the free kick and Rosa Caird got off a powerful left foot shot despite the attention of two defenders from just inside the box – It came at an awkward height for Erin and with the power it was a hard one to handle – she managed to pad it away and Kim Oosterbeek cleaned up to keep the game scoreless.

Ellerslie were starting to cede the territory to Springs as they got stuck into their work, but a timely reminder of the danger Ellerslie posed on the break came to fruition when in the 28th min Cat Pretty played a perfect ball over the top of the left back and into Britney’s path – Alisha in goal decided against coming out and hung on her penalty spot as Britney stormed forward

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with the ball from the our right flank – however with the cover defence coming across Britney opened up to try and steer the ball past the keeper at the near post and just overcooked it and it ended up going wide. Springs best chance of the game came next as a neat piece of play on the right from Arisa and Rina ended up with the latter putting in a perfect left foot cross which a Springs player in the middle got her head to – but it slipped millimetres past the far post.

The half closed out with Springs having a couple more chances without really testing the Ellerslie goalkeeper – so both teams headed for the sheds to get out of the cold weather and have a chat about what they needed to do to break the deadlock. It wasn’t long into the second half that Ellerslie created their best chance of the game so far as a corner floated in by Leigh Aitken was won by Cat Pretty – a looping header that gave the Springs keeper no chance but the woodwork had the final say as the ball struck the corner of the post and crossbar and somehow missed all the players as it dropped into the field of play and spun back out of play for a goal-kick.

Cat Pretty having had the smell of a goal went looking for her third of the season as she had the next shot as she took a right footed effort from 12 meters outside the box that was powerfully hit but straight at Alisha who handled the shot well.

Springs who had not really got into the second half and potentially had more pressure on them as the league leaders started to press a little more aggressively and they had a great chance from nothing as they intercepted a ball in midfield when Ellerslie were trying to setup a play – the loose ball fell in the path of Arisa Takeda who quickly took a shot as Kim Oosterbeek was closing her down – but her quick and powerful shot was right at the Ellerslie skipper and GK.

Springs next chance was a beautiful piece of play which started back at the GK as the looked to play out – a ball to the left back who then played a perfect ball into midfield to Lara Copli who in turn found Sophia Dyer hugging the left touchline – Sophia played a perfect ball into midfield where Rosa Caird had found some space – she checked back and lost her marker and played a left foot pass perfectly weighted between Tayla and Kim to the pacy Dyer who had made a great run. Springs however didn’t have any bodies in the box so Sophia’s cross was picked off by Erin Simperingham much to the relief of the Ponies fans who watch Springs open up the visitors in 4 passes.

Cat Pretty was back in the shooting action again soon after as she picked up a loose ball that Springs had attempted to clear, but her looping shot just didn’t have the direction and Alisha was able to pick it up wide of her goal. It was Alisha’s quick roll out to her teammate which ended up with Springs going pretty close to opening the scoring – Sophia Dyer again with the chance but this time she had come inside as the play developed down Springs right hand side and resulted in her picking up a pass infront of her defender on the edge of the box, her low powerful shot to Erin’s right wasn’t quite enough to beat the keeper as she stopped the first effort and got up and dived on the loose ball. Springs were really upping the pressure on the Ponies with multiple shots now coming in from different angles – as you would expect from the league leaders – Ellerslie however were not giving up and Ellerslie had a great chance in the 78th minute as Cat Pretty had another pop from the edge of the area – but her shot was block around the penalty spot mark and Kim Mesias was first to react to the loose ball – she swivelled and her left foot shot was blocked at close range by a Springs player, with the Ponies players in unison along with the Ponies supporters on the balcony all screaming for a handball, however the

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referee was in close attendance and probably rightfully waived the claims away.

Another chance quickly followed for Ellerslie as Britney got free on the left flank and skipped past a tackler only for the ball to pop up – so she gave it a bit of a boot and sent in a perfect up and under towards goal, just inside the 6 yard box – a bomb that any league player would be happy with.

The Springs goalkeeper in trying to catch the bomb ran into her own player which sent the ball loose, but credit to Springs as another defender boxed out Jemma while the GK recovered and dived on the loose ball – a couple of scares for the home side in a row.

Not for the first time in this contest Springs had their next chance when Alisha released the ball early and this time long to Rina who controlled the long ball and then set Sophia Dyer free on the left flank, she cut in on Tayla and got off a decent shot which Erin was able to get down and save and chase the loose ball before booting it into touch.

The next chance was the fatal one for Ellerslie as Emma Pijnenburg started the move off by getting out of a three person press by the Ellerslie front players, playing a sharp 1-2 with Sophia Dyer and then driving into midfield, before playing a clever reverse pass for another Springs player to run onto. Kim Oosterbeek managed to just intercept but her tackle left the ball free at the top of the box for Rina to pick up but Tayla managed to get in a clean sliding tackle in the box to stop her progress, but the ball was still right there and could only be cleared back to the top of the box where Arisa Takeda looked to get off a shot, but the ball was nicked away from her by a full-on challenge from Kim Mesias – unfortunately the loose ball fell back to the feet of Rina Hirano and her first time shot from close distance was too much for Erin to stop and Springs opened the scoring.

For the last 10 minutes Ellerslie threw as much as they could at the home side with Cat Pretty having a couple more shots as Hollie Leona came into the game alongside fellow second half subs Faith Moa and Jemma McCormick.

Unfortunately for Ponies fans there was no late scoring drama to be had and Western Springs notched their 8th win from 10 games as we reach the halfway point in the season.

Media Picks Woman of the Match:

An absolute rock in the midfield and at the heart of everything we did going forward and also had to deal with Springs best player for a lot of the night - our metaphorical hats go off to Cat Pretty.

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WOMEN'S RESERVES: PONIES DIG DEEP TO KEEP 1-0 LEAD AND REMAIN TOP OF TABLE

Narrowly sitting at the top of the table, the Women’s Reserves knew this fixture was going to be a tough one having drew with Western Springs at home in their last fixture. A few players who had limited minutes during their Friday night First Team duties bolstered the Ponies, adding to the already solid squad of Reserves players. With a team heavy on defenders, it was a welcoming sight to have a few more attacking players join the team. Within the first ten minutes, there were multiple heavy challenges, and with that the precedent of the game was set. Ellerslie took a while to get into the game as they adjusted to the tempo of play. However, in the 27th minute they were able to get the only goal of the match. Hollie Leona was fouled just outside of the box and lined up for the free kick. Her delivery was on target, and the keeper wasn’t able to deal with it safely. After spilling the beans, Kezia Kelly was there to hit the ball home.

From here, the intensity ramped up as Springs searched for an equaliser. Goal scorer Kelly, along with Faith Moa, Erin Mattingly and Deb Tutty held strong at the back to deny the constant pressure of the home side, while Lulu Lance provided safe hands between the sticks. Down the other end, Sarah Robinson was dangerous down the left, constantly pressing for the ball and winning it often. Jemma McCormick, Holly Marx and Mia Grgicevich held strong in the middle and slowly began to find their feet in the game, shifting the ball quickly and effectively. Leona, when she wasn’t spending her time on the ground, was trying her best to find the ball at feet. The second half was much like the first, with both teams creating their fair share of attacking opportunities. It was a physical game, and the turf is an unforgiving surface. With the help of a strong bench, Ellerslie were able to see out the game, narrowly holding their lead. In such a close game, the women did well to dig it in and seal the victory. It was a real team effort, and everyone put in 100%. Something that has been impressive from the women is their refusal to concede in tight games. It really shows the character of the squad.

The win puts them 3 points above of Auckland United, who they’ll face after a one week Kate Sheppard Cup break. The Ponies only two losses have been to Auckland United, so we’re sure they’ll be hunting for that win that will put them 6 clear of their opponents.

Media Picks Woman of the Match:

Sarah Robinson: Her work rate was unmatched during the game. She won a lot of balls high up the field with her energetic press and was unlucky to not capitalise on any of the break aways. We're predicting goals from her very soon.