First round Chatham Cup victory

By Ryan Imray

Wainuiomata’s premier Football team won its first round match in the 2023 Chatham Cup competition.

Wainuiomata defeated Victoria University 2-1 at Boyd Wilson Park on Anzac Day, 25 April.

The Chatham Cup is contested by clubs right around New Zealand.

Captain Josh Hinton put Wainui into a 1-0 lead just before half time. Not long into the second half the home team levelled the score before Callum Martin scored the winning goal with 10 minutes left on the clock.

Wainuiomata hosts Seatoun in the next round on the weekend of the 13-14 May.

Wainuiomata’s unbeaten start in the Masters 6 competition (for players aged over 35 years) continued as they drew 2-2 against league leaders Kapiti Coast United.

The green and blacks also scored victory in the Masters 3 competition when the Wainuiomata Undertakers beat the Western Suburbs Crown Masters 3-1

In Wellington 3, it was a Wainuiomata derby in the Wellington third division as the league leaders Wainui Fiddick’s faced off against Wainui Roundballs.

In what was a six goal thriller, the Roundballs climbed to second on the table as they gave the Fiddick’s their first defeat of the season when they won 5-1.

Junior Football got underway for the new season and in the under 13 grade, Wainui Celtic played their first ever match on a full sized field.

Adjusting to life in the 11 a-side format, Wainui got off to the best possible start with a 7-3 win against Tawa Thunder.

The women’s side played its first game of the season after Karori defaulted the weekend before.

They travelled to Tawa to face the brand new side of Tawa Collab. While the result didn’t go in favour of the green and blacks, it was great to see the game played in good spirits and Women’s Football back under way in what is a big year for Women’s Football in New Zealand with the World Cup only 11 weeks away.