What turned into a most exciting finish definitely did not start that way!
Good defense from Te Aroha and rather poor structure saw us struggling in the first half. Te Aroha scored first, we equalized through Josie Wilson (well set up by Jade Henley-Smith) and they scored again just before half time. 2 – 1 down at the break.
Frustration was evident in the half time chat and our play improved as the second half progressed. A break away saw Te Aroha score after about 15 minutes and if anything, our frustration heightened as everything we tried seemed to go against us. In the 19th minute we finally forced a penalty corner that was soundly converted by Zoe Lapwood. 10 minutes to go and at least one goal desperately needed! A field goal through Emanae Ferguson saw us equalise and so the score remained until full time.
As this was a pool semi-final a result was needed and we went to strokes. 4 all after the first five strokes were taken (our goals: Zoe, Renee, Emanae and Jade). Hinehou Te Ua kept out their first in the sudden death round and Renee Saunders converted ours giving us the win 5 – 4 on strokes.
Well done to the girls – a tense finish to set up a pool final against Pukekohe next week!
Player of the day: Hinehou Te Ua
