Great day, terrific games

Taranaki Football's on-field season came to an end at the TET Stadium in Inglewood for the Senior Finals Day last month and the weather managed to stay pretty good for most of the day, which meant three great matches were played.

We started with the Tungsten Legal Duchess Cup where Withers Coachlines Moturoa AFC Red took on Susanne Hipp Accounting Hawera and Moturoa got off to a perfect start by scoring in the first minute through Fernanda Toscani who ended the match with four goals. Hawera battled hard in the first half and was unlucky to go into the break 0-2 down after Anna Hinton, who finished with a hat trick, got a late first-half goal. Moturoa then started the second half how they started the first with a goal in the first minute and this made it hard for Hawera to get back into the match. Hawera defended well for most of the match but only having 11 players available meant they ran out of steam seeing Moturoa win 8-0 and lift the Duchess Cup for 2019.

The Nimmos Cup Final was played between Kaitake FC and Hutchins Dick Peringa Pirates with Kaitake, like the first match of the day, getting the perfect start as Charlie Waite bent one around the keeper from his corner kick. Mike Maxim then fired home a great goal from outside the box in the 15^th minute to give Kaitake a stronghold on the game. The Pirates pressed hard for the whole match and were unlucky to hit the woodwork three times before they were finally able to score from a penalty kick. Chad Jones stepped up in the 78^th minute to slot the penalty after a Kaitake player handled in the box and this set up an exciting last 12 minutes where Peringa searched for an equaliser. It wasn’t to be though and Kaitake won 2-1 to complete their 2019 treble season by winning the Nimmos Cup to go with their Division 1 League Championship and Challenge Trophy.

The best game was saved for last as the Duff Rosebowl went to a penalty shootout to decide the winner between Peringa United and Smith & Sons Eltham. Eltham took the lead after 10 minutes in the first half through Toby Stratton, who scored in a similar way to the previous Nimmos Cup game, from a corner kick he took. Peringa came out of the gates in the second half after being 0-1 down at half time and put pressure on the Eltham team to find an equaliser. They did so in the 61^st minute from Dylan Hayman and this caused the last section of the second half to be dramatic and entertaining. Luke Snellgrove got a great striker's goal in the 78^th minute for Eltham and this looked like it could be enough but Peringa were awarded a penalty in the added time. Ryan Hall kept his nerve and tied the game up at 2-2 thus sending the match to extra time. Nothing could separate the teams after extra time so the game was decided on a penalty shootout, which like the previous week in the semifinal, Peringa United came out on top 4-2 with Andrew Southgate putting the winning kick away and crowning Peringa the 2019 Duff Rosebowl Champions.