The big Englishman got his forearms in front of him and the ball cannoned off them over the bar.
Fifteen minutes later, striker Caleb Smith ran on to the ball and cracked it towards the keeper’s lower left-hand corner, where Baple’s left hand palmed it to safety.
Four minutes later, striker Stuart Thompson cut in from the left and shot low and hard. There was Baple again, this time his right hand turning the ball wide.
From the resulting corner, another shot came in. This time Baple got a hand to it and rightback Liam Ryan completed the clearance with a header from the goal-line.
Thistle went ahead in the 28th minute when lone striker Corey Adams latched on to a through ball and, as the defence closed in, slotted his shot past Port Hill keeper Shaun Peta. The goal came after Port Hill lost possession as they were breaking out of defence.
Thistle strikes againThistle struck again a minute before halftime, sweeper Kieran Higham clipping the ball over the defence for right-flank midfielder Nicky Land to run on to. Land kept his composure and rifled the shot past Peta from 12 metres.
Midfielder Cullen Spawforth completed the scoring two minutes from fulltime. A Thistle player was impeded just outside the Port Hill penalty area and Spawforth deftly curled the free-kick over the defensive wall into the unguarded corner of the goal.
The win keeps Thistle in third place on the table, behind Havelock North Wanderers and Team Taranaki, and five points ahead of fourth-placed Palmerston North Marist Reserves.
Thistle coach Fred Robertson praised the skill of the Port Hill players and said the visitors probably had more possession in the first half.
But he thought his side’s speed in attack made the difference. He was happy with their progress.
“If you take Liam Ryan and Mark Baple out of the equation, the oldest of them is 23,” Robertson said.
“Corey Adams is regarded as a senior player, and he’s 21.”
Port Hill coach Terry O’Neill was disappointed with the result.
“I thought we did enough to get something from the game,” he said.
“The goal just before halftime hurt us. I wasn’t happy with our first-half performance and I told them at halftime to pick it up, which they did.
“Our passing was poor at times. We’ll just have to work on that.”
Thistle built from a solid defensive foundation. Higham’s speed at sweeper gave reassurance as fullbacks Jake Robinson and Ryan, and centrebacks Malachi Scammell and Kieran Venema contested the ball played in from midfield.
Spawforth and Jarom Brouwer held their own in the central midfield against Port Hill’s Josh Bowie and Jamie Provines. Brouwer linked up with Adams whenever possible, while Spawforth, although more defensively minded, also ventured forward to good effect. Near the end, Spawforth hit a through-ball for Brouwer but Peta spread himself well to save the shot.
Left-flank midfielder Malcolm Marfell showed some nice touches on the ball, and pleased the crowd with a couple of mazy runs. He and Land, on the right flank, were also determined in their chasing and harrying.
Up front, Adams made himself available and kept probing for openings. The support from midfield meant the Port Hill defence could never relax.
For Port Hill, Peta was sound and could not be faulted for any of the goals. Centrebacks Mark Saunders and Shay Wall tried to be constructive as well as destructive, and usually succeeded, while substitute defender Stuart Hall made one particularly effective covering tackle.
Jason Gerbes on the left flank and Smith on the right were industrious. Frontrunners Thompson and Beerman had to be closely watched, and brought the best out of Baple.
Referee Mel Knight kept a fast, engrossing contest under tight control.
Other results: Red Sox Manawatu 3 Palmerston North Marist Reserves 2, Havelock North Wanderers 5 Wanganui Athletic 1.
