This time, Jimmy Somerton – scorer of six goals against Thistle – was one of six United players on the scoresheet. The others were skipper Dane Thompson, midfielder Corey Adams, and strikers Jacob Adams, Kauri Holmes and Campbell Hall.
Thistle had a few players missing from their travelling squad but Junior Jimmy, a standout performer last season, was back.
He helped steady the defence, and coach Tam Cramer said Jimmy would make a difference to any team in the league.
Cramer was pleased with his side’s resilience.
“They showed a bit of ticker to come back from that defeat. We’d rebuilt the team and it showed. I’d seen them at training every week and I knew, collectively and individually, they were better than they showed in that first game.”
Thistle lined up with Drew Churchwell in goal and a back four of Travis White (“sensational” at right back, Cramer said), Louis Sengelow and Jimmy in the middle and Jonas Klessny at left back.
Leo Starck on the right and Aiden Norris on the left gave width to the midfield and support to the attack, while Nick Land, Euan Cramer and Luke Jarvie were a hardworking central core, rotating to suit.
Up front, skipper Maisey harried opponents. For his first goal, he “rolled” a defender with a turn about 25 metres out and ran on to finish clinically. The second came from Jarvie’s run from deep and a great ball in for Maisey to finish, and the third followed good build-up play down the right.
Maisey opened the scoring after 22 minutes, Napier equalised through Tristan Ferreira on half-time, then Maisey scored after 59 and 70 minutes. Napier’s Ben Harris scored their second goal five minutes into second-half stoppage time.
Former Thistle players George Ure and Ziggy West-Hill had 45 minutes each for City Rovers.
Gisborne United fell behind early against Port Hill. A minute after midfielder Jamie Provines hit the crossbar in the fifth minute, striker Luke Posthumus found space in the United penalty area to drive the ball into the bottom left corner of the goal from 12 metres.
United lost midfielder Josh Harris about this time with a suspected quadriceps strain, and Jacob Adams came on to join his older brothers, Corey and Josh.
Play was keenly contested for the rest of the first half, punctuated only by a 15-metre Somerton thunderbolt from a sharpish angle down the United left flank to equalise in the 16th minute, and a goal from central midfielder Thompson – a stroked finish into the far corner from wide on the left in the 24th.
The game changed in the 52nd minute, when Irbrahim Buyukpinar was shown the yellow card for a late tackle on Thompson, having been shown yellow five minutes before. The second yellow became a red and Port Hill were down to 10.
A minute later, former Gisborne Boys’ High School player Jesse Sadlier came on for Port Hill attacking midfielder Josh Driver and played as a target man.
United centreback Mal Scammell’s header was cleared off the Port Hill line in the 55th minute, then in the 63rd, Somerton’s free kick on the edge of the box hit the wall and the ball bobbled about till Corey Adams headed it over the goalkeeper to make it 3-1.
In the 70th, Jacob Adams scored with a right-foot shot that went in at the near post.
Holmes, on for Somerton in the 69th, scored with a header in the 76th, for 5-1, and then Port Hill got one back in the 87th, Hamoud Al-Jammali prodding home from close range.
Hall completed the scoring almost on fulltime, getting on the end of a long kick, chasing it down and finishing from 12m.
United were solid through the middle, centrebacks Kieran Higham and Scammell, midfielders Matt Hills, Thompson and Corey Adams, and striker Somerton all contributing.
Jirah Wanoa showed promise at right back, and Malcolm Marfell was wholehearted on the left. Up front, Jacob Adams and Hall had the speed and direct approach to carve openings from the wings.
United co-coach Kieran Venema said the performance was not as tidy as they’d wanted, but the team played some good football.
He was particularly happy with the performance of central midfielder Hills – “a young player with a mature head”.
Port Hill coach Dan Johansen said he thought his side had the better of the first 15 to 20 minutes, but they let in two soft goals and the red card changed the game.
The match was well controlled by referee Chris Niven.
