TRIED AND TRUE: Gisborne Thistle captain Nick Land leads a side with a good mix of youth and experience. He is pictured here in the centre, playing against Napier City Rovers.File picture by Paul Rickard
FOOTBALL
Both Gisborne teams in football’s Pacific Premiership are fit, strong and raring to go in the opening round tomorrow.
Heavy Equipment Services United play reigning champions Napier City Rovers seconds at Harry Barker Reserve at 2.30pm. Napier lost only once in the league last year.
The other Gisborne team in the competition, Vehicle Testing Station Thistle, travel to Hastings to face Maycenvale United. Thistle won the corresponding fixture 3-0 last season.
United player-coach Corey Adams is hoping to improve on last season’s second-place finish and win the competition.
“We’re definitely capable of winning the title,” he said.
“And I’m proud to say our team is made up of all local lads.”
Adams will look to captain Kieran Venema to provide leadership, and Corey’s younger brother Josh — scorer of 32 goals last campaign — to keep up the good work, or do even better.
United’s playing stocks have benefited from the addition of Jarom Brouwer, Paul Goodlett and Jake Robertson.
Their only loss is Martin Garnier, who has returned to France.
Thistle coach Garrett Blair has a young squad, made up mainly of new players and five seasoned campaigners.
He would like to start the season strong, winning consistently, and improve on last season’s fourth-place finish.
“We have acquired three young professionals out of an English football academy who fit nicely into our squad, and we look to the experience of our captain and 17-season veteran Nick Land to lead the side,” Blair said.
“We have had a good pre-season with good results in matches — beating our Reserves 5-3, Wainui 10-0 and Kawerau 6-0,” captain Nick Land says.
“The team is fit and well prepared.
“I am excited to have so much young blood in our side, something that has been missing for quite some time in Gisborne. I would also like to improve on our position from last season and hopefully win the title.”
Gisborne Thistle are sponsored by Fulton Hogan, Dynamic Rehab, AWF (Allied Work Force) and welcomes aboard their primary sponsor for the season Gisborne Vehicle Testing Station (GVTS)
The Pacific Premiership consists of 10 sides, 80 percent of which are from Hawke’s Bay (Napier, Hastings and Havelock North) plus the two sides from Gisborne. They play twice against each other during the season — one fixture at home, the other match away.
The winner of the competition last season was Napier City Rovers AFC.
Challenge Cup gamesLast weekend, Gisborne United Reserves started out their campaign for this season with a 4-2 win in the Challenge Cup final, thanks to a superb hat-trick from striker Stuart Cranswick.
The Challenge Cup is similar to the English Charity Shield, where the winner of the league plays against the winner of the cup. This season the final was contested between Gisborne United and local rivals Gisborne Thistle.
Both teams started out nicely, passing the ball around with some end-to-end goal-mouth action.
In the 15th minute Gaurav Chetan Kashyap opened the scoring with a nice header on the back post beating the Thistle keeper.
Thistle striker Brad Reynolds scored the first of his two goals when he turned and buried the ball into the right corner of United’s net on 28 minutes.
Just before the half-time whistle a goal-mouth scramble saw Stuart Cranswick score his first with a smashing half volley that looked totally unstoppable. United took their lead into half time at 2-1.
Ten minutes after the re-start, United were awarded a penalty and Cranswick made no error — finely dispatching the ball into the left corner of the goal.
In the 74th minute Brad Reynolds gave Thistle a glimmer of hope, scoring a good goal neatly tucked into the top-left corner.
Thistle’s hearts were broken though straight from kick off when some nice one-touch football into the box saw a good shot saved and the rebound fall to Cranswick’s feet. He smashed home the winner, also completing his hat-trick in the process.
The final whistle came and United took out the title by 4-2.
United’s captain Craig Christophers was ecstatic with the victory. A good crowd at Childers Road cheered their team off the pitch and celebrations began.
In the earlier game, the Women’s Challenge Cup Final saw league Champions Gisborne United play Riverina, who won the cup last season.
A hotly-contested match with some crunching tackles and superb saves from both goalkeepers saw the game and the trophy shared when the match ended 1-1.
The rules stated before the match that in the event of a draw at 90 minutes the trophy would be shared, with no option of extra time or a penalty shoot-out.
Gisborne United went in at half time leading 1-0, after Tessa McDonald struck a well-timed half volley into the back of the net in the 41st minute.
End-to-end action finally saw Riverina score a well-deserved equaliser when a goal-mouth scramble saw United captain and goalkeeper Mel Knight pull off the save of the match, only to see her parry smashed into the back of the net by Te Uarangi Olsen.
It was 1-1 and one last moment of brilliance came from Jamie Gedye when she smashed a left foot cracker right into the Riverina crossbar.
It was a magnificent match shared by two very equal sides.