In the first few minutes, ALH Thistle Reserves worked the ball over to the right, where Alex Shanks was showing some deft touches. He played the ball into the penalty area, where striker Travis White ran on to it and fired off a shot that Port Hill goalkeeper Mo Hashim did well to block at the near post.
Then in the ninth minute, Port Hill striker Shannon Laxon-Fowler took his marker to the left of the penalty area then cut back inside and chipped towards the far post.
Thistle keeper Mark Baple stood midgoal, powerless to interrupt the flight of the ball. It struck the underside of the bar and bounced down and out.
In the 31st minute, defensive midfielder Reece Brew met a Thistle corner from the right and powered his header goalwards. Hashim had only to raise his hands to catch the ball but his reactions still had to be quick.
Port Hill scored in the 42nd minute. Right midfielder Max Robotham started the move with a nice medium-range ball from inside his own half into the edge of the Thistle defensive third, where Laxon-Fowler fed attacking sidekick Jamie Provines, who picked his spot and hit the target.
Thistle had a chance a minute later to equalise, when Shanks fed Davie Ure inside the Port Hill penalty area but he couldn’t convert.
Thistle were chasing the game for the rest of the match, while Port Hill seemed to suit being in front.
The experience of both teams was concentrated in the middle of the park. Port Hill had Robotham on the right flank, skipper Shay Wall and Tiwai Wilson in the midde, and player-coach Stuart Thompson wide on the left. Thompson had coached the club’s Hawke’s Bay Division 1 team for 10 years before taking on the first team this year.
Port Hill kept the ball moving at such pace that the Thistle players struggled to get close enough to put pressure on the ball receivers.
Opposing Port Hill’s midfield in the first half were the experienced central trio of Reece Brew, Kane Stirton and – flitting between midfield and the front-line – Ure. They had youngsters Shanks on the right and Shehab Altour on the left. At halftime, first-team regular Ander Batarrita joined Brew in central midfield and Stirton moved to the left flank in place of Altour.
Stirton has been playing this season for Eastern League Division 2 (now Division 3) outfit Gizzy Bobcat Services Thistle and was recruited the day before by younger brother and Thistle Reserves coach Craig, who popped in for a brotherly catch-up and mentioned he was short of a player or two. Kane answered the call and showed the competitive fires still burned. He, Brew, Batarrita and Ure kept plugging away, despite Port Hill’s growing second-half dominance.
In the 65th minute, tenacious play by Thompson on the left flank led to the ball being shifted to the far post, where Wilson finished with authority to make it 2-0.
Thistle committed more men to attack, leaving themselves light at the back.
In the 75th minute, rightback Brad Hill surged forward on a run through the middle. On his way past opposing coach Thompson, he was tripped and sent sprawling, then got up and pushed Thompson. Referee Chris Niven showed Thompson the yellow card for the challenge, and Hill the red card for the push. With Hill sent off, Thistle were down to 10 men for the rest of the match.
In a seemingly hopeless cause, Ure managed to draw two saves from Hashim, who was sound throughout behind a back four in which centreback James Smith and rightback Tom Neale were outstanding.
Thistle striker Travis White was usually outnumbered, but late in the game he dropped into midfield and was able to create openings for others.
Port Hill strikers Laxon-Fowler and Provines hunted together and often had support from one or two of the midfielders.
They had a good battle with no-nonsense Thistle centrebacks Tim Hofman and Lucian Nickerson, but the scoreline says the visitors won on points. Keeper Mark Baple had a sound game bar one first-half fumble from which he immediately recovered.
Rightback Hill and leftback Gee Gaurav had a torrid day against good players, but Gaurav showed a nice turn of pace and a slide-rule pass, and Hill showed a willingness to engage in the fray that only needs to be channelled.
Port Hill’s third goal was a sad end to an entertaining match . . . four Thistle players stranded at halfway, hoping for a booming clearance that would lead to a goal and set up a scramble for an unlikely equaliser, and five defenders running hither and thither trying to prevent the inevitable.
Laxon-Fowler was unmarked at the far post to knock in Port Hill’s third goal.
Port Hill coach Thompson said his side tried to apply early pressure but Thistle held them up well for the first 20 minutes. Port Hill got on top over the next 20, scored their first goal and started knocking the ball around. The second goal gave them a buffer.
“We got a bit tired but managed to hold the ball well and pinch one at the end,” he said.
“Credit to Gisborne though . . . they played really well and probably deserved to get something out of this game.”
Thistle coach Stirton said centreback Nickerson was his man of the match, and he was also pleased with the contributions of Shanks, Brew, Ure and White.
