Thistle stay second with convincing display at Taradale

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

A classy free-kick and some nifty attacking play earned Gisborne Thistle a 2-0 victory over Taradale in Pacific Premiership football in Hawke's Bay on Saturday.

The win kept Gisborne Vehicle Testing Thistle in second place on the points table, three behind Port Hill but with a game in hand.

Thistle started well on Saturday, and looked in control for the first 20 minutes. In the 14th minute they went a goal up.

Right flank player Brandon Josling was fouled just outside the penalty area. Centreback Ander Batarrita hit a left-footed free-kick over the defensive wall and it curled late to go in at the top far corner.

Taradale came back strongly in the latter part of the first half and had a couple of chances they could not convert.

At halftime, Thistle coach Garrett Blair changed the formation, from 3-5-2 (three defenders, five midfielders, two attackers) to 4-4-2.

“We started to get on top of them,” Blair said.

With 25 minutes to go, it was clear that Taradale were feeling the pace, and chances became more frequent, he said.

In the 86th minute, Thistle went 2-0 up. Skipper and central midfielder Nick Land put a ball in behind the Taradale defence for David Ure to run on to. He beat a player and, from the right of the goal, squared the ball across the penalty area. Left midfielder Justo Rodriguez took a touch and fired the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal.

The halftime changes had entailed shifting Ema Martos from a defensive midfield role into the back four.

“We wanted to shut up shop, have numbers at the back and catch them on the counter-attack,” Blair said.

Emerson Araya came on for Brandon Josling with 30 minutes to go for his first game back after suspension, and helped shore up the defence from rightback.

Travis White also came on, at right wing, for Charlie Morris, who had started the game at right centreback, moved to rightback with the change in formation, and then gone to the right flank when Josling was subbed to allow Araya to go on at rightback.

Blair said Thistle's standout performers were striker Tomek Frooms, whose work rate, attitude and dribbling skill were exceptional; Land, for his solidity in the middle of the park; Batarrita, for his calm control at the back; and goalkeeper Mark Baple, who made some crucial saves to keep Thistle in the box seat.