Club football supremacy on the line with finals in Gisborne this weekend

The Versatile Thistle men's side will be favourites to take out the Chris Moore Cup, while the Braybrook Cup women's final on Sunday between YMCA Thistle and Smash Palace Shockers should be a cracker.

Two local football knockout cups will be decided this weekend – the men’s Chris Moore Cup today and the women’s Braybrook Cup tomorrow.

The Chris Moore Cup will be contested by Versatile Gisborne Thistle and C & G Plumbing High School Old Boys Eels on Childers Rd Reserve No 2 at 12.30pm. (Electrinet Thistle will play Havelock North Wanderers in Central Football’s Federation League on the usual cup final venue, the No 1 pitch, at 2.45pm.)

Braybrook Cup finalists YMCA Thistle and Smash Palace Shockers will play on Childers Rd Reserve No 1 at 10.30am tomorrow.

Versatile Thistle should be favourites for the Chris Moore Cup. Last Saturday they beat Eastern League second division Top 6 winners Gizzy Bobcat Services Thistle 4-3 in an end-to-end thriller that was played in good spirit. The victory lifted Versatile Thistle to level pegging with GBS Thistle on points, but the latter were well ahead on goal difference.

Meanwhile, HSOB Eels have been toiling away in the second division Bottom 6, finishing third of six teams. However, they did beat Division 2 Top 6 team Shockers Green in the semifinals, so can’t be written off.

The Braybrook Cup final should be a cracker.

Shockers – a new team this season, formed by a nucleus of former Campion College players – beat runaway women’s Eastern League winners Gisborne Laundry Services Wainui Riverina 2-0 in the semifinal.

Normally that result alone would confer favouritism on Shockers, but they are up against a well-performed YMCA Thistle side who beat them in the race for the runners-up spot in the league.

Thistle coach Lee Smith was yesterday crossing his fingers and toes that the high school students in his team would not be injured or worn out by a week of secondary school football or hockey tournament activity.

All going well, he will look to centreback Bridie Morrison, fullbacks Kaitlyn Priest and Naiya Powley, left-winger Jade McVey, attacking midfielder Lucy McDiarmid, Aliyah Lardelli and Carrington twins goalkeeper Taylor and striker Mya to make an impact.

However, the absence of central midfielder Ruth Fletcher will be a blow to their chances.

Shockers will look to keeper Grace Levy, centrebacks Bree Allan and Jasmine Donovan-Monteith, midfielder Emily Graham and speedy right-winger Toni Arnold for a decisive advantage.