Amy Haughian and her Whanganui team had to dig deep to secure the away game draw with Taradale FC in Napier on Sunday.
Amy Haughian and her Whanganui team had to dig deep to secure the away game draw with Taradale FC in Napier on Sunday.
A fortnight without football and the longest three hour trip of the season were no excuses for a bare-bones Team Ritesh Whanganui Women's team, who showed composure to come back for a 2-2 draw with Taradale FC in Napier on Sunday.
Coming off two narrow losses in the Women's FederationLeague, Whanganui took a small squad with just one reserve on the long hike across the North Island, to face a home side feeling supremely confident after they hammered Massey University FC 4-0 on the same field the previous weekend in the GR Engineering Federation Cup semifinal.
Instead, the visitors took the lead after 10 minutes as Eva Thompson tapped the ball inside the pack post after a cross from Dana McClelland.
The defence got caught out on Taradale's equaliser goal in the 35th minute, and then again after an hour of play.
However, Whanganui dug deep and with three minutes left in regulation time, Vanya Apiata Hodgkinson scored on a free kick to get her 12th goal of the season.
"Really happy with our competition point," said coach Matt Calvert.
"It was a really competitive contest where, to be fair, we probably did more defending than attacking."
With the advantage of a full bench, the home side used rolling subs to keep the tempo up, but Calvert said his team put in a "very workmanlike performance" to give themselves a chance at the back end of the match.
"We counterattacked them when we had to, never gave up, stayed in the game when we were on the back foot."
Whanganui used a new-look midfield as Stella Warner was joined by Rose Davidson for her first game in two months after recovering from injury.
Calvert said he was delighted with the positivity of the side, who could have used the circumstances to make excuses and just put in a half-hearted effort.
Although he and assistant coach Scott Burney have put emphasis on just making good on-field performances this season, rather than the match results, Calvert said the squad themselves are vowed and determined to make sure they lock down second place on the table for 2019, with three games remaining.
There is likely to be keen competition for places in the squad with the 12 who went to Napier putting their hands up alongside the seven who were unavailable, heading into this coming Sunday's home game with Massey.
Whanganui (4-5-3) did have to surrender second place on the table to Palmerston North Marist (4-6-2), who moved one point ahead of them after a 3-1 away victory over point-less Feilding United (0-0-11) on Sunday.
Undefeated champions-in-waiting Hokowhitu FC (10-2-0) picked up a 4-1 away win over Massey (2-5-5), having long been uncatchable on top of the table.
In the Horizons Premiership, GJ Gardner Homes Wanganui Athletic Reserves stayed bottom of the table after a 3-1 loss away to Breakers RSM Reserves at Celaeno Park.
