Wellington United 8 Wairarapa United 0
Capital Football W-League
Saturday 22nd April, 2017
Newtown Park, Wellington
Attendance : around 50 or so
The TAB don't take odds on this league but if they did Wellington United would have been at $1.01. It took just 16 minutes for Briar Palmer to net the first and then a steady procession of goals from captain Micky Robertson, who completed her hat-trick before half time.
The second half was more of the same. The impressive youngster, Maya Hahn, signed in the summer from Western Suburbs, got one and also hit the post with a shot shortly after that. Wellington United then introduced Dani Ohlsson for her debut for the 1st team. Dani is a player that knows how to score goals, she scored 27 in 13 appearances (including six hat-tricks) for the Wellington United capital premier team last season and it didn't take her long to do the same here getting two in seven minutes. Micky Robertson finished of the game with another goal taking her personal tally for Wellington United Diamonds to an astounding 57 goals in 63 league appearances.
Wairarapa United, who are coached by 15 cap Football Fern, Kim Nye, weren't a bad team, they just were nowhere near the standard of Wellington United and they will be in for a long season battling it out with Stop Out for the wooden spoon. Although as this league has no relegation, who finishes off the bottom is really just a matter of pride. It's hard to see how spending the next 2 seasons getting hammered by 8 or 9 goals a game will do much to develop players.
I did take some photo's but not really enough to publish besides the ones above.
 |
| Micky Robertson scores past Wairarapa's Emma Kruzcona The JourneyFan |
For my first Women's game of the season, I decided to check out the new W-League and the game between last season's Central League Champions, Wellington United "Diamonds" and the 2016 Capital Premier Champions, Wairarapa United.
Wellington United has a rich pedigree in NZ football tracing its origins back to the Diamond club formed in 1893 and winning the Men's National League 3 times. Until recent times they haven't been as strong on the Women's side. However one of their founder clubs, Hungaria, can lay claim to being one of the first Women's club in the country, when they set up a team in 1971. They encouraged other clubs to do the same and in 1972 Hungaria won a 5 team league that included teams from Naenae, Upper Hutt, Wainuiomata and the Palmerston North Saints. This league was unofficial as the Wellington FA seemed to be unsure what to do about the women's game, but with support from local football identity, Pat Kelly (whom the Kelly Cup is named after) and referee Derek Vosser, who volunteered his services, the Wellington FA set up an official women's league in 1973. In the last few seasons Wellington United have been concentrating on developing young talent and it is starting to pay off with their Central League title last season and 2 players selected for the NZ U17 squad that went to the World Cup in Jordan.
 |
| Chantel Leban (Rapa) and Asha Strom (WU) |
The Wairarapa has always been a bit of a footballing backwater, in a region dominated by rugby, football let alone Women's football hasn't had much of a look in. Masterton United competed in the first few seasons of the Wellington league and the only other participation came from a social Carterton side in the mid 80's. That was until Wairarapa United came along and joined the Central League in 1996. Some shrewd recruiting, helped by luring Football Fern, Wendi Henderson over the hill as player-coach, created a competitive team, who reached it's peak in 2000-01 seasons when they won the Wellington competition and finished runners up twice in the National Knock Out Cup.
The club then concentrated more on the men's side of the club but recently the women's team was revived and has spent the last couple of seasons rising through the grade's and are now in the W-League.
The club then concentrated more on the men's side of the club but recently the women's team was revived and has spent the last couple of seasons rising through the grade's and are now in the W-League.
For Wairarapa it has been a baptism of fire, they started with a 3-1 loss to Seatoun, which would have given them hope, but then they were hammered 9-0 by Palmerston North Marist and had the ignominy of a 20-0 defeat to Upper Hutt City in the Kelly Cup (although I believe that this was mainly a second string side). Now they were up against Wellington United who had started the season with a 12-0 thumping of Stop Out and then a 2-0 win over Seatoun.
The TAB don't take odds on this league but if they did Wellington United would have been at $1.01. It took just 16 minutes for Briar Palmer to net the first and then a steady procession of goals from captain Micky Robertson, who completed her hat-trick before half time.
The second half was more of the same. The impressive youngster, Maya Hahn, signed in the summer from Western Suburbs, got one and also hit the post with a shot shortly after that. Wellington United then introduced Dani Ohlsson for her debut for the 1st team. Dani is a player that knows how to score goals, she scored 27 in 13 appearances (including six hat-tricks) for the Wellington United capital premier team last season and it didn't take her long to do the same here getting two in seven minutes. Micky Robertson finished of the game with another goal taking her personal tally for Wellington United Diamonds to an astounding 57 goals in 63 league appearances.
 |
| Annie Jones (Rapa) & Dani Ohlsson (WU) The JourneyFan |
Wairarapa United, who are coached by 15 cap Football Fern, Kim Nye, weren't a bad team, they just were nowhere near the standard of Wellington United and they will be in for a long season battling it out with Stop Out for the wooden spoon. Although as this league has no relegation, who finishes off the bottom is really just a matter of pride. It's hard to see how spending the next 2 seasons getting hammered by 8 or 9 goals a game will do much to develop players.
I did take some photo's but not really enough to publish besides the ones above.
Comments
Post a Comment