Southland Soccer’s Charity cup football quarter final results went with form when the top four Southland Finance premier league teams all progressed through to next weeks semi-finals at O’Rorke Park on Saturday.
However the results don’t reflect the full extent of the drama of the afternoon as the three lesser ranked Division one teams made their opponents work hard for their wins.
League champions
and competition favourite Southend United fought off a determined challenge from
the youthful Old Boys development team in the early game.
Southend's Paul Berry (Green) is shut down by Rosie's
young-guns.
Southend running out eventual winners 5 -1 thanks to a second half rally after struggling to a 2-1 half time lead.
Old Boys played the
more composed and cohesive football but lacked the fire power of its opponents
particularly when it counted in the second spell.
The Old Boys lads have run for cover as Southend's Matty
Wahren
in full flight scares the living daylights out of them.
In saying that, Southend did nothing to reduce its favoured status with goals from Paul Jacks 2, Paul Berry, Nic Barclay and Andrew Beaumont sealing its win against a lone strike by Campbell Edwards for Old Boys.
Waihopai the form
improvers of the season also needed a second half rally to dispose of Thistle
5-nil in their clash on the adjacent ground.
Steve Black shows his Spirit team mate Brendon Lloyd no
respect
as he simply waltzes past him.
Regulars Chris
Langley and Chris Jones struck a goal each for Waihopai, but its superiority was
clearly enhanced by the appearance of its trio of Spirit FC players Brendon
Lloyd, John Schol and Wade Griffin who picked up a goal apiece to complete the 5
goal score line.
Richie Sutherland (Blue) staves off a Waihopai opponent
and heads for
the cameraman
McLellan Motors
Queens Park was expected to have a field day against Premier league
cellar-dwellers Quins Pharmacy Gore Wanderers and eventually it did that with a
7-1 win.
A legend in coordinating Eastern junior football Ian Baker
gets a pic
in because he's so good for the game and looks the part
However once again the Gore visitors were not put away until late in the game when Park simply asserted its class with four well worked goals.
Long-serving
defender Peter McGregor scored Gore’s goal from the penalty spot while a brace
each to Jason Gold and Jordan Coutts and goals from Matty Burgess, Craig
Campbell (penalty) and Ryan Boyle completed the Park scoring.
"Our Ball"
To say the best was
left till last is an understatement as Premier runner-up Smiths City Old Boys
and it’s much less-favoured Division one opponent Waihopai Masters began their
encounter at 2-55pm.
Waihopai's defence breaks away...as it did...with the
outstanding Jimmy Carroll
the middle of the three.
After 90 minutes they were locked at 4-all. With normal breaks, time added on, extra time played and a penalty shootout required the game concluded with a 4-2 penalty win to Old Boys at 5-31pm.
This game see sawed
dramatically throughout its duration with Old Boys often getting a goal ahead
and Waihopai never allowing them more than the one-goal advantage as it replied
almost instantly with a goal of its own.
Waihopai "second string" keeper Chris Beullens finally gets a pic in.
The Waihopai effort was spearheaded by evergreen Jimmy Carroll who contributed not only with his two goals but with an inspirational all-round performance.
Simon Jewel added
Waihopai’s other two goals while Scott Kiddey, Scott Morton, Ian Edwards and
Campbell Edwards were on target for Old Boys.
Waihopai's Simon Jewel (blue) about to block off Old Boy's
Scott Morton's
path to goal..
Old Boys young keeper Trent Suddaby was its hero, saving two penalty kicks in the final shootout to give his team the victory.