With Northern grafting a 1-0 victory over two-time winners and defending champions Capital Football in last Saturday’s semi-final and Auckland Football – holder of six titles – falling at the conference stage, there will be a new winner of the national league for just the third time since it was first run in 2002.
Last season’s beaten finalists Waikato-Bay of Plenty coasted to a second straight final appearance with a emphatic 6-1 demolition of Southern Conference top seed Mainland Pride at ASB Football Park in Christchurch.
Honours were shared between the finalists in their two conference encounters with Northern claiming a 4-2 win in Auckland and Waikato-Bay of Plenty triumphing 6-2 in the return match in Mt Maunganui.
Those results have been the only blemishes on otherwise impressive national league campaigns, although Waikato did drop points in their matches with Auckland.
And with 14 goals scored in the previous two encounters, Northern coach Gordon Forrest isn’t ruling out another high scoring contest despite the understandable tension of the match being a final.
“It’s hard to say how it will go, both sides have very good players who are capable of creating opportunities but at the same time it could be a tense affair,” the Scot says.
“We’ve prepared for this match the same way we have all season but we may look at doing a couple of things to work on the mental preparation of playing in a final,” Forrest adds.
It took a clinical free kick from Caitlin Campbell in the 35th minute after Football Fern Hannah Wilkinson was fouled on the edge of the box to earn Northern a final berth while Waikato-Bay of Plenty’s win over Mainland Pride included a late double from Olivia Chance and assured Waikato-Bay of Plenty of a second straight final appearance.
Chance’s brace took her season tally to 12, just one shy of Northern’s Wilkinson in the golden boot race with the two going head-to-head in Sunday’s final to determine the winner.
ASB Women’s Youth League Final
Northern Football v Waikato-Bay of Plenty
Parrs Park, Auckland
Sunday 4 December
Kick-off: 1pm local time
Referee: Anne-Marie KEIGHLEY
Northern Football (from): 1. Erin NAYLER (GK), 2. Liz MILNE, 3. Jessica INNES, 4. Megan LEE, 5. Caitlin SMALLFIELD, 6. Hannah CARLSEN, 7. Hannah WILKINSON, 8. Rebecca BURROWS, 9. Rebecca O’NEILL, 10. Stephanie SKILTON, 11. Katie ROOD, 12. Claudia CRASBORN, 14. Caitlin CAMPBELL, 15. Briar MCNAMARA, 16. Pam YATES (GK), 18. Chloe KNOTT, 20. Tayla O’BRIEN, 24. Katie MCDONALD (two to be omitted)
Coach: Gordon FORREST
Waikato-Bay of Plenty Football (from): 1. Naomi-Beth CARTER (GK), 2. Emma BAKER, 3. Opal SHAW, 4. Kylie JENS, 5. Kate CARLTON, 6. Brianna STEWART, 7. Holly PATTERSON, 8. Sarah MCLAUGHLIN, 9. Rachel PORTEOUS, 10. Laura PHILLIPS, 12. Tessa LEONG, 13. Kate LOYE, 14. Libby WILLIAMS, 16. Olivia CHANCE, 17. Eileish HAYES, 18. Issy COOMBS, 20. Georgia BODEN, 21. Helen COLLINS (two to be omitted)
Coach: Simon MEAD
ASB Women’s Youth League Golden Boot
13 Hannah WILKINSON (Northern)
12 Olivia CHANCE (Waikato-BOP)
8 Renee LEOTA (Capital)
6 Rebecca TEGG (Auckland), Mary FRASER (Football South), Aimee PHILLIPS (Mainland)
5 Sarah McLAUGHLIN (Waikato-BOP)
4 Terri-Amber CARLSON (Capital)
Story courtesy of New Zealand Football.
For more on New Zealand football go to www.nzfootball.co.nz

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