NEWSLETTER
AUG 04| ISSUE 11
WELCOME, WEEK IN REVIEW
FEATURES Match day reviews
Welcome to the eleventh edition of Te Atatu AFC‘s newsletter for the season! With Juniors and Seniors both kicking off their seasons, it's great to see the club back in full swing after a tough 2020 and 2021. Here’s hoping for a complete and interrupted 2022 season!!
Sponsor Profiles
MEN'S FIRSTS
TE ATATU 4:0 PAPAKURA Saturday saw us return to venue where we began our season with a 2-0 victory - McLennan Park Papakura. Kicking off at 5.00pm (who does that? Do you want a day game or a night game - make your mind up!) we were able to put out one of our strongest line ups this season. Papakura themselves came into this game in a good run of form having beaten a number of other teams near the top of the table. They had also beaten us in the previous round at home so this was the decider for the series this season. Thankfully we produced a comprehensive display from start to finish! Some great football played and plenty of strong performances saw us not only score goals at regular intervals (4 in total!) but also keep a clean sheet (that's 2 in a row now!). Another highlight was seeing Matty B intervene when his son, Haggo was being bullied by a Papakura player. It is important that young boys have strong male role models to look up to and help them out when times get tough. I'm pretty sure he got Haggo a Happy Meal on the way home too for playing so well! It was also pleasing to see the referee and his assistants look and behave like a team throughout the game. While we are never going to agree with every decision it was great that these officials were clear and consistent in their interpretation of the rules and as players/coaches we were able to have a bit of banter during the 90mins and in the bar afterwards! The recent efforts at training and the personal responsibility that individuals have taken to get fit and be at the best for the weekend is now paying off. There is a real challenge for places in the starting line up and the guys coming off the bench are adding spark and/or calmness when required. The challenge for all of us, as always, is to maintain standards, be consistent and back up a good performance! We look forward to travelling to Lynn Avon next week!
MEN'S RESERVES
TE ATATU 8:3 TAKAPUNA Quarter finals in the cup and our ressie took on a Takapuna side, who at first glance, looked the bees knees, with some slick one touch football and very few players under 6ft left our boys thinking they had their work cut out for them. Desperate to start early though, our boys flew into a lead with Adam Bradley converting a penalty. Shortly after Campbell was there to tap in from close range after some good work from Rueban on the wing. The depth of this ressie squad was evident, even down to our stand in coach Connor Gillanders, and Jack Finn getting a start was ever present on the left side, this time providing an assist for Adam to steal a second. Rueban would then go on the grab one of his own with a volley from close range. The boys were amped up and the goals were flowing, some slick passes through the middle were tearing taka apart. Small lapse in defense at the end of the first half saw taka steal one back but our boys led 4-1 at half time. Second half and the game has completely opened up. Taka not bothered with defending, or passing for that matter, put our boys defence under a bit of pressure, but we're wide open to a flurry of set pieces and counter attacks. A dangerous free kick swung in from Ethan saw the taka centre back head the ball into his own net but shortly after the ressies were sloppy defending a corner of their own and conceded from close range. Not much breathing time though as a beautiful chip ball from Adam Bradley out the ball on a plate for Brandan to slit home and make it 6-2. Still a lot to play for Kane Fong smith, as he had done all game, and all season, was giving the Takapuna attack no breathers as he chomped and charged through the 3 different players they tried to put on that wing, and with no way past, Te atatu pressure would mount. Mahdi Basiri curled in a peach from a corner, and whether it went straight in, or Campbell got a nick at the back post, it was still another goal for our lads. One final hurrah for Campbell before being subbed, as he skinned his man and unleashed a venemous left footed striker from the edge of the box and into the bottom corner. Minutes to go and both teams still giving it absolutely everything, the taka striker would pounce on a lose back pass from the defence and slot past to make the final score 8-3. Considerable determination and a wealth of talent are really making this ressie team stronger and stronger. And we're into the semi finals.
AUG 05
2022| ISSUE 10
MEN'S RESERVES
TE ATATU 3:0 PAPAKURA WHAT A GAME! We've said it time and time again but for our ressies this was game of the season. Pete thrower laid the foundation for a team that was strong and would press high and that's exactly what our boys did. Lead by Campbell, our boys were able to keep Papakura in their half with a high press. With little to no football coming out of Papakuras end Te Atatu could build and build and chance came after chance. Breakthrough came with Thomas wright from left back, hitting an absolute Worldie from 40 metres on the half volley and if not for the net we're not sure the ball would have stopped. 1-0 and Te Atatu in euphoria. Another chance came with a sloppy penalty given away from the Papakura keeper but he was able to save brilliantly and leave the half 1-0. Second half began and Papakura came out firing and if not for Connor and returning captain Adam Pearse we could have had a game on our hands. The Papakura striker also saw a close striker saves brilliantly by Scott in goal because Pete's plans came into effect. A triple substitution up front saw Lome win, and convert a penalty to put our boys 2-0 up and Papakura in panic mode. Now our boys could relax and play the best football we've played all season, and the introduction of Ethan power and Kane Fong smith only made the team stronger with fresh legs. Shortly after, with some good work from Rueban on the wing, he squared it to Ethan to miss hit his shot straight into the path of sub Russell to continue his goalscoring form and make the 3-0 to the lads. Game would continue to be feisty, aggressive and very well managed by our lads, and that puts us absolutely and unquestionably at the top of the table, touch wood.
AUG 05
2022| ISSUE 10
WOMENS CHAMPIONSHIP TE ATATU 1:1 METRO This weekend our ladies travelled to Phyllis reserve to face Metro FC in their second to last game of what has been a stop-start round. A strong cross-field wind coupled with a bobbly field made controlling the ball difficult for both teams. Te Atatu dug in but couldn’t quite find their rhythm in the first half and went into the break deadlocked at 0-0. The second half continued a fairly even battle between Te Atatu and Metro. Metro had done their research and did well to filter the ball wide in possession and pressure Te Atatu’s middle in defence. Metro broke the deadlock half way into the second half. A swooping cross caught the wind, making it difficult to deal with and after a scramble in the box found it’s way into the back of the net. The Te Atatu ladies piled on the pressure and were rewarded soon after with a superb shot to the top corner from Ang Byrne. Te Atatu pressed high for the last 10 minutes, a couple more chances coming their way but were unable to get the goal. Full time 1-1. POD went to Ang Byrne for a great 90 minute performance, topped off by a goal to her tally. Special mentions to Caitlin Perkins and Julie Ellis for stepping into the line-up and making a huge difference in supporting our ladies – big thanks! The draw unfortunately puts an end to both Te Atatu and Metro’s hopes of a top 5 finish before the league splits for the next round. Back to training this week as we focus on next week’s game against Franklin to finish off round one. .
AUG 05
2022| ISSUE 10
WOMENS DIVISON 3
TE ATATU 0:2 WEST AUCKLAND The third division ladies faced off against West Auckland at home on Sunday. We drew 2-2 with West Auckland in the first round, so we knew we were up for a battle. With low numbers due to injury and illness, and no goalkeeper, Jamye Jackson graciously started in the net for us and we kicked off with one sub on the sideline. Despite the howling wind and soggy pitch, we were able to produce some good opportunities in the first half with the wind at our backs, however West Auckland was able to play ball to feet and was able to capitalise first to go into halftime up 1-0. Cilla Hunter put on the gloves for the second half and with the headon wind, our through balls stopped going long and we were able to play the ball around a bit more effectively. Though our play had improved, we weren't able to get on top of West Auckland and with lungs and legs wearing out, we ended up going down 2-0. Huge thank you to Jamye and Cilla for helping out in goal! .
AUG 05
2022| ISSUE 10
WOMENS DIVISON 3 TE ATATU 0:3 PUHOI
The division three ladies faced off against Puhoi at home in a top of the table clash. Puhoi have had a fantastic season, not losing a game to date, and beat us 5-1 in our previous game, so we knew we had a battle on our hands. The terrible conditions made any chance of playing constructive football very difficult, and Puhoi got on top of us pretty quickly with two similar goals coming from through balls. At 2-0 down and with a change in formation giving us more manpower to match them in the middle, we really stepped up and started to shut them down more. The rest of the first half was pretty tight and we went into half time down 2-0 but with a lot of positives to take from the latter part of the first half, including some great attacking opportunities. We competed well for much of the second half, however Puhoi scored once more to make the final score 3-0. An improvement on the last time we played them, but the game really highlighted why they're untouched at the top of the league. Unfortunately our loss and Waitemata's win meant that we moved down to third place on the table, setting up what will be a very competitive final few matches. Player of the day was Amie Knott, who helped us out by playing in goal. Amie had an excellent game and we're really grateful she stepped in to help.
AUG 05
2022| ISSUE 10
WOMENS DIVISON 4
TE ATATU 2:0 NORTHERN ROVERS This week we faced Northern Rovers Chaos in what felt like a hurricane. A last minute field change saw us play on very bouncy turf at Parrs Park. The ball was unpredictable and with illness and injury in the squad we were in for a tough game. We held possession well throughout the first half, leaving poor Wendy freezing in the goal. There were plenty of shots but thanks to some savvy keeping none were going in. The score was 0-0 at half time and after a good team tactics chat we went into the second half energised. Finally at 79 minutes Shannen scored a fantastic goal, putting it in the net after a scramble in the goal box. After two hat-trick games in a row, it was only natural that Amie put a point on the board to bring the score to 2-0 at 86 minutes. A very well-deserved player of the day went to Laura for her attacking play on defence, great throw-ins and generally holding the right side nice and tight. Huge shout out to Lady Bridgerton for reffing the game expertly despite a faulty whistle in the first half (thanks to Hayley for the replacement). The opposition turned up in black socks and shorts and Bridget sorted that too. No kai to report this week due to the field change.
AUG 05
BB'S
DIVISION 6
2022| ISSUE 10
BB'S 0-7 ORATIA
The BBs started the back half of their season at Te Atatu South Park on Saturday. Decimated by absences, the BBs were still hopeful of a good result in the rematch against an Oratia team that scraped by them 1-0 at the start of the season. Unfortunately, that’s not what happened at all as Oratia ran rampant on the BBs and in the blink of an eye were up five at the half. To the BBs credit the second half was a lot more even with the other two goals coming well towards the end. A devastating result, but with plenty of fixtures to come the BBs have time to right the ship and finish the season respectably.
AUG 05
BB'S
DIVISION 6
2022| ISSUE 10
BB'S 3-4 WEST COAST RANGERS The BBs took on West Coast Rangers at Fred Taylor Park on Saturday. Going up against a team they beat back in Round 2, the BBs were hopeful for a repeat performance. They started off strong, dominating possession and leaving the Matrix dodging attacking bullets. This sustained pressure led to Dom being fouled just outside the box. Ahmad stepped up and beautifully curled it into the right corner for a deserved lead. This seemed to make the Matrix team Reloaded as they struck back from a free kick of their own before hitting the BBs on the counter to make it 2-1 to the home team at the break. The BBs were not discouraged and started the half strongly as they looked to Architect their comeback. A reckless challenge from a Matrix player in the box led to a BBs penalty and while Nicholas was the Chosen One, it was the ever-alert Dom who pounced on the parry by the keeper to level the scores. While the BBs hoped this would be the start of their Revolutions, the Matrix had other ideas as they again scored from a free kick. Chasing the game and with tiring legs the BBs were exposed as the Matrix scored again to make it 4-2. Impressively the BBs did not give up here and instead pushed to stay in the game with Dom scoring again with a few minutes to go. While the BBs pushed spiritedly for a result, the Matrix were able to hold them out and another disappointing result. In a game where the BBs were hoping to find their seasons Resurrections, they were instead left wishing for a blue pill option that could wake them up from this season. MotM – Ahmad: With midfield depth being bare in recent times, Ahmad has had to step up and play a lot of minutes, which he has taken on with aplomb. His tenacious play and beautiful ball distribution from the pivot position were all on fine display in this game, which was capped off with his first competitive goal for the BBs from a gorgeous free kick.
AUG 05
DIVISION 9
2022| ISSUE 10
WILD STALLIONS
STALLIONS 0-4 WESTERN SPRINGS This weekend the Stallions took on Western Springs. Our last encounter saw us narrowly lose 3-2 in what was a hotly contested game. This game was a little different. Our opposition showed up with 10 men but most of them were unrecognisable from the team we faced earlier in the season. We welcomed the return of Troy and Lukas into the team who have been out through injury and work commitments. Despite dominating possession for large periods of the game, we could do nothing to stop Western Springs silver fox up top who ran us ragged with his pace and clever movement. Logan was unlucky to see a clearance from a corner sliced into our net and Jared hit the crossbar from outside the box but was flagged for offside so if he had been more accurate it wouldn’t have counted anyway. We went into the half at 1-0 down. Harry continued to run his legs into the ground in the second half and some clever link up play between Adam, Troy and Danny in midfield couldn’t quite unlock the Springs defence. Our opposition piled on the pressure and scored a hattrick more of goals – the 3rd and 4th of which may not have even been goals – keeper Chris feels the 3rd went through the side netting and the 4th was offside – the Stallions refereed both halves and ran both lines but at this stage the game was gone. MOTM went to Harry for outrunning all of us and to Chris in the sticks for making some great saves and only screaming at us once all game which is a record. DOTD went to Eddie for tackling himself after a great bit of dribbling. Special shoutout to the WAGs for the support and the Scotty for an outrageous piece of skill on the wing in the second half (we won’t mention the cross that followed).
AUG 05
WESTERLIES
O35'S
2022| ISSUE 10
WESTERLIES 1-0 WEST COAST RANGERS Last weekend was the first game of the second round and we went into the clash with West Coast Rangers looking a little light on numbers. Covid, man-flu, injuries and overseas travel meant we were going into the game with no subs, but luckily Westerlies Alum Chris Trehy and Gregor put their hands up along with Tony Nemaia making his second appearance, and Mike O having a cameo after hip surgery. WCR are nearer the bottom of the table than the top, but put in one of the best challenges we've had all year and the game was full of robust tackles and passionate play. We started strong and could have been 2 or 3 up after half an hour but shots just missing the target or straight at the keeper meant we couldn't break through, and we were almost made to pay late on but a good save from Eddie and some desperate defending meant we went into half-time all square. The breakthrough came about 10 minutes into the second half, with Rob Pike getting his 19th of the season after rounding the keeper and slotting home. From there the game was a real battle with one scare of WCR having a goal denied because of a foul after a corner. A 1-0 win and 3 points in the bank, doing it the hard way but stoked we battled through and could get some old school legends back on the pitch for the year. Next week we play 2nd place Fencibles and another 90 minutes of graft.
AUG 05
WESTERLIES
O35'S
2022| ISSUE 10
WESTERLIES 2-1 FENCIBLES In anticipation of our 1 vs 2 battle against Fencibles, the Westerlies decided to add to the drama by only having 10 confirmed players on the Friday morning. Luckily for us Kirk realised a new tattoo isn’t a real reason to miss football, and Ray decided if Kirk could play then he could play, and somehow we managed to end up with 13 by kick off time Saturday. The tone for the day was actually set in the game before ours, where a last minute penalty save followed by team vs team handbags was great entertainment and much more interesting than us actually warming up. It was a suitable precursor though, with our game proving to be a tense and hard fought battle. A few late tackles and bit of chat meant we had to fight for a result over the 90 minutes, but the lads were highly motivated and focussed on the right things. The Westerlies had the upper hand and created some half chances for Pikey, Welshy and Paulie while their best chances were in more danger of hitting the cars over the fence than the goal. The breakthrough came midway through the first half when a fast break and switch of play found Pikey who flicked one on to Paulie who calmly headed over the oncoming keeper and we took a well deserved lead. The second half had us in control for the first 20 or so minutes and once again creating the better opportunities. Against the run of play Fencies equalised through a deflected shot, and for the next 10 minutes really pressed hard, and only a couple of sharp saves and defensive commitment from our back four stopped them taking the lead. The Westerlies held off the best Fencies could muster and wrestled the game back, culminating in a superb winner from midfield maestro Sammy. The left footed/ far post/ 20 yard curling shot with 7 minutes to go lifted us and all of a sudden the boys were fit and fresh, and there were no last minute dramas. It was a hugely satisfying win for the boys and it took us clear at the top of the table. We’re hoping covid, man flu, injuries, holidays and birthdays are all sorted so we can make a triumphant return to Te Atatu Peninsula Park next week vs Metro.