Abby Erceg & Katie Bowen – North Carolina Courage (American National Women’s Soccer League)

Their regular season may have begun with an unexpected defeat to Angel City FC (in the kiwi captain derby) but North Carolina didn’t have time to lick their wounds because on Thursday NZT they had their Challenge Cup semi-final against Kansas City to play. With the final coming up a few days later if they won.

And a win was very much on the cards after the first half as the Courage survived a couple sneaky moments to assert themselves in the game courtesy of a strong press and some assured ball movement. Debinha got the scoring underway from the spot on 18’ after Jenna Winebrenner had conceded a penalty being unable to get her arm out of the way of a Kerolin shot. Then on 36’ they doubled the lead when Debinha snatched up a midfield intercept and hit Kerolin ahead of her. Kerolin threw in some silky skills before lashing a cross/shot towards the back stick which was off target but no dramas because Diana Ordonez was there to slide it over the line. 2-0 up at the break, after which Kansas City made three subs to try and find a way back in.

Which... they did. KC Current were significantly stronger in the second spell, plugging their defence with those subs which allowed them to relieve that pressure and start playing further up the pitch. The Courage weren’t exactly panicking given the two goal lead but there were a couple of frisky moments in there leading to Kristen Hamilton volleying in from close range after a flick on in the box after 79 minutes. Took them awhile to finally break the NCC down but that meant a 2-1 game with ten mins still there to survive for the Courage if they were to avoid the penalty shootout fate of the other concurrent semi-final (Washington Spirit beat OL Reign 9-8 on spotties after a 0-0 draw).

North Carolina ground it out. Wasn’t easy but they limited the Current enough that they could still claim to be in control and a 2-1 win therefore took them through to the final on Saturday afternoon local time in which they hosted Washington Spirit. The two teams had drawn in group play. Now they faced off for the 2022 NWSL Challenge Cup title.

No Katie Bowen in that game and there was no Katie Bowen in the final either. She continues to be an unused sub at almost every opportunity, might have to wait until an injury for her time to shine as she’s down the pecking order for fullbacks and central midfield and central defence simply aren’t areas of the formation which tend to be substituted. However she did do some media work prior to the final so there was at least one appearance for her...

The Courage made two changes for the final with Carson Pickett and Malia Berkely coming into the eleven. No surprises who got them started though. The usual suspects. They got away with one as Ashley Hatch guided one straight at keeper Katelyn Rowland after a slicing attacking move in the 10th min but then they went from defence to attack in an instant with Debinha showing some skills in transition before sliding Kerolin through. Kerolin angled inside past a defender and then shot past the goalie to make it 1-0. Seconds after the Spirit almost scored, the Courage were in the lead.

It then took a brilliant save to deny Emily Gray a goal before Debinha struck the post. NCC running rampant. Except when the next goal arrived it was at the wrong end. That Washington combo again, Trinity Rodman feeding Ashley Hatch with a pass between the central defence. Abby Erceg couldn’t reach it. Hatch buried it. 1-1 after 35 mins.

The second half was not such an exciting spectacle, to be honest. Both teams played league games last week and semis in the midweek. It was their third game in a week and tired legs were a factor. As fun as this Challenge Cup has been, it was pretty dumb to have it overlapping with the regular season in such a frantic way but so it goes. Americans don’t really know how to do these secondary tournament cup football things.

Anyway, the Courage still had that x-factor in attack. Diana Ordonez should have put them up in the 65th but she missed an easy one. Then Kerolin thought she should’ve had a penalty for a lunging tackle in the box that semi-crushed her ankle. No foul given but the Courage scored from the corner. Delicious cross from Carson Pickett and as Erceg hunted for the loose ball it was accidentally turned into her own net by Taylor Aylmer. 70 mins gone.

The rest of the match got rough. There was a break while the Spirit keeper got treatment after hitting her head on the post for the second goal. She was okay but teammate Jordan Baggett needed to be stretchered off with a concussion in stoppage time. Those were both accidental yet there were plenty of other heavy tackles, probably a product of that fatigue, and Abby Erceg copped one of the worst with a set of sprigs right to the rubs. Strangely the ref mistook that foot for a football...

Ouch. But she toughed it out, no panic.

Abby Erceg: “I think it’s a final, things like that happen. I think the excitement and the adrenaline for players is very, very high.”

After a dozen minutes of stoppage time had elapsed the Courage still led, meaning that this rebuilt NCC roster was able to do what the club has always done best: lift a trophy. Something captain Abby Erceg in particular has gotten plenty of practice at. Add this to her three (count ‘em: three) NWSL titles. Awesome to see Katie Bowen getting amongst the celebrations too. This is her sixth year in the NWSL (which doesn’t even count the year when there wasn’t an NWSL because of the pando) and she’s never played a knockout game, almost exclusively featuring for bottom half teams. Still hasn’t played a knockout game after unused sub duty in the final... but she’s got a medal now, friends.

Meanwhile no Ali Riley for Angel City this week after she got stuck in them pesky covid protocols. Must’ve been hanging out with Steven Adams or something. Without her AC lost 1-0 at home to her old club Orlando Pride with a third minute Sydney Leroux goal the difference. Angel City had their chances but couldn’t take ‘em. Bit of a back-down-to-earth result in week two, unfortunately.

Up Next: Gotham FC vs NC Courage on Sunday at 11am / Washington Spirit vs Angel City on Monday at 9am (NZT)

Alex Greive - St Mirren (Scottish Premiership)

Good things happen when Alex Greive plays football. St Mirren are fast learning that much after his assist last week gave them to a much-needed return to winning ways. That one came in his first start for a couple months and Greivesy wasn’t settling. He wanted more over the last few matches...

AG: “It was so good to get three points again. It’s been a while since we won a game, so we can breathe a sigh of relief and move on now. We knew there was going to be a bit of pressure but the way we looked at it was the pressure was on them. They needed to win to keep fighting. We came in knowing the pressure but we didn’t let it take too much of a thought in our minds. There’s definitely a lift of the pressure. We can look up the table now and try and get as many points as we can before the end of the season. That’s all we can do, so that’s our target, for sure. We’ll definitely try our best. Seventh is a realistic target that we can get and we’ll do everything we can to do it.”

And wouldn’t you know it the fella put his money right where his mouth is with a fourth minute strike to get things underway against Dundee. His second SPL goal and his third overall for the club. Taking full advantage of a superb cross perfectly into his path by Liverpool/Blackpool legend Charlie Adam. Only drama there was that Mr Adam happened to be playing for Dundee, not St Mirren.

Yeah... not really sure what he was thinking with that one. But shout out to Greivesy for being in the right place at the right time to capitalise as good strikers tend to do.

That goal came very early but it reflected a strong start for St Mirren. Connor Main had a header brilliantly saved while Greg Kiltie drove one narrowly wide. But they didn’t score a second and a speedy start to the second by Dundee, inspired by some typically sumptuous Charlie Adam set pieces, caused some havoc. One was nudged off the post after some scrambling in the box. Somehow escaped danger the there... and then Connor Main made it 2-0 with a thumping finish after being picked out in the area with a long ball in transition. 55 mins gone.

That second goal was the killer. St Mirren settled their nerves and looked much more comfortable the rest of the way, Alex Greive with a chance to double his personal tally after showing a clean set of heels down the left wing and slicing back into area... but he was isolated and his shot got crowded out by a couple defenders. Ended 2-0. Consecutive wins for the Buddies and with these three points they’re officially clear of any possibility of relegation with two games to play. Get in there.

Alex Greive, by the way, has an 18-month contract so he’s all signed up for next season... but would not be shocked if he gets an extension in the offseason. Here’s another angle of that absolute banger...

Up Next: Double-header week to finish the campaign, at home to St Johnston on Thursday at 6.45am and then away to Aberdeen on Sunday at 11pm (NZT)

Jacqui Hand - Åland United (Finnish Kansallinen Liiga)

Jacqui Hand breaking ankles and scoring goals. This was the second in a 2-0 win for Åland United over PK-35, coming just four minutes after Anna Westerlund had broken the deadlock. Good solid win against a team who began the round just ahead of them on the ladder (ain’t the case no more, mate).

After two straight defeats to begin the campaign, Åland have taken 10 points from their last four matches to surge back up to where they expect to be. Worth nothing that the two losses came to KuPS (who’ve won all six games so far) and HJK (who lost for the first time this week), both ahead of them in the standings. They also both happened before Jacqui Hand signed.

Gotta go back and watch that goal another time (or ten). Great cut to send the defender to the dairy for a mince and cheese, then great finish to beat the keeper at the near post. Superb goal. That’s Hand’s second strike for AU having scored an 89th minute equaliser on debut. Three games played, two goals. Lovely start to her professional career.

Up Next: Ilves vs Åland on Saturday/Sunday midnight (NZT)

Callum McCowatt & Elijah Just - FC Helsingør (Danish Division 1)

It was an unchanged XI for FCH from the team that began the defeat to Lyngby. Holding tight with the main lads despite the awful run of results. That confidence seemed to help them against Fredericia as Helsingør produced one of their best attacking performances in months, getting out on the front foot early and keeping up that danger for pretty much the whole way. Eli Just had an early crack at goal blocked. McCowatt tried one from distance on the half-volley but it was straight at the keeper. Fredericia’s pace on the counter kept up a threat but two can play at that game and a turnover in midfield allowed McCowatt to dash forward in a move that ended with a Just shot deflected over the top.

FCH finally took the lead in the 44th minute. Captain Daniel Norouzi with the banging finish after a mistake at the back had allowed the ball to sneak through to him in the area with space to pick his spot. Fortunate as it happened, but a well-taken strike and a deserved lead going into the break. A lead, however, that didn’t last as long as they’d have liked. 52’ and Oliver Olsen found some space of his own on the right side of the penalty area for Fredericia and smashed one low towards goal which snuck under the goalie. Good strike, should still have saved it. The move had come about from a broken bit of play as the Helsingør defence wasn’t able to lock things down.

To their credit, FCH wrangled things back in their favour straight away. A bicycle kick from Mikkel Knudsen was quite brilliantly saved. The same Fredericia keeper was at it minutes later when Just fed McCowatt in the box and his curler was palmed away at full stretch. Then another top save from a header off a free kick delivery. But right as it was starting to feel like another cursed afternoon... Eli Just came to the rescue.

2-1 and that was the way it ended. Same as how that five-game losing streak has now ended. Three massive points to get the FC Helsingør promotion train back on the tracks and they got a huge boost there as, half an hour before the end of their game, the final whistle blew on Horsens beating Lyngby 2-1 which puts FCH back up to second on the ladder for the second promotion spot. They play Horsens next week and a win will send them first again. Right back where they started the championship phase.

Just was subbed off with six mins to go, McCowatt was subbed straight after the winning goal. That makes it 7 goals and 4 assists from 25 appearances for Just this season while McCowatt has 6 goals and 6 assists from 24 games. And they’re not done yet.

Up Next: Horsens vs FCH, Saturday at 5am (NZT)

Marko Stamenic - HB Køge (Danish Division 1)

Meanwhile on the relegation side of the divisional split...

43rd minute penalty for Marko Stamenic guiding HBK to a 2-1 win over Esbjerg. Had to come from behind to do so but that they did. Go on then. Stamenic played 77 mins before being subbed off, normal areas for him having been a regular starter throughout his two loan spells at HBK this season. This win made it 11 undefeated home games in a row for the club however it was the first time in a year that they’ve won consecutive games. Lots of draws is the answer to the riddle of how those things are both possible.

Køge are now five points clear in first place of the relegation phase. Cannot be relegated from here with four games remaining. They only just missed the cut for the top half so no real surprises that they’re having fun playing against the lower-ranked teams. This was Marko’s second goal in 20 matches (all starts) for the club.

Up Next: Away to Fremad Amager on Friday at 11pm (NZT)

CJ Bott - Leicester City (English Super League)

CJ Bott made a return from her hip injury just in time to feature off the bench in the Foxes final game of the season, a 1-0 defeat to Spurs (who of course were without Ria Percival in the early stages of her ACL recovery). Ashleigh Neville’s 49th minute goal was what split the two teams though like many Tottenham results this season the quality of their defence meant that the game was further in their favour than the tight scoreline suggests.

CJB replaced Jemma Purfield in the 63rd minute as part of a double change. Spurs also made a sub at the same time. Bott went on at left-back and to be fair there were a few sloppy moments adjusting back to the pace having been injured for the last month of so (after making her WSL debut). Didn’t get much on a header, played a lovely one-two to get out of trouble but then dwelled on the ball too long and was dispossessed.

She settled after that though and served up some good energy, plenty of physicality (she clattered Neville a couple times), and her passing was pretty sharp. Not always there with the timing but it’s early days for Botty in this league. Can’t wait to see how things go next season. Leicester City ended up second to last but were always just far enough ahead of Birmingham that they didn’t have to panic – Birmingham did win their last game to close the game to two points but their relegation had already been confirmed a week earlier. Leicester City hanging on in there in their first season in the top flight.

Spurs finished fifth with this win, a great campaign from them which had the potential to be even better but they weren’t able to beat the teams ahead of them to stay ahead of them. Ria Percival was a huge part of their successes though, playing 17 of 22 games. Two goals and two assists for her (and could easily have been more). CJ Bott got these two matches for 58 total mins. And Anna Leat played four WSL games for West Ham who had a commendable sixth place finish.

Although: bummer news here as kiwi manager Olli Harder has left the Hammers at the conclusion of the season (Paul Konchesky has replaced him on a permanent basis). Word is that Harder is leaving to pursue other opportunities so it could be that guiding West Ham to their best ever WSL finish has been enough to get him headhunted elsewhere.

Olli Harder: “I am proud and honoured to have had the opportunity to work for West Ham United and share this experience with our amazing staff, players, and, of course, incredible fans. Having reached a Conti Cup quarter-final, an FA Cup semi-final and earned more points this season than in any WSL season in the Club’s history, I believe I’m leaving the Club in a really good place. I am sure that if it continues to build on this platform of success, the future is bright.”

Up Next: End of season yarns

Chris Wood - Newcastle United (English Premier League)

After a couple matches spent largely on the bench (granted he did get an extended run later in the Liverpool game), Chris Wood was back in the starting team as Newcastle faced Manchester City away from home. A fixture that didn’t mean a heap to Newcastle other than an opportunity to make a statement against the former richest club in England but which had massive title implications for City, who came into the match level on points with Liverpool, behind on goal difference but with this game in hand.

Wood has never scored against City. Burnley’s record against them was atrocious, with a tendency to lose 5-0, which really doesn’t give you much chance to show off as a striker. But he missed a great chance early in this one as Allan Saint-Maximin whipped a lovely cross right onto his head about five yards out with Wood’s header too close to Ederson for a simple save. Didn’t quite get the contact or the placement right and annoyingly there have been a few of those close misses piling up for the Woodsman at Newcastle. Been excellent in many ways but his finishing isn’t one of them.

That chance came about from the Magpies keeping a decent amount of possession against the championship favourites, doing their best to take the game to City, however City were the ones carving out the better moments. A few close calls at the back post for Aymeric Laporte and Joao Cancelo... then on 19’ a silky chip to the back stick from Ilkay Gundogan saw Cancelo this time nod it back across to where Raheem Sterling was able to easily head home for 1-0.

Meanwhile Ruben Dias got mightily pissed at Chris Wood for what he claimed was an elbow to the face as the pair challenged for a long ball from the back. Wasn’t much in it. The ref gave a free kick and nothing else.

Then on 24’ he did score... only for the offside flag to instantly rule it out. A corner kick from Matt Targett hit Jamaal Lascalles deep whose header hit Bruno Guimaraes inside the six yard box and bounced back to Wood who side-footed home from close range. Bruno was the man who strayed beyond the safety zone. Correct call, no need to check it. Ah well so it goes.

Man City kept doing Man City things and on 38’ they extended the lead. Corner kick cleared, great strike back in on the volley by Gundogan, Martin Dubravka could only parry it, Ruben Dias followed up but Dubravka smothered it, only for Aymeric Laporte tapped in on the follow up to the follow up. After which there was no doubt which team was in charge. A few flick-ons and hold-ups from Chris Wood kept him involved. ASM stretched his legs a couple times. Yet City always looked more likely and after an hour they made it three as Rodri headed in from the near post off a Kevin De Bruyne corner kick.

Wood’s day then came to an end after 68 minutes. Replaced by a fit-again Callum Wilson, with Kieran Trippier also coming on at the same time for Emil Krafth. Would have liked to get Wilson and Wood playing together to see how that combination looks moving forward but the formation of the day didn’t really allow for it. No dramas. Wilson was the incumbent before Wood arrived, in fact it was his injury which cleared the path for that transfer. Gotta respect it.

Wilson had a wonderful opportunity flicking the ball on and then running in behind but Ederson saved it 1v1, still a bit of rust there (imagine Wood flicking those on to him though). That was a rare Newcastle attack. City otherwise controlled the game, keeping it at their own pace, and Phil Foden put one away right near the end before Raheem Sterling slammed another one in with pretty much the last kick off the match to mark a 5-0 victory for the Sky Blues. Got a little out of hand there but no doubt as to who the dominant team were.

Up Next: Next Tuesday at 7am Newcastle host Arsenal at St James’ Park (NZT)

Joe Bell – Brøndby IF (Danish Superliga)

When you’re trying to put a halt to a shocking run of form as Brøndby are, a game against the prospective champs of the nation isn’t the ideal fixture - even if it was a home match. BIF against FC København. Joe Bell in holding midfield against a team who will hopefully offer a few chances for Marko Stamenic to play the opposite role next season. Fingers crossed.

It was a pretty compacted midfield battle in the early stages. Brøndby’s attack has been pretty mud lately and they didn’t create anything in those first twenty-odd mins outside of a lone corner kick... but they didn’t allow much either. A few halfies for FCK, a shot from distance and a volley across goal from a tricky spot. But it began to open up after that. BIF worked a few dangerous touches in the penalty area while at the other end their keeper made a great save with his foot to deny a striker running through. Then a stunning strike from Pep Biel curled in and off the crossbar on 28’ to give Copenhagen the breakthrough. Bugger.

Things steadied afterwards though it wasn’t until the second half began that BIF looked like they might have an equaliser in them. They had a great start to that stanza, forcing a sharp save straight away and worked a couple other sights at goal too. A slicker team may well have buried one of them. Thus they made a couple subs. Didn’t really have the required effect although a Bellinho cross did cause the keeper to make a leaping punch out for a corner. Simon Hedlund thought he’d been taken out by the FCK keeper with fifteen to go but there was a foot on the ball and no penalty was given. Both of them were booked for reacting in fact.

Fair play though, Brøndby have their issues in attack (only scoring 2 goals across their seven game losing streak) but they were the more incisive team in that second half. With four mins to go, Kevin Dijks dragged down BIF’s Carl Bjork on the left wing and that was his second yellow, FCK having to finish this one with ten men. Just before that Joe Bell had been subbed off as they tried to go all-out attack... but they wasted the free kick and Hedlund later header over from close range.

Brøndby’s best performance in at least a month was at risk of going astray... until the second minute of stoppage time when Mathias Greve pushed up onto the edge of the box to collect the ball, shaped onto his left foot, and stabbed a shot in via a glance from the post. Crowd erupted. Then the same bloke had a chance with a header that he sprayed wide, could’ve won it with something special there. All goods. The important thing was an end to that infuriating losing streak. The relief was palpable.

Up Next: Friday at 6am away to Midtjylland (NZT)

Vic Esson – SC Sand (German Bundesliga)

So you’re saying there’s a chance!? SC Sand’s circling of the relegation drain will continue into the final week of the season after an immensely timely 1-0 win over FC Köln. They lost 7-1 in their most recent game a fortnight ago, absolutely blown out by Freiburg, but they’ve managed to put the week off to fine use in getting up for a game which would have relegated them with anything other than a win.

Vic Esson didn’t have a lot to do in a nervous first half. SC Sand had the better of the rare chances but we were mostly talking about hopeful shots from distance there. A couple of times their attacking press was able to spark a few things, yet it was a counter attack out of defence that led to the most crucial moment. Winning the ball at the back and then a couple quick passes and some enthusiastic runners led to Chiara Loos finding space on the right wing. She’d gotten around the backline and had a low cross pounced upon by the keeper just before. This time she pulled it back squarer... and Rachel Rinast was unable to keep from turning it into her own net. 56th minute own goal. 1-0 to SC Sand.

Still had to hold on though and FC Köln’s response was swift. A shot across Esson’s goal from close range. An unreal defensive block after Esson had been drawn out 1v1, closing down the shot but the square pass would have left her stranded but for the recovering defender (Adrienne Jordan it was who blocked the shot). There were crosses which didn’t hit a target. FCK’s manager was sent off near the end for getting stroppy. Thus SC Sand clung on for the 1-0 win, Vic Esson with her first clean sheet for the club in her fourth appearance in all comps (she’s conceded seven twice, once in the Cup against Wolfsburg and then also that hiding vs Freiburg).

Couple that with Freiburg beating SCS Essen 3-0 and SC Sand are only two points behind Essen heading into the final round of the season. All the games kick off at the same time: midnight on Sunday/Monday NZT. It’s only a small chance because the fixtures aren’t too kind. SC Sand are away to fifth placed Hoffenheim who have won three of their last four whereas SGS Essen are at home to last-placed Carl Zeiss Jena who have already been relegated. A draw for Essen is likely to be enough because of Sand’s goal difference. Miracles need ensure... but there’s still a heartbeat ahead of game 22 which is not something that seemed likely during the winter break when Victoria Esson signed with the club.

Up Next: Hoffenheim vs Sand, midnight Sun/Mon (NZT)

Erin Nayler - Umeå IK (Swedish Damallsvenskan)

Up Next: Double gameweek, away to Djurgården on Thurs at 4.30am then home to Eskilstuna on Mon at 1am (NZT)

Ryan Thomas – PSV Eindhoven (Dutch Eredivisie)

Eindhovens Dagblad: “PSV has informed Ryan Thomas that his expiring contract will not be extended. There is, however, still a possibility that parties will enter into discussions to explore a collaboration in the future. The midfielder, who was signed from PEC Zwolle in 2018, has suffered a lot of injuries in Eindhoven in recent years and has barely played this season. It is unclear whether Thomas will still be considered and also depends on his recovery. Perhaps there is still a hook for him, but there are no guarantees. The New Zealander is valued at PSV for his contribution but the past few seasons have nevertheless been disappointing for him.”

That’s the scoop. What they’re talking about there, because it is a bit confusing between the expiring contract and not extending him but maybe still offering him a new deal, is the contract-option that they had for one more year on his existing deal. There was a deadline involved in when they had to decide (the start of May) and now they’ve decided against taking it up which potentially leaves Ryan Thomas as a free agent in two months.

Eran Zahavi has also had the same treatment though for the Israeli striker that’s as much about him wanting to leave as anything (and PSV being happy to lose one of their top earners). He was close to departing in the winter break but ultimately stayed on to finish the term. Chances are he’s already got something else lined up. As for Thommo, with him it’s about all the injuries and how unavailable he’s been. By the end of this season he’ll have played 33 out of a possible 136 Eredivisie fixtures since he joined the club.

But, as the article says, there’s still a chance they offer him a separate deal. Could be something more tailored towards appearances made. Could be just biding their time to see how his recovery goes before offering him something similar to what he might have gotten. Time will tell. It’s a sad turn of events but hardly a surprising one, let’s be honest.

Doesn’t look like Thommo will leave PSV as a league champion (if he does indeed depart). Ajax drew 2-2 with AZ this week and they needed an 86th minute Edson Alvarez goal to get that much out of the game... however PSV weren’t able to capitalise as they also drew 2-2. They were 2-0 up after half an hour and held that lead for most of the match until Cyril Dessers struck in the 86th and 90th minutes for Feyenoord. The second from the penalty spot. PSV could have moved within two points of Ajax with a win, keeping the pressure on with two matches left. Instead they’re going to need Ajax to drop points in both remaining fixtures. On the positive side, by avoiding defeat to Feyenoord they’re at least guaranteed a Champions League qualifying spot next term. Maybe Ryan Thomas will get to be a part of that, maybe not.

Up Next: PSV vs NEC at 6am on Wednesday (NZT)

Logan Rogerson & Ollie Whyte - FC Haka (Finnish Veikkausliiga)

We’ll skip over the 2-0 loss to VPS on the weekend in which Ollie Whyte started and Logan Rogerson came off the bench (each heading in opposite directions as part of a 64th min double sub). Partly because they lost and partly because the highlights aren’t yet up at the time of writing. Instead let’s put the focus on their midweek cup game.

Up against TPS Turku in the fourth round. This one saw Rogerson starting (and playing the whole game) while Whyte came off the bench midway through the second half for his first appearance in a month. Presuming there was a wee injury there. Anyway, sweet as to see him back but this was Rog’s day in the sunshine as he scored in the 47th minute...

Sprinting forward on the break, quick feet to stay onside when the ball was squared, then the relatively simple side-footed finish past the keeper. There it is.

The lead only lasted about a dozen minutes before TPS tied it up, leading to an end to end last half hour. Ollie Whyte came on and went close to a winner when he smashed a shot into the side-netting. His corner in stoppage time led to a chance as close as either team got as it was nodded just wide. No extra time. Off to penalties to decide which team advanced.

TPS scored first with FC Haka missing their opening attempt... but the next effort was saved with Haka scoring in response. TPS scored again. Up stepped Logan Rogerson and... he sent the keeper the wrong way, all tied up after three each. TPS’s next fella missed the target entirely and the one after that was saved. FC Haka with the 3-2 shootout victory and the win. Not sure if Ollie Whyte was lined up to take the fifth one or not but if he was he didn’t need to.

Up Next: KuPS vs Haka on Friday at 3am (NZT)

Andre De Jong – AmaZulu FC (South African Premier Soccer League)

After getting knocked out of the Champions League at the start of April, AmaZulu have managed to go five straight league games without conceding a goal, three times winning 1-0 and twice drawing 0-0. Andre De Jong has played in all of those games including starting in a draw with Royal AM.

He seems to fluctuate between these spells where he’s playing quite often and these spells where he’s barely seen at all. Right now we’re in one of the good spells. As evidenced by his assist for the winning goal in a 1-0 win over Swallows last week...

Hint of offside but whatever. Mint pass and some nice interplay earlier in the move. That’s how you earn those minutes.

Should mention that AmaZulu sacked coach Benni McCarthy back in March. They’d had a great season last time finishing second but didn’t get out of the Champions League group phase this time and were nowhere near the top three finish that the board wanted to see. One of those victims of his own success cases. Brandon Truter has taken over in the interim. With two games left to play, AmaZulu are up to seventh on the ladder now thanks to their recent form.

Up Next: Cape Town City away on Sunday at 1am (NZT)

Michael Boxall – Minnesota United (American Major League Soccer)

Mud week in the MLS. Michael Boxall and Minnesota United were sloppy at home against FC Cincinnati. Failed to take advantage of some sizzling Manny Reynoso set piece deliveries early on and then needed a great save from their keeper to stay in it. Also the woodwork helped. Then their attack messed up a few good looks in the area before GK Dayne St Clair needed to be sharp with another top save, this time rushing out and staying big.

The game took a shift in a second half which was mostly memorable for some heavy fouls and yellow cards. But then with six mins left former Wellington Phoenix youngster Calvin Harris was subbed on by FCC as they went for the jugular. Bloody hell, in the third minute of stoppage time Harris set up Brandon Vazquez with a smooth cut-back after running around the right edge. Boxall was there on the line trying to cover it but to no avail. Injury time winner for FC Cincinnati in a 1-0 win. The Loons lose for the second week in a row.

As for Bill Tuiloma, he was named on the bench for the first time this season with Portland Timbers. Subbed on with quarter of an hour to go in a 1-1 draw away to New York Red Bulls. He’d started all nine MLS games to that point but Dario Zuparic and Larrys Mabiala got the go this time... although Zuparic appeared to sustain a leg injury which is why Tuiloma replaced him in the second half.

Up Next: US Open Cup games midweek with LAFC vs Portland on Weds at 2.30pm and Minnesota vs Colorado at midday on Thursday (NZT)

Tommy Smith – Colchester United (English League Two)

Oh happy days as the U’s put the final touches on their season with a 2-0 win over Hartlepool United. Goals were scored by John Akinde (9’) and Chay Cooper (53’). Cooper was one of a few young fellas given a run in the last game of the campaign with nothing much to play for yet Tommy Smith still walked out as captain. Clean sheet and a yellow card for him across these ninety mins.

Colchester, who were in relegation worries not so long ago, ended up taking 10 points from their final four games to finish way up in 15th place – five spots better than last season. Smithy played in 32 of 46 League Two matches, scoring one goal with one assist and four yellows. Chuck in four more games with another yellow across the various cup comps too. Much less of a workload this time around with 2622 league minutes compared to 4050 in 2020-21 as Colchester rotated their CBs a lot more... which probably isn’t the worst thing in Smithy’s fourteenth season of English football (and that doesn’t count the two years he spent in the USA).

Up Next: Put those feet up and rest... for a week or two before clicking into full All Whites focus

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