Aotearoa Domestic Football Roundup – Chatham Cup & Kate Sheppard Cup Finals
Chatham Cup
It was a day for the dynasties at Auckland’s North Harbour Stadium on Sunday as both defending cup champions retained their titles. Wellington Olympic were up first against an Auckland United side that were gunning for their first major trophy on the men’s side of the club (we’ll see about their glittering women’s team shortly). They had their challenges along the way but the Greeks took control in the second half on the way to a 4-2 triumph in a very entertaining game of footy... which yours truly had the honour of co-commentating on.
Hamish Watson got things started with a goal inside of five minutes for Olympic, chopping inside and finishing powerfully at the near post. For the first ten minutes, it seemed like that lot would run riot... until Auckland United began to find some joy on the counter and clawed their way back, leading to an equalising goal in the 17th min when WO keeper Scott Basalaj spilled a deflected shot and Dre Vollenhoven snuck across from his blindside to toe the ball over the line. However, that parity didn't last. Olympic’s lead was restored thanks to their penchant for full blooded attacks from anywhere when Jack-Henry Sinclair chipped a clever ball over the top of the defensive line which was chested down by Isa Prins, intersecting its path with an angled run, and then dinked past Joel Peterson for 2-1 after 34 mins.
This was a high tempo game demanding plenty of physicality. Olympic like to attack in transition and that drew Auckland United into trying to do the same, seeking to counter the counter by getting in behind the WO wing-backs (JHS and Noah Boyce). For that reason, Boyce seemed to hang back a lot more than Sinclair, leaving the Greeks lopsided and it worked. They hit the sheds up 2-1 and then raised the bar from there. The third goal was a lot like the second, only this time Prins chested the ball into the path of Sinclair after Tor Davenport-Petersen had flung a long pass over the top. Sinclair smashed it home then ran off to do some gymnastics in celebration. 58 minutes gone.
Two mins later, Isa Prins was drew the contact of Abdallah Khaled’s premeditated sliding challenge for a penalty. That would have been 4-1 if Prins (who’d won and scored a penalty in the semi-final against Eastern Suburbs) hadn’t underhit his penalty kick allowing Joel Paterson to make that save – Paterson had earlier made a superb 1v1 stop with his foot and battled through multiple heavy blows... really tough mahi from the 19yo (who is ordinarily the backup to Northern Irishman Kai McLean at AUFC but has played most of the cup games and was trusted by Jose Figueira in the final).
The reprieve was only momentary though. Hamish Watson soon took the opposite approach with a free kick just outside the area by crunching his laces through it and fizzing that sucker home after 67 mins. His second of the day, even more emphatic than the first. Auckland United did get one back via a Boyd Curry diving header five mins later but that was as close as they could get. 4-2 final score. Wellington Olympic got the job done again.
This means that the coaching team of Paul Ifill and Ekow Quainoo have won three Chatham Cups in a row: Christchurch United in 2023, Wellington Olympic in 2024 and 2025. They’ve gone 19 games undefeated in this competition and that streak will carry on into next year so it’s not done yet. Absolutely incredible success and very possibly a Chatham Cup record (though it’s hard to know for sure given the 100+ years of history). By winning back to back, Wellington Olympic have become just the second club since the turn of the century to repeat as CC champs (Cashmere Tech also did so in 2013 and 2014). Somehow they managed this despite being drawn away from home in all six rounds (including the “neutral” final which was played in Auckland against an Auckland club).
Isa Prins was a deserved recipient of the Jack Batty Trophy with his skilled and incisive performance encapsulating what worked so well for Olympic. Even though he missed a penalty, he still scored one and set up another. That’s two years in a row he’s been outstanding in Chatham Cup deciders... plus he had an excellent National League last year and has followed that with 15 goals in 20 games during the winter season. There’s an U20 World Cup squad being named in a few days and Prins is still eligible for that one, though that ship may have sailed having not really been on the radar to date. They could do a lot worse, just saying (I swung and missed on the commentary thinking JHS was going to strike the Watson free kick but I did give Prins some Player To Watch buzz pregame so I’ll take that).
He wasn’t the only youngster who stepped up in the final either. 19-year-old William Vincent had a great game in central defence alongside 22yo Alex Solomon and 21yo Adam Supyk. With neither Ben Mata or Justin Gulley having been fully fit lately, those two Olympic stalwarts remained on the bench and allowed the understudies to rise to the occasion. Five Central League titles in a row with consecutive Chatham Cups and they’re still replenishing the ranks... watch out. Shout outs also to Hamish Watson for a very assertive game up top, scoring two deserved goals for his efforts, and also Tor Davenport-Petersen who was spectacular doing all the dirty work in the midfield.
There was the potential for this game to swerve back the other way had Emiliano Tade been more clinical with his finishing. It was his deflected shot that led to the Vollenhoven goal and so much of what AUFC did revolved around him. There’s almost a deferential feel with how the younger forwards around him play. It had to be Tade if they were going to do something but alas he shanked a couple and misplaced one or two others. Can’t argue with the outcome – it’s simply the measure of the man that Emiliano Tade is capable of doing special things on a football field to completely flip a game (as Wellington Olympic have discovered themselves in the past). Oh well, he’s still got the National League.
Kate Sheppard Cup
The Kate Shep followed a pretty similar script, to be honest. The favourites scored early only to concede an equaliser. Then they regained the lead as their superior class shone through. One difference was there wasn’t another goal from the beaten side to keep it frisky in the latter stages. Another difference was that, this time, Auckland United won. They’re the first club to make both the Chatham Cup and Kate Sheppard Cup finals in the same year. The lads fell short of lifting the silverware but the ladies had no such problems.
Credit to the Wellington Phoenix Reserves because they turned up desperate to win. Their squad told that story loud and clear with Manaia Elliott, Daisy Brazendale, Ella McMillan, and Brooke Neary all in the eleven having A-League experience while Ela Jerez was on the bench. They were stacked. But not as stacked as Auckland United who even had a few ex-Phoenix players in Chloe Knott and Zoe McMeeken, as well as unused sub Ava Pritchard. Tui Dugan and Charlotte Eagle were Nix Academy players too, they were on the bench. There would’ve been another except Saskia Vosper did her ACL recently, sadly. Meanwhile, the WeeNix’s left wing-back Poppy O’Brien played for Auckland United last year so at least one player moved in the other direction (Pia Vlok is about to do the same but she’s currently injured too).
Auckland United took the lead after only ten minutes when Alexis Cook drew a foul in the area and Zoe Benson stepped up to bury the penalty. Benson’s come across from Eastern Suburbs this year and has carried on her immense goals/assists rate with her new club. A lovely ball from Amber De Wit allowed Grace Bartlett to score a well-taken leveller on 24’ to swing the pendulum back... but the Aucklanders didn’t waste much time in restoring their control. A quick-release strike from Chloe Knott made it 2-1 to AUFC after 32 mins and then Ava Collins hunted down a third just before the break. Collins would score again during the second half as Auckland United strutted their way to a third KSC title in four years.
The WeeNix did make some good adjustments at the break. Moving Manaia Elliott deeper into a wing-back role allowed her to get on the ball earlier and more effectively and her battle with former teammate Zoe McMeeken was plenty of fun. Their triple substitution of Ela Jerez, Natalie Young, and Sienna Candy was also good value. However, this one fell back upon the fundamentals. This Nix U20s team have so many of the very best young players in the country yet we have to remember that, ultimately, they were an U20s team playing against a senior team. They had pace to burn, as Lily Brazendale showed a few times, but they couldn’t keep up with the overall physicality, stamina, composure, and decision-making that Auckland United brought to the party.
Auckland United had seven starters in common between this final and last year’s 1-0 win against Western Springs. The flashy mid-season additions like McMeeken and Collins do catch the eye (and both had strong games) however this team’s success is built upon the foundations of players like Yume Harashima, Talisha Green, Greer Macintosh, Chloe Knott, and Hannah Mitchell. They may have blown it in the NRFL Premiership last year but that was an anomaly. This team wins more trophies than they don’t and they won this one emphatically. Chloe Knott was a very deserved Maia Jackman Medalist for her typically industrious midfield exploits.
You know, this was only the second season in which the Wellington Phoenix Reserves have competed in the Kate Sheppard Cup and they made the semis last year and the final this year. Both times they were beaten by Auckland United... who have also won 2/2 against them in the National League. Auckland United have a four-game aggregate score of 17-3 against the Nix Reserves. We could call them a bogey team except that’s kinda redundant when we’re talking about the best team in the country. They’re everybody’s bogey team.
By the way, Ela Jerez is 17 years old and has already played in Kate Sheppard Cup finals for two different clubs. Admittedly, this one didn’t quite go as well as when she scored the winner for Western Springs two years ago.
Men’s Southern League
There also happened to be a few stray league games that got rescheduled for this weekend and by far the most crucial was Nelson Suburbs vs Christchurch United. The Rams were in the box seat to win the Southern League a few weeks ago until they lost to Coastal Spirit and then drew with Cashmere Technical. That left them begging for other results to go their way... which they did. Well, one of them did, as Cashy Tech could only draw 3-3 with Dunedin City Royals in their final fixture. That left Christchurch United needing to win in Nelson in order to finish second and claim the other National League spot alongside regional champs Coastal Spirit.
Only issue there is that Nelson Suburbs are amazing when they play at home, having lost just once at Saxton Fields all year. Remember that these guys also made the semis of the Chatham Cup going the deepest of any South Island team this year. This was a much tougher fixture than the Rams would have wanted for a game of such consequence... but it didn’t matter. Shogo Osawa opened the scoring from the penalty spot after half an hour and then Travis Graham doubled the lead five minutes later. Joshua Tollervey (54’) and Wyatt Borella (89’) added further goals as Christchurch United got it done in a canter with a 4-0 victory. Guts to Cashmere Technical, their season is over. Christchurch United will be the eleventh and final team in the 2025 Men’s National League.
There was also another catch-up game between Wānaka FC and Dunedin City Royals. This one was even less competitive as DCR won 6-0 thanks to doubles from En Watanabe (6’, 60’) and Connor Neil (67’, 83’) as well as Jack Julian (18’) and Will turner (31’). And somehow we’re still not finished because next week brings us Wānaka vs Nelson Suburbs. Nelson Subs will finish fourth if they win while Wānaka are eighth no matter what happens. Not gonna do a whole write-up for one game next week, gotta conserve energy for the National League in three weeks, so good luck to them both.
Women’s South Island League
There were two more games to be played over here as well. Neither had any bearing on the table but the Golden Boot trophy was up for grabs with Amy Hislop (DCR – 17 goals) and Britney-Lee Nicholson (Coastal – 16 goals) both in action with games they were expected to win handily. Dunedin City Royals played away against relegated Halswell United on Saturday and were surprisingly kept quiet for most of the first half. It was only in the 44th min that Abby Rankin finally gave DCR the lead... though they made up for that slow start by banging seven more away in the second half. Neive Collin (50’), Amy Hislop (54’), Keira Pettefar (56’), Kelsey Kennard (75’), Hislop’s second (77’), Rose Morton (80’), and Rankin’s second (86’). Yeah, that’ll do it. 8-0 to Dunedin City Royals who finish on a high note after losing their perfect record against Cashmere Tech last week.
Those two goals for Hislop meant that Nicholson had to score a hat-trick just to match her as Coastal Spirit lined up away against Nelson Suburbs on Sunday. And you know what? She didn’t just score one hatty... she scored two. It was actually Nelson Subs who scored first when Anise Tui Bazley found the net after 12 minutes. But pretty soon Nicholson (27’) and Frankie Morrow (29’) had Coastal in front and a second goal for BLN just before the break further enhanced that. Then they went nuts as Nicholson scored her third within at the very start of the second spell (47’) followed by a Samantha Whyte goal (54’) to make it 5-1. Nicholson was now level as the SIL top scorer. She needed one more to beat Hislop. She scored three more: 79’, 87’, 90’. Final score was 8-1 to Coastal Spirit. Britney-Lee Nicholson thus ends the season with 22 goals for her personal tally while Hislop ended with 19. Only one player in the country scored more top flight league goals than Nicholson during the winter league season.
2025 Golden Boot Winners
Men’s Northern League: Morgan Wellsbury (TAU), Michael Suski (BU), Emiliano Tade (AU) – 14 goals
Men’s Central League: Martin Bueno (MR) – 19 goals
Men’s Southern League: Garbhan Coughlan (CT), Riku Ichimura (CS) – 16 goals
Women’s NRFL Premiership: Shannon Henson (WCR) – 19 goals
Women’s Central League: Natalie Olson (WU) – 35 goals
Women’s South Island League: Britney-Lee Nicholson (CS) – 22 goals
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