Thirsty Whale Napier City Rovers made their way safely through to Round 3 of the Chatham Cup with a 4-2 win over Capital Premiership side Island Bay at Bluewater Stadium on Sunday.

Whilst the final score looks like a relatively comfortable afternoon for the Blues, it was anything but. Napier coach Bill Robertson had done his homework and knew the Wellington Capital Premiership leaders would be no pushover with a good mix of genuine experience and know-how amongst their squad, and they pushed the home side for the full 90 minutes.

Robertson was forced into a couple of changes due to illness and injury with Sam Lack getting a start with Stefan Karajovanovic dropping to the bench, whilst Jack Albertini came in at right back pushing Ian Kalu into a more advanced role on the right. The game was slow to ignite and drifted for the first 20 minutes or so with both sides tidy in possession but lacking any cutting edge in the final third. That was until Deri Corfe was finally able to get the ball in his favoured left channel, and as he weaved his way into the Island Bay penalty area, a dangling leg from an Island Bay defender was enough for referee Antony Riley to point to the spot. Corfe made no mistake with his ninth goal of the season and has now found the net in each of his last seven games.

As has been the case in too many games this season, the Blues were not able to turn the quality football into goals as Corfe, Lack, and Jonny McNamara were all thwarted by the outstanding form of Island Bay keeper John Eccles. That lack of potency in front of goals was made to pay right on the break when Blues midfielder Cam Emerson was guilty of replicating the Island Bay defending when he brought striker Jarrod Stant down, and Riley again pointed to the spot. Lively striker Tsar Mitchener slammed home the equaliser and it was all square.

The Blues came out after the break with more purpose but again couldn’t find that real moment of quality despite plenty of endeavours and increased energy. The period around the hour mark was significant for a yellow card for Jarrod Stant, a foul on McNamara, and a flowing move that involved Lack and Emerson, who fed a ball to McNamara to tee up a shot from Corfe. The shot was too hot for Eccles to handle and Lack was on hand to slot home the rebound to send the Blues back in front. That earlier caution for Stant was followed shortly after by a second, and the mandatory red, for a foul on Blues skipper Jim Hoyle. At that point, the visitors might have thought their chances of an upset were gone. Not to be, however, and Island Bay was able to punish the Blues’ lack of shape and numbers in midfield with a quick interchange of passes culminating in substitute Stefan Ashby slipping a lovely ball through for Mitchener to race onto, round keeper Oscar Mason, and slide home to make it 2-2. 

As has been a feature of the Blues season to date, they have scored several goals at pivotal moments in games and were immediately back in front when from the kick-off, Ian Kalu lifted a ball into the penalty area for McNamara. McNamara's neatly flicked header was met by Blues substitute Stefan Karajovanovic whose finish was nodded firmly past Eccles. It was a deflating moment for Island Bay, but a show of the character and belief from the home side. From that point it was left to Corfe, of course, to wrap up proceedings with his second and another demonstration of his class. Rovers’ substitutes Harry Mason and Alex Mort looked to combine down the right and Mort’s pass was intercepted by Island Bay defender Jerome Groot, with the ball dropping to Corfe 30 yards out. He jinked inside retreating defender Tyler Ngaia, rounded Eccles, and rolled the ball into the empty net to seal the deal.

For Island Bay, they are well coached, well organised, solid outfit. Keeper John Eccles had the man-of-the-match award in is his kit bag by halftime and made a couple of outstanding stops in the second half just for good measure. Mitchener took his chances well and looks Central League quality, while Jerome Groot, formerly of Havelock North Wanderers, was excellent at the back and showed his Central League experience. It would be certainly no surprise to see them gain promotion and be a Central League club in 2024.

For the Blues, it was hard to fault any of the starting XI, nor the three substitutes who all made a positive impact when introduced. Ta Eh Doe was excellent in midfield alongside Cam Emerson, Kaeden Atkins looks refreshed and back to his best after a couple of weeks on the bench, and Ian Kalu continues to impress. The star of the show though was English striker Corfe. It is a team game, and the work the likes of McNamara and Lack did off the ball gave him a license to create, and he must be a nightmare for defenders to deal with.

The Blues now have two back-to-back home games against Stop Out SC after drawing them in the third round of the Cup scheduled to be played at Bluewater on Sunday 18th June, KO 2pm. This Sunday they will host them in the first game of the second round of Central League, kick Off 2pm, Bluewater Stadium.

Article added: Wednesday 07 June 2023