Title success four years in the making for Panthers

It was the second half of champions – quite literally – as Panthers grabbed their golden opportunity with both hands, scoring five times in a remarkable last 35 minutes of their league campaign to seal a championship built on team work and sprinkled with stardust.

Caryn Rieger Vorster’s team in black knew exactly what was at stake as they faced up to an Indies Ladies side with plenty of quality themselves and no inclination to gift the leaders the title on a platter.

Although Panthers held a slender advantage at half-time with Suzi Druce having scored the solitary goal of a hard-fought and even opening period, both sides would have fancied their chances of coming out on top of this one.

But after the interval any nerves or tension Panthers may have harboured quickly dissipated as the goals flowed and by the end of this 6-1 win they were brimming with the confidence of a side enjoying their coronation.

‘It was either team’s game today. They are a really, really strong side and you never know what’s going to happen on the day, but the girls dug deep,’ said an emotional Rieger Vorster, whose eyes were moist with either tears of joy or the champagne that had just been sprayed in celebration.

‘We were only 1-0 up at half-time, so we just said “last 35 minutes, let’s see what we can do”, so it’s just amazing.

‘We haven’t won the league since 2008 – it’s just incredible.’

Coming off the back of a vital draw with fellow contenders Puffins then a victory over the other side in the three-way title race Cubs in their previous two fixtures, Panthers wanted to take that momentum into their final game and they began brightly with their forward line of Becky McAllister, Mali Smith and Druce proving hard to contain.

It took a fine piece of defending from Lauren Judge and then a good save from youngster Genevieve Swainston to prevent Indies from falling behind within the first couple of minutes.

However, having weathered that early storm, the oranges’ attacking players started posing a threat of their own with Hannah Eulenkamp reacting sharply to get her left boot to a subtle touch Emily Griggs executed on a ball forward from Tash Symes.

Both keepers had to remain alert throughout the first half, with Swainston denying McAllister and Rieger Vorster in the opening quarter-of-an-hour while Symes, Katie Davies and Francesca McLuskey all had shots blocked by Eulenkamp.

It was only a matter of time before the deadlock was broken, though, and when the goal came on 23min. it stemmed from a classy Panthers move.

Fran Bulpitt did well initially to get the ball to Eloise Brehaut, who then picked out McAllister’s clever diagonal run with an excellent pass.

Island forward McAllister then drove into the D from the right and although her progress was briefly halted by some desperate defence, Druce was on hand to knock in the loose ball when it fell to her.

Indies came close to an immediate equaliser when Symes combined well with the younger Griggs sister, Charlotte, only for the final shot to drift wide, and then Swainston kept the margin to just one with good saves from McAllister and Rieger Vorster.

With half-time imminent, Lucy Slimm made an important block from her Island teammate Symes at an Indies short-corner to ensure Panthers went into the break ahead.

In the manner of a champion side, they then went up a gear with Smith, a title winner with Amazons last season, at the heart of the action.

It was her persistence that paid off with a short corner from which McAllister doubled the lead on 39min. and although Symes got one back five minutes later to briefly halve the deficit, soon Smith was taking the starring role with a terrific hat-trick.

Her first came at another short corner which was slipped right to her to score and moments later she was converting a penalty stroke after she had been tripped in the process of going around the keeper.

Becky Hambleton made it 5-1 with a confident finish in a one-on-one situation having been released by McAllister’s quality pass before Smith put the cherry on the cake with a poacher’s goal just seconds before the final whistle.

‘It is so lovely to have 16 girls who literally all want the same goal and just play as a family,’ said Rieger Vorster.

‘I’m just literally absolutely thrilled, so buzzing, I’ve been so emotional all week. Thinking about this game is all I’ve done.

‘The girls have just grown as a team over the last four years together and we now know where each other plays and we’ve just gelled – and today the passing and teamwork was just amazing, right from the defence all the way to the top.’