Eastern Suburbs have won the Kate Sheppard Cup for the first time after defeating Coastal Spirit 4-0 in the final at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland.
The Mauro Donoso-coached side, who had made the final twice before in 2005 and 2017, claimed their first cup win and also completed a first double after earlier winning the NRFL Women’s Premier League.
It was a fitting reward for the members of the Lily Whites squad who were on the wrong side of a heart-breaking 5-4 loss to Glenfield Rovers in the final two years ago.
Hannah Pilley and Tayla O’Brien scored two goals apiece in the first half as Suburbs dominated to lead 4-0 and effectively put the result to bed.
Erinna Wong and O’Brien were jointly awarded the Maia Jackman Trophy as players of the final while O’Brien finished as Suburbs’ leading goal scorer in the tournament with six goals.
The Lily Whites controlled the game from the outset. In the fourth minute, O’Brien threaded a ball through for forward Pilley to finish from close range and Suburbs were off to the perfect start.
There was more to come for the Auckland team as they controlled the middle of the park.
They won a corner and after intricate passing around the 18-yard box, O’Brien was in space to slot home in the ninth minute.
Coastal Spirit, looking to relive their 2013 success, held the ball well but couldn’t penetrate the Lily Whites’ defence.
The Christchurch side had their best chance of the first half when Laura Dabner pulled a left-foot shot just wide of the right post.
With every turnover, the yellow and black wave kept pouring forward.
Pilley showed her great pace to score a fine goal on the counter-attack before O’Brien hit a powerful shot which hit the crossbar and found the back of the net.
It was a 10-minute period when Suburbs put one hand on the Cup.
They ran to the changing rooms with a 4-0 lead and were in control of the cup final.
Coastal came out in the second half intent to add some credibility to the scoreline. They proved harder to break down but couldn’t find a way through a well-organised Suburbs’ defence who were comfortable in protecting their lead.
The victory completed a special year for the club.
In April, Danny Hay coached Eastern Suburbs to their first-ever win in the ISPS Handa Premiership and the women have backed up that achievement in fine style.
They claimed the NRFL title, losing only two games, before winning the Kate Sheppard Cup for the first time.
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