NUAFC 1968-2018

1982
‘Green Machine’ reaches
goal in fine style
Waikato Times, 6th September 1982
A four-goal second half scoring
blitz put Ngaruawahia-AFFCO United
into the second division of the Country
Foods northern soccer league on
Saturday.
Ngaruawahia needed a clear
two goal win over Tauranga City to
clinch the third division title, and got it
with a 5-1 victory. But not without some
heart attacks for the biggest crowd at
Centennial Park for many years.
Ngaruawahia's hold on a place
in the second division looked decidedly
shaky when it battled to an unconvincing
1-0 halftime lead.
Sixteen minutes later things
looked even grimmer for the "green
machine" when Larry Seales slotted a
penalty for Tauranga to make it 1-1.
Then the young Tauranga
defence fell apart under a series of
storming Ngaruawahia attacks, and the
greens slammed in three goals in five
minutes to put the result beyond doubt.
Tauranga began strongly, and
any thoughts Ngaruawahia may have had
of a cake walk were quickly dispelled in
the eighth minute when a powerful
Lawrence Cook header had home keeper
Jim Barry at full stretch with a brilliant
reflex save.
Ngaruawahia slowly took
command, and the vital open­ing goal
came in the 24th minute, when man of
the match Natcho Reyes slammed an
indirect free kick from inside the penalty
area in off the defensive wall.
The rest of the half was devoted
to one-way Ngaruawahia traffic, stout
Tauranga defence, and a string of near
misses as Ngaruawahia tried to walk the
ball into the net.
Ngaruawahia's hopes threatened
to fall apart when a goalmouth melee left
Barry on the ground, and with the ball
headed into the net a defender palmed it
on to the crossbar.
Seales sent Barry the wrong
way with the penalty and Ngaruawahia
was suddenly back in third place on the
third division ladder.
Then, within a minute, former
Hamilton Rothmans League captain,
John McDermid produced a piece of
individual brilliance which left Tauranga
shattered.
He carved through the defence
almost from the restart and unleashed a
powerful right foot drive from 20 metres
which rocketed into the back of the net.
Thirty seconds later McDermid
sent hard running right winger Keith
Mackrell away, and the youngster found
Geoff Tozer, who did well to hook it
across the tide and into the net.
That was the end of Tauranga,
and four minutes later the defence
ignored Steve Williams as he made his
cut from the edge of the area to meet a
Reyes right wing corner. His header.
bounced between two men on the line
and in off the underside of the crossbar.
Fittingly, it was Reyes, whose
midfield flair had set up many
Ngaruawahia raids, who finished the
game as he had begun it, blasting an
indirect free kick from 17 metres cleanly
through the defence, complete the 5-1
scoreline.
While Reyes stood out as the
danger man for Ngaruawahia, it was the
rock solid McDermid who paved the
way to promotion.
His feed work laid the
foundation for Ngaruawahia's strong
running front line, and significantly he
scored the crucial goal with one of the
few long range shots of the match.
Reyes showed that, apart from a
tendency to hang on to the ball too long,
he has as many ball skills as any player
in the Waikato.
Oratia must be considered one
of the unluckiest sides in northern league
history to miss promotion.
It scored the same number of
points and had the same goal difference
as the second promoted side — Otara
Rangers — but missed out because Otara
had scored just one goal more this
season.
Ngaruawahia-Affco
wind up in fine style
Waikato Times, 13th September 1982
Whilst most of New Zealand
had their minds on the Welsh
Centennial Test on the weekend, the
Ngarua­wahia Soccer Club were
involved in their end-of­season
festivities.
Twelve top-class players from
the region were invited to play against
the club's newly-promoted Northern
League squad. Invitations were accepted
by Doug Snapes, Paul Gemmel, John
McDermid, Bruce Sandford and Ron
Cane (all of Hamilton), Jeff Flowerday,
Shane Manley, John Stewart (Huntly),
Adrian Kerkof, Peter­Hobergen
(Cambridge), John Mohn (Wanderers)
and Wayne Gerbich Rovers).
The match was played in rainswept
conditions with both teams showing
good out-of-season form with the
composite invitational squad knitting
very quickly together.
Hamilton Under 19 keeper Bruce
Sandford showed excellent defensive
capabilities under pressure and a metreeating
clearing kick that set up Gemmel,
Kerkof and Hobergen in raiding the
Ngaruawahia goal.
Although the game was a friendly, no
quarter was asked or given. Flowerday
showed his speed, skill and class on the
left wing and had a well-developed
under­standing with club mates Manley
and Stewart. Ron Cane, the area coach
had an impressive game at right back
with good touches displayed by. Gerbich
and a partnership with Snapes.
McDermid displayed the advantages of
National League experience alongside
team-mate Gemmel with Wanderers
John Mohn getting into action in the
second spell.
No score in the first spell due to the
expected high keeping qualities of Gary
Dillistone and Bruce Sandford at each
end. However Nelson Grandona netted
from the spot when the invitation squad
handled his in-swinging corner kick that
had eluded the keeper. Shane Manley
equalised from the spot. at the other end
when Dillistone fouled an attacker.
The last goal came from McDermid
who slotted home a loose ball after a
rapid break by his fellow forwards,
giving the invitation team a 2-I win.
Wind-up awards:
That evening the club conducted their
end-of-season senior social and award
evening in the clubrooms with over 200
in attendance.
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