Christchurch Girls' High School takes home shield after six-goal thriller

Christchurch Girls High School has a new addition to its trophy cabinet, beating out Avonside Girls in the Connetics Schools Premier XI Shield final.

Fans of both teams were out in full force at English Park on Wednesday to witness a high-scoring, physical affair that saw five goals in the first half.

CGHS was up 3-2 at half time, before sealing victory with a fourth goal shortly after the break.

CGHS captain Amelia Wilson said she and her team have worked hard to earn the shield.

“It feels really good. I'm so proud of the girls and all the hard work they put into it.

“We've had our ups and downs throughout the past five seasons, and it's just been gradually building up. We've been winning more and more games, this season we've just been really strong.”

Wilson said the final was a fairytale ending to her final cup game.

“Our season has gone really well; it's been our strongest season yet of my five years at Girls' High. Looking at the shield there's 19 teams that have won it, and it's the first time Girls' High has won it, so it feels like we're making history a bit. 

“This is my last Wednesday game for Girls' High, so it's been five years in the team, and yeah, it's been pretty good. Amazing ending; couldn't have it better.”

She added that passion and great team culture played a big part in their victory. 

“That’s what makes football worth it.”

Team coach Jason Aaron said success in the shield was a great sign for the future of football at Christchurch Girls' High. 

“It feels pretty amazing we've had a good build up, we've been training pretty well and just had a couple of girls come back in form injury so nice to have a full squad out there today.

“It means a lot to win it, it's our first time to win the Connetics Premier Trophy. We've been building slowly over the last few years we've still got a young team and it's nice for them to see success.”

He said the talent on the field reflected a growth in women's football in New Zealand.

“We see lots of youngsters coming in and playing the game but they're also really good, technical players. So I get the fun job of coaching them and sort of molding the team but they do all the hard work out on the park.”

Aaron said he was proud of his side's response after going 1-0 down just two minutes in

"They easily could have let their heads go down in the final, but they've got a great ability to bounce back. They are very resilient players, and just the way they kept their heads up, kept playing the style of football we were trying to play, that's what I was most proud of today.”