It was the season that never seemed to end ... and it was also a season that showed the incredible heart, strength, depth and dogged determination of our Diamonds!
Here’s an insight into the crazy season that was 2021 (plus plus), the awesome playing squad and the extraordinary individuals at the heart of the back-room team...
Here’s an insight into the crazy season that was 2021 (plus plus), the awesome playing squad and the extraordinary individuals at the heart of the back-room team...
MEET THE FAMILY
The Diamonds team for years has had a fantastic mix of experience alongside up and coming players; the team is a real family. Below outlines how the 2021 Diamonds team took shape. With fantastic development pathways now in place at Wellington United, the entire squad were either returning players or players promoted from the Sapphires!
CORE SENIOR PLAYERS |
Leading from the front were our core players (who have been with our club for 5+ years):
Sarah ALDER, Jemma ROBERTSON, Asha STROM, Hope GILCHRIST, Francesca GRANGE, Dani OHLSSON, Nat OLSON and Nea BLACKHAM.
SENIOR PLAYERS |
In addition to our core players a number of very strong returnees bolstered the team's lineup:
Rosie WILD, Molly SIMONS Emma MAIN, Sophie DIJKSTRA, Zoe BARROT, Courtney STONE and Kelsey WILKINSON.
UP AND COMERS |
Sam WOOLLEY and Sammi PREVAL continue to push our starting X1 after coming through the ranks at United.
PROMOTIONS |
Pepi OLLIVER-BELL, Amanda PARLANE and Anna MCCARTHY all received deserved promotions after fantastic seasons with our Sapphires in 2020!
SCHOLARSHIP RETURNEE |
We love to host our University Scholarship players when they visit NZ and if time allows. In 2021 we hosted Liz CROWE!
IN SEASON PROMOTIONS |
Liv DEANE, Olive LYNCH-GERRARD, Lara SMITH, Katy GOTHARD, Vero BASSO, Sandy CUMPSTONE, Kendal GABY-SUTHERLAND, Lola BYRNE, and Sarah EICHLER all received deserved call ups to the Diamonds through the season. No doubt you will see a number of these names back for the Diamonds in the coming seasons.
CORE SENIOR PLAYERS |
Leading from the front were our core players (who have been with our club for 5+ years):
Sarah ALDER, Jemma ROBERTSON, Asha STROM, Hope GILCHRIST, Francesca GRANGE, Dani OHLSSON, Nat OLSON and Nea BLACKHAM.
SENIOR PLAYERS |
In addition to our core players a number of very strong returnees bolstered the team's lineup:
Rosie WILD, Molly SIMONS Emma MAIN, Sophie DIJKSTRA, Zoe BARROT, Courtney STONE and Kelsey WILKINSON.
UP AND COMERS |
Sam WOOLLEY and Sammi PREVAL continue to push our starting X1 after coming through the ranks at United.
PROMOTIONS |
Pepi OLLIVER-BELL, Amanda PARLANE and Anna MCCARTHY all received deserved promotions after fantastic seasons with our Sapphires in 2020!
SCHOLARSHIP RETURNEE |
We love to host our University Scholarship players when they visit NZ and if time allows. In 2021 we hosted Liz CROWE!
IN SEASON PROMOTIONS |
Liv DEANE, Olive LYNCH-GERRARD, Lara SMITH, Katy GOTHARD, Vero BASSO, Sandy CUMPSTONE, Kendal GABY-SUTHERLAND, Lola BYRNE, and Sarah EICHLER all received deserved call ups to the Diamonds through the season. No doubt you will see a number of these names back for the Diamonds in the coming seasons.
THE W-LEAGUE SEASON - 14 GAMES IN 14 PHOTOS
THE DOUBLE EDGED SWORD - OPPORTUNITIES APLENTY

When you have a special group of players like the Diamonds have, enevitably they will be offered opportunities to further their footballing prowess. This caused a perfect storm for the defending W-League Champions for the 2019 season with an ever-changing lineup forced upon the team.
Game management and planning by Head Coach Guillermo Schiltenwolf became critical to the success of the team. Also important were that the playing style and philosophies adopted by the Sapphires and Grade 14 teams matched that of the Diamonds to allow seamless transitions between the teams.
The Diamonds had a few key games along the way to winning the 2019 W-League Title ... and not all of them were wins! Read on :)
Key Games:
Match 2 - Wairarapa (2-3 Loss) - The Diamonds were without EIGHT of their starting lineup largely due to Futsal commitments and a couple of injuries. Although ending in a 2-3 loss; this game gave the Diamonds a lot of confidence and blooded a lot of young players very early in the season.
Match 5 - Seatoun (6-0 Win) - This was the game where the Diamonds pulled it all together for a fantastic showing from start to finish.
Match 6 - Palmerston North Marist (1-3 Loss) - This game would prove a wake-up call for the Diamonds who after a fantastic showing the week earlier; were reminded that they would need to work hard as a team if they wanted to reclaim their title.
Match 8 - Waterside Karori (3-3 Draw) - Although not too important in the scheme of things for the league, this game proved the perfect Kate Sheppard Cup preparation for the Diamonds.
Match 9 - Wairarapa United (2-1 Win) - This was the game where Coach Guillermo famously stated "If you can win this match, you will go on to win the league". The Diamonds were so short in this match due to another Futsal clash that they had to call upon no less that three additional Sapphires (who were to play their first Diamonds game of the year!). Not only did they win the match, they came from behind to do so!
Match 13 - Palmerston North Marist (2-1 Win) - With Jemma and Michaela both away commemorating the one year anniversary of their Dad's passing; this game proved to be both mentally and emotionally challenging for the Diamonds. Again they dug deep and got the result for their Robertson sisters; Natalie Olson with the winner.
Match 14 - Western Suburbs (6-0 Win*). In a game that was cut well short due to atrocious weather conditions the ladies still managed to score some splendid goals. With 6 goals in 60 odd minutes it was enough to clinch their third title in a remarkable 4 year period. It was a tough but hugely satisfying title defence for everyone involved.
Game management and planning by Head Coach Guillermo Schiltenwolf became critical to the success of the team. Also important were that the playing style and philosophies adopted by the Sapphires and Grade 14 teams matched that of the Diamonds to allow seamless transitions between the teams.
The Diamonds had a few key games along the way to winning the 2019 W-League Title ... and not all of them were wins! Read on :)
Key Games:
Match 2 - Wairarapa (2-3 Loss) - The Diamonds were without EIGHT of their starting lineup largely due to Futsal commitments and a couple of injuries. Although ending in a 2-3 loss; this game gave the Diamonds a lot of confidence and blooded a lot of young players very early in the season.
Match 5 - Seatoun (6-0 Win) - This was the game where the Diamonds pulled it all together for a fantastic showing from start to finish.
Match 6 - Palmerston North Marist (1-3 Loss) - This game would prove a wake-up call for the Diamonds who after a fantastic showing the week earlier; were reminded that they would need to work hard as a team if they wanted to reclaim their title.
Match 8 - Waterside Karori (3-3 Draw) - Although not too important in the scheme of things for the league, this game proved the perfect Kate Sheppard Cup preparation for the Diamonds.
Match 9 - Wairarapa United (2-1 Win) - This was the game where Coach Guillermo famously stated "If you can win this match, you will go on to win the league". The Diamonds were so short in this match due to another Futsal clash that they had to call upon no less that three additional Sapphires (who were to play their first Diamonds game of the year!). Not only did they win the match, they came from behind to do so!
Match 13 - Palmerston North Marist (2-1 Win) - With Jemma and Michaela both away commemorating the one year anniversary of their Dad's passing; this game proved to be both mentally and emotionally challenging for the Diamonds. Again they dug deep and got the result for their Robertson sisters; Natalie Olson with the winner.
Match 14 - Western Suburbs (6-0 Win*). In a game that was cut well short due to atrocious weather conditions the ladies still managed to score some splendid goals. With 6 goals in 60 odd minutes it was enough to clinch their third title in a remarkable 4 year period. It was a tough but hugely satisfying title defence for everyone involved.
THE KATE SHEPPARD CUP - FOOTBALL IS A GAME OF MILLIMETERS
The Diamonds made the semi-final of the Kate Sheppard Cup for the first time in our history in 2018. In 2019 our Diamonds were looking to go one better...
After surpassing a very determined Wairarapa side 4-1 in the quarterfinal the Diamonds were up for the challenge of the semi-final in more ways than one. In 2018 the girls were a little overcome by the occasion, but this was not the case in 2019 as Guille left nothing to chance. In addition to their schedule of football training, strengthening and conditioning and nutrition workshops; in 2019 Guillermo added a very special Sports Psychology session with the internationally reknowned Kathryn Berkett. This session was very well-received and something that we will certainly look to replicate in the coming year!
The semifinal match day squad for the Diamonds was as follows (with the players ages in brackets):
Ronisa LIPI (23), Fran GRANGE (19), Sarah ALDER (22)(C), Jemma ROBERTSON (21), Jemma CATHERWOOD (15), Asha STROM (19), Sophie DIJIKSTRA (19), Charlotte WILFORD-CARROLL (17), Briar PALMER (24), Michaela ROBERTSON (22), Kelsey WILKINSON (17), Dani OHLSSON (17), Molly SIMONS (17), Nea BLACKHAM (16), Sam WOOLLEY (15) and Coco MURPHY (18)
The first half was pretty even with perhaps Coastal Spirit edging the half after hitting the cross bar. The Spirit team appeared just that little bit older and stronger, the Diamonds had other thoughts. In the second half they came out firing and never looked back. They had the Coastal Spirit lasses camped in their own half as they piled the pressure on. Roni, Jemma (R) and Sarah flanked by Fran and Jemma (C) locked things down at the back and calmly dealt with any attacks that came their way. Our middies Sophie, Charlotte, and later Nea who subbed on worked tirelessly in the mid. While up top Kelsey, Briar, Mickey and later Dani gave it their all to get that elusive goal. Neither team could break the deadlock ... this was certainly edge of your seat cup football!
Briar and Michaela created the best of the Diamond's opportunities, with Briar just millimetres from scoring on two occasions... one where the power from her shot was such that it forced the keeper back into her own goal and our girls thought that we had scored (see Rosa's fantastic photo below ... the next frame would have been telling!) and she had another shot that was somehow cleared off the goal-line with a last gasp lunge by a defender!
Closing in on the 90minute mark the Diamonds were shocked to lose their goalkeeper Roni when she twisted her foot akwardly as she pounced on a loose ball. Sadly the injury was such that she was forced to be substituted. Our second keeper Molly Simons stepped up totally unfazed and quickly showed the crowd why we love her so much. Despite her age, Molly is fearless, and if anyone was going to relish coming on at 0-0 with minutes to play it was Molly!
Our girls played out the last few minutes of regular time with vigour; unfortunately they could not quite find the gap and the game was forced to go to extra time!
It would be towards the end of the first period of extra time when Coastal would finally score in heartbreaking fashion. One of their players would curl the ball from a corner, with the help of the famous Welly wind, directly into the back top corner.
The Diamonds didn't drop their heads for one second and began to pile on the pressure.
Cue the final 15 minutes of play where it seemed that our United girls might just get the fairy-tale ending.
Frustrated with the lack of possesion one of the Coastal players picked up her second yellow for a foul and was sent packing. Now down to 10 players the Coastal Spirit bus was well and truly parked and they were holding on by their fingernails. With less than 5minutes to play the Diamonds had another corner ... and Guille signals to Molly to get involved. It almost proved to be a master stroke ... the ball was whipped perfectly into the box and who should it find - Molly of course. She connected brilliantly only for her header to go slightly wide. It truly would have been an extraordinary goal and one that our Welly footy supporters were ready to applaud. Alas it was not meant to be ... and as the final whistle went our Diamonds had lost 0-1 AET ... but it was certainly one of those win-losses.
Our Diamonds gave it their absolute all ... and as a club, as supporters, friends and family; we couldn't be prouder.
Third time is the charm right?!! Bring on the 2020 Kate Sheppard Cup!
Check out photos from the Kate Sheppard Cup semi final courtesy of the ever-awesome Rosa Posa :)
After surpassing a very determined Wairarapa side 4-1 in the quarterfinal the Diamonds were up for the challenge of the semi-final in more ways than one. In 2018 the girls were a little overcome by the occasion, but this was not the case in 2019 as Guille left nothing to chance. In addition to their schedule of football training, strengthening and conditioning and nutrition workshops; in 2019 Guillermo added a very special Sports Psychology session with the internationally reknowned Kathryn Berkett. This session was very well-received and something that we will certainly look to replicate in the coming year!
The semifinal match day squad for the Diamonds was as follows (with the players ages in brackets):
Ronisa LIPI (23), Fran GRANGE (19), Sarah ALDER (22)(C), Jemma ROBERTSON (21), Jemma CATHERWOOD (15), Asha STROM (19), Sophie DIJIKSTRA (19), Charlotte WILFORD-CARROLL (17), Briar PALMER (24), Michaela ROBERTSON (22), Kelsey WILKINSON (17), Dani OHLSSON (17), Molly SIMONS (17), Nea BLACKHAM (16), Sam WOOLLEY (15) and Coco MURPHY (18)
The first half was pretty even with perhaps Coastal Spirit edging the half after hitting the cross bar. The Spirit team appeared just that little bit older and stronger, the Diamonds had other thoughts. In the second half they came out firing and never looked back. They had the Coastal Spirit lasses camped in their own half as they piled the pressure on. Roni, Jemma (R) and Sarah flanked by Fran and Jemma (C) locked things down at the back and calmly dealt with any attacks that came their way. Our middies Sophie, Charlotte, and later Nea who subbed on worked tirelessly in the mid. While up top Kelsey, Briar, Mickey and later Dani gave it their all to get that elusive goal. Neither team could break the deadlock ... this was certainly edge of your seat cup football!
Briar and Michaela created the best of the Diamond's opportunities, with Briar just millimetres from scoring on two occasions... one where the power from her shot was such that it forced the keeper back into her own goal and our girls thought that we had scored (see Rosa's fantastic photo below ... the next frame would have been telling!) and she had another shot that was somehow cleared off the goal-line with a last gasp lunge by a defender!
Closing in on the 90minute mark the Diamonds were shocked to lose their goalkeeper Roni when she twisted her foot akwardly as she pounced on a loose ball. Sadly the injury was such that she was forced to be substituted. Our second keeper Molly Simons stepped up totally unfazed and quickly showed the crowd why we love her so much. Despite her age, Molly is fearless, and if anyone was going to relish coming on at 0-0 with minutes to play it was Molly!
Our girls played out the last few minutes of regular time with vigour; unfortunately they could not quite find the gap and the game was forced to go to extra time!
It would be towards the end of the first period of extra time when Coastal would finally score in heartbreaking fashion. One of their players would curl the ball from a corner, with the help of the famous Welly wind, directly into the back top corner.
The Diamonds didn't drop their heads for one second and began to pile on the pressure.
Cue the final 15 minutes of play where it seemed that our United girls might just get the fairy-tale ending.
Frustrated with the lack of possesion one of the Coastal players picked up her second yellow for a foul and was sent packing. Now down to 10 players the Coastal Spirit bus was well and truly parked and they were holding on by their fingernails. With less than 5minutes to play the Diamonds had another corner ... and Guille signals to Molly to get involved. It almost proved to be a master stroke ... the ball was whipped perfectly into the box and who should it find - Molly of course. She connected brilliantly only for her header to go slightly wide. It truly would have been an extraordinary goal and one that our Welly footy supporters were ready to applaud. Alas it was not meant to be ... and as the final whistle went our Diamonds had lost 0-1 AET ... but it was certainly one of those win-losses.
Our Diamonds gave it their absolute all ... and as a club, as supporters, friends and family; we couldn't be prouder.
Third time is the charm right?!! Bring on the 2020 Kate Sheppard Cup!
Check out photos from the Kate Sheppard Cup semi final courtesy of the ever-awesome Rosa Posa :)
GLOBE TROTTERS
Wellington United players picked up a lot of stamps in their passports in 2019... here are some of the places that they visited with their football!
2019 INTERNATIONAL REPRESENTATIVES
The following Wellington United players were selected for the following National Teams over the 2019 season. Michaela ROBERTSON Football Ferns - Tour of China (unfortunately was unable to take part due to injury) Football Ferns Development Programme Sarah ALDER Futsal Ferns - Gold Coast International Futsal Challenge - Champions Futsal Ferns - China Tour Francesca GRANGE Futsal Ferns - Gold Coast International Futsal Challenge - Champions Futsal Ferns - China Tour Ronisa LIPI Captained the Samoan Women's National Team - Pacific Games held in Samoa - Runners Up for the first time in history! Charlotte WILFORD-CARROLL New Zealand U20 Women's National Team - OFC U19 Women's Championships in New Caledonia - Champions Jemma CATHERWOOD New Zealand U17 Women's National Team - OFC U17 Women's Championships in Samoa (postponed until 2020) In addition to the above National Teams, the following players were selected as a part of the New Zealand Secondary Schools age-group teams: NZSS 2019 Under 19 Representative Team – USA Tour Danielle OHLSSON (Awarded the NZSS U19 MVP Trophy) Charlotte WILFORD-CARROLL Natalie OLSON Molly SIMONS NZSS 2019 Under 17 Representative Team – USA Tour Kelsey WILKINSON Genevieve BERRY |
2019 Scholarship Athletes
Jayme-Lee HUNTER - University of Evansville (photo supplied)
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Emma MAIN - Unviersity of Illinois (photo supplied)
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Ella WILSON - Fairmont State University (photo supplied)
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Hope GILCHRIST - Canisus College (photo supplied)
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Milestones and Further Successes!
Milestones:
2019 saw three massive milestones brought up! Sarah Alder - 100 games! What is unique about Sarah is her versatility and composure regardless of what position she is put in - a true leader and fitting captain. Jemma Robertson - 50 goals! Pretty remarkable when half of her games have been in defensive roles for the Diamonds. Michaela Robertson - 100 goals AND 100 games!! What more can be said?! Wellington United Awards Night: At our Wellington United Awards night Jemma Robertson deservedly cleaned up! Jemma was awarded the 2019 Coaches Player of the Year, Players Player of the Year, Diamonds Golden Boot and the Club Golden Boot! Nea Blackham picked up the Young Player of the year award. The Diamonds also won Club Team of the Year and Guillermo Schiltenwolf was deservedly named Club Coach/Manager of the Year. Capital Football Awards: Although we were a little perplexed by a couple of omissions given the Diamonds pretty stella year, it was awesome to see Francesca Grange and Jemma Catherwood deservedly picking up awards for the Capital Futsal Player of the Year and the Women's Premier Player of the Year respectively. National League Honours: No less than 13 of our girls were named in National League squads: Capital: Jemma Robertson, Jemma Catherwood, Michaela Robertson, Kelsey Wilkinson, Molly Simons, Charlotte Wilford Carroll, Sophie Dijikstra, Nea Blackham, Dani Ohlsson, Francesca Grange and Sarah Alder. Central: Natalie Olson and Samantha Woolley, A special mention to Jemma Robertson who was named in the National League team of the season! Coastal Spirt National U19 Tournament in Christchurch: Elizabeth CROWE lead from the front, captaining our girls U19 team to the runners up medal in the Girls U19 National Tournament in Christchurch. |
THE TEAM BEHIND THE TEAM - THE WISE ONES
The Diamonds are truly blessed to have such a fantastic team behind them; particularly in the form of head coach Guillermo Schiltenwolf. It is one thing to coach a team of talented players, it is much different prospect to take on a team fighting relegation with no reserve team feeding it. Not only did Guille take this challenge on, he blew this challenge out of the water. The countless successes that he has had with the Diamonds speak for themselves; and this year in review is a testament in itself to Guille's coaching, his long-term vision and how far the Diamonds have come. Behind the scenes the pathway from the Junior girls teams to our Women's Senior teams is now complete; and our competitive teams now share the same playing style and philosophies making the transitions seamless. Such is the success of this pathway that we will be adding further Youth and Senior Teams in the coming years to ensure that we can continue to cater to all levels. We very much look forward to welcoming new players into our United family.
Our Manager Extraordinaire is Justine Empson! Justine's talent's as a manager are second to none! If a New Zealand National Team is on the lookout for a team manager she would be a prime candidate ... at least in our off-season ;) Her eye for detail, her proactiveness, her commitment, her organisation and communication skills are gold. Her passion for girls and women's football is such that she also holds the role of our Girls U19 Manager. Each year we take a team to Christchurch to participate in the National Girls U19 Tournament and we are proud to say that we have now been attending this awesome event since 2013. Justine has been with the club for almost as long and its no coincidence that the girls and women's side of the club has continued to grow throughout this time, with three W-League titles to boot!
Carlos Junca joined the crew this season as Guille's Assistant Coach where his specialty is Strength and Conditioning training. Carlos proved to be a valuable addition to the team, helping keep the team injury-free and fighting fit for the season. With more and more footballing commitments filling up the girls calenders, this type of training is becoming critical to our top players.
Just as we were extremely fortunate to be able to field two fantastic keepers in Roni and Molly this season, we too were very lucky to have two fantastic Goal Keeper Coaches in Ryan Ego and then Paul Gothard. When Ryan was unable to continue coaching with us due to external commitments Paul happily stepped up for us ensure that we kept both of our custodians on their toes. Having healthy competition between the pair alongside some fantastic coaching meant that the Diamonds were in a very enviable position with having two of the best keepers in the league. The importance of this setup was highlighted in our (oh so close) Kate Sheppard Cup semi final and we have no doubt that we will need to emulate this setup should we want to make that elusive final!
Our Manager Extraordinaire is Justine Empson! Justine's talent's as a manager are second to none! If a New Zealand National Team is on the lookout for a team manager she would be a prime candidate ... at least in our off-season ;) Her eye for detail, her proactiveness, her commitment, her organisation and communication skills are gold. Her passion for girls and women's football is such that she also holds the role of our Girls U19 Manager. Each year we take a team to Christchurch to participate in the National Girls U19 Tournament and we are proud to say that we have now been attending this awesome event since 2013. Justine has been with the club for almost as long and its no coincidence that the girls and women's side of the club has continued to grow throughout this time, with three W-League titles to boot!
Carlos Junca joined the crew this season as Guille's Assistant Coach where his specialty is Strength and Conditioning training. Carlos proved to be a valuable addition to the team, helping keep the team injury-free and fighting fit for the season. With more and more footballing commitments filling up the girls calenders, this type of training is becoming critical to our top players.
Just as we were extremely fortunate to be able to field two fantastic keepers in Roni and Molly this season, we too were very lucky to have two fantastic Goal Keeper Coaches in Ryan Ego and then Paul Gothard. When Ryan was unable to continue coaching with us due to external commitments Paul happily stepped up for us ensure that we kept both of our custodians on their toes. Having healthy competition between the pair alongside some fantastic coaching meant that the Diamonds were in a very enviable position with having two of the best keepers in the league. The importance of this setup was highlighted in our (oh so close) Kate Sheppard Cup semi final and we have no doubt that we will need to emulate this setup should we want to make that elusive final!
Meet the Family: The Diamonds literally couldn't do what they do without the support of the following amazing groups and individuals:
Maika Ruyter Hooley alongside the Sapphires and our TDP Girls, Ken Allen and the Diamond Dreamers, Henry Tait alongside Pugpockets, Dave Webster alongside his reporting and camera skills, the Wellington United Committe, Michael Neilson and Pita Pit, Exodus, Kathryn Berkett from Engage, Becky Jones and the Performance Pantry, Ultra Football, New World Wellington City, Cafe Eis, Abandoned Brewery, John Dow and Agenda Limited, Capital Personalised Tours, our funding partners and of course our friends, family and supporters.
Thank you everyone for your fantastic support in 2019, we very much look forward to supporting Maika and Alice, with support from Guille of course, in taking the reins in 2020!! Bring it on!!