Thistle had the better of play for the rest of the half without scoring, then Somerton put Thistle 3-1 up in the 52nd minute.
In the 60th, Teweia Butibara, who had come on for Suarez eight minutes earlier, made it 4-1, and Somerton scored again in the 73rd, 83rd and 90th minutes.
Jags coach Tam Cramer said his side dominated the game and no one played badly.
Raymond Rickard had come into the side as goalkeeper and, while he did not have a great deal to do, did well with what came his way.
Fullbacks Kuba Jerabek and Oliver Aldridge, and centrebacks Daniel Venema and Nick Land were solid at the back; central midfielders Suarez (until he went off injured), skipper Cory Thomson and Travis White, and flank players Alex Shanks and Carlos Guerra kept the engine running in the middle of the park; and Somerton ran amok up front.
HSOB Gisborne Boys’ High started well against Port Hill, Xavier Priestley-Mennie hitting a belter from 20m to put them 1-0 up in the fifth minute.
Port Hill centreback James Mason justified coach Dan Johansen’s decision to play him when he blocked an almost-certain goal – a full-blooded volley from striker Jacob Adams – in the 11th minute, but in the 21st minute he had to go off with a pre-existing injury.
Elder brother Michael Mason made some important saves in the Port Hill goal as the Hawke’s Bay side fought their way into the match.
Skipper Matt Betesta ran on to a ball played in behind the Boys’ High defence to level in the 35th minute, and it was 1-1 at halftime.
In the 46th minute, left midfielder Luke Posthumus ghosted in at the far post to fire Port Hill ahead.
Boys’ High midfielder Euan Cramer was sidelined for 10 minutes with a yellow card for dissent in the 49th minute, but the students equalised in the 53rd through midfielder Matt Hills after left back Kaden Manderson and winger Gavin Derr combined well on the left flank.
Posthumus struck again in the 63rd minute and, as Boys’ High pressed for an equaliser, central midfielder Kaleb McKenzie hit a wonder goal from 40m in the last minute of the game.
Hawke’s Bay referee and former Napier Marist goalkeeper Ryan Todd kept good control of the game. He showed the yellow card to Boys’ High players Cramer, Manderson and Rylan Crosby-Wright, and Port Hill’s Harley Simmons and Michael Holliday.
Boys’ High coach Garrett Blair said his side were victims of their own mistakes.
“It’s all experience for us,” he said.
Port Hill coach Johansen said his team were “a little sluggish” in the first half, perhaps because of the travel. They’d had to draw four players from the reserve team for the trip.
“All credit to Boys’ High. They have some good footballers and they gave us a tough battle.”
Gisborne United coach Josh Adams said his side put in the first-half effort he had been waiting to see since the start of the season.
They led 3-1 at halftime with goals to Dane Thompson (a third-minute header from a corner) and Josh Adams (from a through-ball in the 20th and a penalty in the 31st).
Max Fysh scored for Taradale Reserves in the 42nd minute, and United midfielder Aaron Graham shot low and hard into the left corner to make it 4-1 in the 68th.
Left flank midfielder Malcolm Marfell was United’s man of the match with a box-to-box performance and good service into the penalty area.
United varied their approach, mixing up the short- and long-ball game to good effect.
All three Gisborne teams have a free weekend coming up, as they have not entered the Federation Cup.
