Winning coach Shelley Cameron said their opponents were coming off two byes and without having played a game.
Former Maycenvale Misfits striker Aleesha Heywood scored a hattrick, on the heels of a double hattrick a fortnight ago, while Donna Trow, Kelly Winkley and Alex Dickinson all got on the team scorecard for a goal each. "Aleesha's the golden boot this season by a long margin [26 goals with Adidas Kepa on 19 from Havelock North Wanderers]," Cameron said.
She said they had also lost the services of players through injuries and defender Chloe Katene was on a working holiday in Thailand.
"We've been shy on numbers so we've had to ring around to get fill-ins."
Port Hill coach Steve Doyle accepted their underdogs status but relished the opportunity to gauge the gulf between the two divisions.
"I'm really proud of my girls and how they competed for 90 minutes and even had an opportunity to score near the end of the game," Doyle said.
Cameron said it was a while since Taradale were in contention for the cup but the prospect of facing Port Hill (div1) on August 23 didn't faze them.
"We gave them a pretty good run for their money in our last game. We lost 3-2 but we were leading 2-1 with 20 [minutes] to go," said the former top-tier Taradale player.
With the entire squad now healthy and available, Taradale are itching to finish their season on a high note.
It didn't bother Cameron if the final, with the plate final alongside it, would be staged at Marewa Park, the homeground of Port Hill.
"It's a pretty good surface at Marewa Park and we've done pretty well to get there [in the final]," she said.
