Douglas Villa can hold heads up

Douglas Villa did themselves proud in their Chatham Cup first round football clash with Naenae at Naenae on Saturday.
Most pundits were taking a comfortable win to a Naenae side which plays in the Capital premier division competition against a Douglas Villa team competing in the Capital third division series as a foregone conclusion, but it was anything but that.
Naenae did win, but only by 1-0, and not before they had to withstand a determined second half onslaught by Masterton-based Douglas Villa.
''You can't often take pride out of a loss but I think we could this time,'' Douglas Villa manager Dave Wright said. ''It was real gutsy stuff.''
Naenae had the better of a first half in which they scored the only goal of the game after about 30 minutes, but the second half saw Douglas Villa lift their effort and secure a definite edge in both territory and possession.
''We came close to scoring a couple of times and if we had, who knows what might have happened,'' Wright said. ''We certainly had the momentum going our way.''
Right half Ian Wilson was a standout player for Douglas Villa, as was left back Shea McGibbon.
Their Chatham Cup involvement meant Douglas Villa did not feature in any Capital third division play over the weekend, and the same went for Seatoun, Waikanae and Brooklyn Northern. They have all played three matches to date, while other sides have had four. The current points table is: Island Bay 8, Seatoun 7, Waikanae 6, Douglas Villa, North Wellington and Lower Hutt City 5, Karori Cougars and Kapiti Coast United 3, Petone 2 and Brooklyn Northern 1.
Meanwhile, Wairarapa United have moved further away from the bottom of the points table in the Central League competition after their 2-1 win over Napier City Rovers on Saturday. Sharing the lead on 12 points are Olympic, Palmerston North and Miramar Rangers, followed by Western Suburbs 9, Lower Hutt City 7, Napier City Rovers, Wairarapa United and Tawa 6, Petone 3 and Taranaki 1.
The Wairarapa United seconds produced their best performance of the season to date when they scored a 1-0 win over Eastbourne in their latest Capital fourth division match. The points table there is: LH Ancient Ones and Island Bay United 9, Island Bay HHH 8, Petone Armenis 7, Stokes Valley 6, Eastbourne, Wairarapa United seconds and University Scarfies 4, Wainuiomata 3, Naenae 2.
Round three, Wairarapa championship: Trev Sports Masterton 4 White Swan Greytown 1, Douglas Villa Magpies 1 Laser Electrical Douglas Villa 1, McAuley's Masterton 3 Wairarapa Funeral Services 0, A1 Homes 6 Masterton Gladstone 0, Sports Arena Carterton 4 Carterton Skulls 1, Redbacks 8 Carterton Social 0, Evergreens 6 Farmlands Masterton Presidents 2.
Points: A1 Homes, Sports Arena Carterton and Trevs Sports Masterton 9, Douglas Villa Magpies and Laser Electrical Douglas Villa 7, Redbacks and Carterton Skulls 6, Masterton Gladstone, Evergreens and McAuleys Masterton 3, White Swan Greytown, Farmlands Masterton Presidents, Wairarapa Funeral Services and Carterton Social 0.