Christchurch City kicked off the national soccer league campaign with a 3-1 home win capped by a brilliant save by goalkeeper Adam Highfield and a superbly crafted and executed goal from Nathan Knox. Knox's sizzling 88th-minute strike secured the three points over Metro (Auckland) at QEII Stadium yesterday.
City moved into second place on the Ansett National Club Championship table, behind Napier City Rovers, which picked up a bonus point (for teams scoring four or more goals) in a 4-0 drubbing of Dunedin Technical. Christchurch coach Ian Marshall was delighted with the winning start and said Knox's goal "was worth coming to see" for the 350-strong  crowd.
Lively substitute Brent Fisher sent Andy Daffin clear down the left flank. Daffin curled over a pinpoint cross to the edge of the Metro penalty area, where Michael Sands cleverly dummied for Knox to drill home. Marshall praised Sands, who scored Christchurch City's two first-half goals, for his unselfishness.
"Not too many strikers would dummy for someone else like that. "All the boys were just about to yell (at Knox) to 'take a touch'," he said. Next moment they were exclaiming "great goal", Marshall said.
Knox's net-buster set the seal on an encouraging opening performance, but City had Highfield to thank for preserving its 2-1 lead in the 73rd minute. The teenage keeper made a superb diving save to his right to tip Graham Green's 20m free-kick around the post. Highfield earned City's Man-of-the-Match award for three first-class saves. Christchurch's success was built on a rock-solid defensive formation.
English non-league centre-back David Gray had an almost flawless New Zealand debut and forged a fine partnership with veteran Paul Stanley and former youth All White Ben Sigmund. Marshall opted to play a 3-4-1-2 formation, with Colin Evans and Daffin operating wide in midfield alongside central pairing Mike Boomer and Jeff Fleming. Knox played just in behind starting strikers Sands and Deane Hutchinson.
The early exchanges were scrappy, and City conceded a soft goal in the 22nd minute when Green scored from close range following a defensive error. But Sands equalised three minutes later after a Metro mistake. He fired City into a 2-1 lead in the 29th minute, firmly heading home Evans' excellent right-wing cross.
Metro keeper Grant Schofield made a smart reaction save to beat out a bullet header from Sands before the interval. City created more scoring chances than Metro, but the Aucklanders never capitulated and looked most dangerous in the final quarter when Sakday Phommahaxy pushed forward. But Marshall brought on former All White Kelly McLoughlin "to tighten things up" in midfield and Fisher as "fresh legs" up front after Hutchinson "ran himself to a standstill". "We needed a good start," Marshall said. "The pleasing thing was we came back from a goal down. The character and commitment was always evident."

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