• The Storm were on the board in the opening two minutes through a try to Ruahei Demant
• The home side held a handy lead at the break, 24 – 10
• The second half proved to be a much tighter contest, but the home side managed to prevail, 43 - 24

Auckland’s Storm have booked their spot in the 2019 Farah Palmer Cup Final this afternoon. The home side proved to have too much class and depth for the Wellington Pride to handle at Eden Park, and will now look to begin preparations for the final game of their season next weekend.

Auckland didn’t have to wait long to open their account in the semi-final. From the kick-off, Wellington were unable to escape their own half and were duly punished with Ruahei Demant slicing through them from 40 metres out to glide over under the posts.

First-five Patricia Maliepo was then able to extend the lead through a penalty before Joeannha Naime-Purcell claimed the second Storm try of the afternoon. The move leading to the try was initially started by Naime-Purcell with a burst through the Pride defensive line, and several phases later, saw her crash over from a strong, direct run close to the line.

The visitors were then able to get on the board twice in succession. Wellington first-five Amanda Rasch slotted a penalty from in front in the 21^st minute which was then followed just over ten minutes later with a try to lock Te Amoha Ngata-Aerengamate from close-range.

The Storm struck back almost immediately through a try to winger Princess Elliot out wide after a strong burst by fullback Natahlia Moors who unloaded beautifully to put her teammate away.

Auckland were on the board in the second spell even quicker than the first. Ruahei Demant scything her way through the Wellington line to put her side on the front foot, before slick hands out wide put Princess Elliot over once again.

The Pride didn’t wait long to respond with a score of their own. Ayesha Leti-Liga continuing her outstanding 2019 form with a try after strong build-up play from her teammates allowed her to exploit the space on the left edge.

With twenty minutes left on the clock, the Storm looked to go for the kill with sustained attacks on the Pride’s line. Eventually, it was reserve Saphire Abraham who was able to find a way through the sea of defenders to slam the ball down under the uprights.

Wellington however, wouldn’t go away without a fight. The sinbinning of Charmaine McMenamin saw the Pride gain the numerical advantage which they duly exploited. Ayesha Leti-Liga bagging her second score of the day after the weaving her way through the Storm defenders.

Kiritapu Demant was able to have the last say in the match for the Storm after a breakout move left them agonisingly short initially. The halfback able to subsequently dart over from inches out from the line to extend the margin of victory for the home side.

The Storm now await the result of Canterbury vs. Counties Manukau in Christchurch tomorrow afternoon to see who they will face and where they’ll be playing next weekend.

Auckland Storm 43 (R Demant, J Naime-Purcell, P Elliot 2, S Abraham, K Demant tries; P Maliepo 5 conversions; P Maliepo penalty)

Wellington Pride 24 (T Ngata-Aerengamate, A Leti-Liga 2 tries; A Rasch 3 conversions; A Rasch penalty)

Halftime: 24 - 10