OFC News

AUCKLAND – Auckland City’s grip on the New Zealand Football Championship trophy loosened on Sunday as Waitakere United confirmed the shift in domestic football power up the north-western motorway.

A 19th minute Allan Pearce goal proved the difference on Waitakere’s return to their impressively remodeled Trusts Stadium home in Henderson.

The 1-0 win was Waitakere’s third over three-time defending champions Auckland in four matches this season (including an O-League triumph last month) and saw the West Auckland club overtake Auckland on goal difference atop the NZFC table.

Crucially Waitakere have a game in hand over Auckland who will be furthered hampered after their inspirational skipper Ben Sigmund received his sixth booking of the season just before halftime on Sunday.

The yellow card means Sigmund will be suspended for Auckland’s final two round robin matches against Waikato FC and Team Wellington. The latter match could yet decide who finishes second and earns the all important home advantage for the 2 v 3 semifinal - providing Waitakere keep their end of the bargain by sealing successive minor premierships.

Waitakere face YoungHeart Manawatu and Otago United away either side of a home match against Hawke’s Bay United in their final three matches knowing the prospect of a home final in late April is theirs to lose.

Pearce was the best player on the plush Trusts Stadium pitch for much of Sunday’s round 18 fixture and was rewarded with his 10th goal of the campaign when he calmly slotted past advancing Auckland goalkeeper Tamati Williams after out-pacing Sigmund following Neil Sykes excellent through-ball.

Auckland battled their way into the game after halftime but Waitakere’s calm heads at the back – Jonathan Perry, Danny Hay, Neil Emblen and Darren Bazeley -  keep Auckland scoreless for the third time this season. It was a close run thing though with Emblen called on to make a goal-line clearance with 10 seconds of the three stoppage time minutes remaining.

Wellington beat 10-man Hawke’s Bay United 3-1 on Saturday. Stu Jacobs men are now three points behind Waitakere and Auckland on 41 points but also have a game in hand over Auckland and a superior goal differential of +27 to +25.

Elsewhere, bottom of the table Canterbury earned just their sixth point of the season with a 1-1 draw against Waikato FC at Links Aveunue in Tauranga in Sunday’s other match.

Otago United scored their first goal in 629 minutes of trying to record just their third win of the season, 1-0 over visiting YoungHeart Manawatu on Saturday.

Aaron Burgess’ 54th minute free-kick proved the difference at Carisbrook in Dunedin as Otago handed their decorated player-coach Terry Phelan – who turned 41 on Sunday – “the best birthday present I’ve ever received”.

Hawke’s Bay were left wondering how they were beaten so comprehensively by visiting Wellington after producing much of the best football at Park Island in Napier on Saturday.

Golden boot leader Graham Little scored his 12 of the campaign to give Wellington the lead four minutes after halftime before a Jonathan Taylor own goal saw Jacobs’ side double their advantage just before the hour. Things went from bad to down right miserable for Hawke’s Bay when the impressive Chris Davies was sent off in the 67th minute for a second bookable offence before substitute Peter Halstead completed the scoring with a goal two minutes into stoppage time.

Meanwhile, Waitakere United came back from a goal down four times to beat Team Wellington 5-4 in their National Youth League semifinal at Trusts Stadium on Sunday.

Waitakere will face Canterbury United in next weekend’s final after Canterbury beat Auckland-Manukau 3-1 on Saturday.

The time and venue for the final will be confirmed by New Zealand Football early this week.

Story Courtesy of NZ Football. For Full Story and more information visit www.nzsoccer.com

AUCKLAND - Bryan Little returned from a six match injury layoff to send 10-man Auckland City to the head of the New Zealand Football Championship on Sunday, 24 hours after losing the lead to rivals Waitakere United.

Playing his first game since the end of January, Little converted a 65th minute penalty, while Jakub Sinkora added his first goal in Auckland colours five minutes from time as City won 2-0 over Otago despite losing George Suri to a red card 12 minutes after halftime.

The win restores City’s three point lead over Waitakere who still have a game in hand and won 1-0 at home to Canterbury United on Saturday thanks to a Commins Menapi goal two minutes into the second half.

Team Wellington sit three points further back but kept the heat on the top two with Luis Corrales scoring twice in the second half of their 2-0 win over Waikato FC.

While ultimately effective, none of the top three will be happy with – what were by their own standards - lacklustre performances.

Auckland and Waitakere both know they’ll need to go up a few gears at Douglas field next Sunday as the winner of that clash will have one hand on the minor premiership.

In other Sunday action, the central derby provided a gripping taster for the Auckland edition next week as Hawke’s Bay outlasted YoungHeart Manawatu in a five-goal, seven card thriller in Palmerston North.

Both sides had a player sent off in injury time after Gouzalo Nieres had tied the scores at 2-2 with a 90th minute penalty.

But Chris Greatholder had the final say, finishing from a corner two minutes into time added on to seal a dramatic victory, and condemn Manawatu to their fifth straight defeat.

Earlier, Leon Birnie put Hawke’s Bay back in front in the 83rd minute after a Prince Quansah goal cancelled out Graham Fyfe’s 33rd minute penalty.

Full match reports, stats, photos and standings can be found at www.nzfc.co.nz

AUCKLAND - Auckland City’s charge to the New Zealand Football Championship minor premiership suffered a blow at the hands of Hawke’s Bay United on Sunday, while Canterbury notched their first win of the season with victory in the Southern derby.

Goals to David Geary in the 15th minute and Leon Birnie in injury time, propelled Hawke’s Bay to a 2-0 win – their first over Auckland in 11 matches – and allowed Waitakere United and team Wellington to close the gap on the leaders with wins over Waikato and Manawatu respectively.

Auckland still head the table on 41 points but Waitakere (38) and Wellington (35) each have a game in hand and a match against City to come.

Canterbury United’s 2-0 victory over Otago United in Sunday’s southern derby in Christchurch was their first win in 16 attempts this season and ensures Canterbury avoid becoming the first team to go through an entire NZFC season without a win.

Rhodri Payne was the chief destroyer for Canterbury firing a freekick in each half – although Gareth Turnbull got enough of a touch on the first to claim it as his own.

In Palmerston North, Team Wellington enjoyed another fruitful weekend, patiently wearing down 10-man YoungHeart Manawatu before eventually running out 4-0 winners.

Graham Little converted a first half penalty for his eleventh goal of the season while Luis Corrales grabbed a double and Rupert Ryan nodded in his first since re-joining the club as Wellington sent YoungHeart crashed to a fourth straight defeat.

In Saturday’s only game, Waitakere were again ruthlessly effective in seeing off a positive but ultimately toothless Waikato FC 2-0 at North Harbour Stadium.

A late first half burst featuring a Chris Bale bullet and a Jeff Sole own goal sealed a game in which each side were reduced to ten men in the second half.

Round 16
Saturday

Waitakere United 2 (Chris Bale 42, own goal 45+1)
Waikato FC 0
Halftime: 2-0

Sunday

YoungHeart Manawatu 0
Team Wellington 4 (Graham Little 43-pen, Rupert Ryan 63, Luis Corrales 67/90)
Halftime: 0-1

CanterburyUnited 2 (Gareth Turnbull 34, Rhodri Payne 47)
Otago United 0
Halftime: 1-0

Hawke’s Bay United 2 (David Gearey 15, Leon Birnie 90+2)
Auckland City 0
Halftime:1-0

AUCKLAND - With their closest rivals inactive or otherwise engaged, Auckland City doubled their advantage at the top of the New Zealand Football Championship with a 4-1 win over YoungHeart Manawatu punctuated by goals to Koreans Ki-Hyung Lee and Chan-Goo Yoon.

Lee rocketed a fourth minute free kick and Yoon scored with his first touch on debut – after being snapped up in the transfer window – to bookend goals from City skipper Ben Sigmund and Paul Urlovic and send the defending champions six points clear.

Adam Cowan grabbed an injury time consolation for Manawatu, but Auckland now sit atop the standings with 38 points from 15 matches.

Auckland are in pole-position to regain the minor premiership from Waitakere United and the automatic entry to a home NZFC final that goes with that honour, and can even start eyeing the league’s first 50 point season with six matched remaining.

More immediately though, their attention turns to the midweek O-League clash with Waitakere. A win for Auckland on Wednesday would all-but decide Group A after their intercity rivals dropped points in a 1-1 draw with AS Manu Ura on Saturday night. 
 
With Waitakere on O-League duty in Tahiti, Wellington given the week off and fourth-placed Hawke’s Bay United’s game postponed in Canterbury there was no other action in the top half of the NZFC.

Meanwhile, Otago’s luck finally turned as goals from John Lang and Andy Coburn gave Otago United their first points on the road this season with a 2-0 win over nine-man Waikato FC in Tauranga on Sunday.

Waikato FC started new signings Matt Friel and Dale Beattie in midfield but Beatie’s debut was a forgettable one, the Scottish ex-professional sent off in the three minutes into the second half with his side already a goal down.

Jeff Sole was the second man to see red, sent off just after the hour – only a few minutes after he misjudged a long throw to let Coburn in to secure Otago’s second win this season.

Round 14 Results and standings

Saturday

Auckland City 4 (Ki-Hyung Lee 4, Ben Sigmund 56, Paul Urlovic 60, Chan-Goo Yoon 66)
YoungHeart Manawatu 1 (Adam Cowan 90+1)
Halftime: 1-0

Sunday

Waikato FC 0
Otago United 2 (John Lang 41, Andy Coburn 60)
Halftime: 0-1

Postponed due to waterlogged pitch

Canterbury United v Hawke’s Bay United
English Park, Christchurch

STANDINGS

Name	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
Auckland City	15	12	2	1	33	10	13	38
Waitakere United	14	10	2	2	40	11	29	32
Team Wellington	14	9	2	3	30	17	13	29
Hawke's Bay United	13	5	4	4	19	20	-1	19
Waikato FC	14	4	3	7	16	20	-4	15
YoungHeart Manawatu	14	4	2	8	23	37	-14	14
Otago United	14	2	3	9	8	27	-19	9
Canterbury United	14	0	2	12	11	38	-27	2

Story Courtesy of New Zealand Football. For more information visit www.nzsoccer.com

Waitakere United regained their winning form in the New Zealand Football Championship this weekend by thrashing Hawke’s Bay United 5-0 at Fred Taylor Park. But it was not enough to steal top spot from a very determined Auckland City side that fought off bottom placed Canterbury United 2-1 and maintained their three point lead at the top of the table.

Having dropped points on the road in their previous two fixtures, Waitakere’s homecoming on Saturday was a happy one, with fine goals to Benjamin Totori and Daniel Koprivcic, supplementing an Allan Pearce hat-trick that included two penalties and a slick piece of near-post finishing.

The 5-0 win was also a timely boost for the West Auckland club ahead of Saturday night’s O-League clash against AS Manu Ura in Tahiti.

At English Park in Christchurch anything other than a convincing Auckland win would be seen as a disappointment to the top side in the NZFC. 

True to form Auckland shot off to a 2-0 lead before halftime with Korean thunder-boot Ki-Hyung lee ripping a free kick home in the 25th minute before Alex Feneridis then headed home a Paul Urlovic cross before the break.

Canterbury never gave up however and were rewarded in the 61st minute when Michael Fifii pulled one back to set up an exciting final 30 minutes. United’s endeavor eventually proved fruitless and handed them an NZFC record 10th straight defeat.

In Hamilton Waikato FC and Young heart Manawatu played out a five goal thriller in wet slipper conditions. Manawatu took an early lead through Uruguay marksman Gouzalo Nieres before Waikato equalized through Aaron Scott, then went ahead through Steven Holloway shortly before halftime.

In the second half substitute Prince Quansah equalized for the visitors before Holloway converted his second from the penalty spot in the 73rd minute to earn Waikato the much needed three points.

Team Wellington needed a 73rd minute strike from Steve Gulley to defeat a determined Otago United side 1-0 and tighten their grip on third place, six points behind the leaders but 10 points ahead of Hawke’s Bay.

Results and standings

Saturday

Waitakere United 5 (Benjamin Totori 14, Allan Pearce 34-pen / 43 / 71-pen, Daniel Koprivcic 64)
Hawke’s Bay United 0
Halftime 3-0

Sunday

Waikato FC 3 (Aaron Scott 29, Steven Holloway 45, 73-pen)
YoungHeart Manawatu 2 (Gouzalo Nieres 18, Prince Quansar 53)
Halftime: 2-1

Team Wellington 1 (Steve Gulley 73)
Otago United 0
Halftime: 0-0

Canterbury United 1 (Michael Fifii 61)
Auckland City 2 (Ki-Hyung Lee 21, Alex Feneridis 41)
Halftime: 0-2

STANDINGS

Name	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
Auckland City	14	11	2	1	29	9	20	35
Waitakere United	14	10	2	2	40	11	29	32
Team Wellington	14	9	2	3	30	17	13	29
Hawke's Bay United	13	5	4	4	19	20	-1	19
Waikato FC	13	4	3	6	16	18	-2	15
YoungHeart Manawatu	13	4	2	7	22	33	-11	14
Otago United	13	1	3	9	6	27	-21	6
CanterburyUnited	14	0	2	12	11	38	-27	2

Auckland City returned to the top of the New Zealand Football Championship with a 2-0 win over Waikato FC while Waitakere gave away a two goal lead to Manawatu at FMG Stadium in Palmerston North.

In the match of the round, Waitakere, fresh from their 2-0 triumph over Auckland last week started strongly and found themselves 2-0 up after 52 minutes with goals to Benjamin Totori and Daniel Koprivcic respectively.

Uruguayan striker Gouzalo Nieres pegged a goal back for Manawatu after an hour and his second - a penalty for Eaddy's red-card wrestle with Dominic Rowe as both contested the ball - set up a dramatic final 15 minutes.

Referee Antony Riley sent off Eaddy, a decision that enraged Waitakere coach Chris Milicich. With defender Darren Bazeley having to fill in between the sticks, a third Manawatu goal was always a chance and crowd favorite Adam Cowan provided the game winner, three minutes into added time.

By contrast Auckland’s win at the Croatian Club was un-contentious. The home side went ahead in the 13th minute after veteran striker Grant Young latched onto a Salesh Kumar through ball to lop over Waikato goalkeeper Dan Robinson. Auckland’s dominance was reinforced in the 39th minute when Ky-Hung Lee found space in the midfield to unleash a right footed cannon into the top corner from all of 30 yards.

Both teams had chances in the second spell though no one could find the back of the net.

In Saturday’s matches Team Wellington and Hawke’s Bay united kept up the pressure on the top two with wins.

Veteran striker Graham Little scored a second-half hat-trick to march Wellington home 3-0 over bottom placed Canterbury at Porirua Park.

His first in the 47th minute was a fortunate ricochet from a clearing kick by young goalkeeper Michael O'Keefe, the second was a well-taken penalty in the 77th minute and the third a neat finish five minutes later as he slipped his markers.

In the other Saturday game Hawke’s Bay beat Otago 3-1 at Napier after the teams had been level 1-1 right up until the 88th minute.

NZFC Round 11 Results

Team Wellington 3 (Graham Little 47 / 77-pen / 82)
Canterbury United 0
Halftime: 0-0

Hawke’s Bay United 3 (Sam Messam 13, Jeremy Brockie 88, Jonathan Taylor 89)
Otago United 1 (Own Goal 16)
Halftime: 1-1

Sunday

YoungHeart Manawatu 3 (Gouzalo Nieres 61 / 72-pen, Adam Cowan 90+1 )
Waitakere United 2 (Benjamin Totori 26, Daniel Koprivcic 52)
Halftime: 0-1

Auckland City 1 (Grant Young 13, Ki-Hyung Lee 39)
Waikato FC 0
Halftime: 2-0

NZFC Standings

Name	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
Auckland City	12	9	2	1	25	8	+17	29
Waitakere United	12	9	1	2	34	10	+24	28
Team Wellington	12	8	2	2	29	15	+14	26
Hawke's Bay United	11	5	3	3	19	15	+24	18
Waikato FC	11	3	2	6	13	16	-3	11
YoungHeart Manawatu	11	3	2	6	17	28	-11	11
Otago United	11	1	2	8	5	25	-20	5
Canterbury United	12	0	2	10	8	33	-25	2

The two heavyweights of OFC football will battle for bragging rights at Fred Taylor Park in Auckland tomorrow as Waitakere United take on Auckland City in round 10 of the NZFC.

Current O-League champions Waitakere are fresh from a 9-1 trouncing of bottom placed Canterbury United in last weeks NZFC match-up, but will head into the game as underdogs against an Auckland City side which has won nine out of the last 12 encounters with the West Auckland club.

Auckland sit atop the NZFC table after ten matches but are only separated by a point from their inter city rivals. The last encounter between the two sides ended in a 1-1 draw at the Croatian club in round four.

Since that match the two Auckland clubs have dominated the league with Waitakere winning six straight and Auckland only dropping points when they drew 1-1 with third place Wellington.

Goals have been coming thick and fast for Waitakere and leading the charge is Solomon Islands international Benjamin Totori. Last years golden boot winner has scored seven goals from ten games and is currently battling with Graham little of Auckland (also on seven goals) for this years title.

Totori’s lightening speed and samba-like skills have terrorized NZFC defenses this year and he will be hoping to break down a stingy Auckland defense which hasn’t conceded a goal in almost six hours of football (344 minutes since Wiremu Patrick’s goal for Wellington in round seven).

But Auckland will be looking to reinstate their dominance in the only derby of the NZFC and key to that will be centre-back and captain Ben Sigmund. The former Canterbury United star has been a rock at the back for Auckland this season and has also contributed at the other end, notching three goals in nine matches.

In other NZFC matches tomorrow troubled Canterbury United travel to Waikato in a match where both teams will be desperate for win. Canterbury United’s stocks are so depleted that Coach Danny Halligan will take a spot on their bench tomorrow and Waikato will be looking to take advantage having not score in their last two outings.
 
In Napier Wellington will be hoping to build some momentum after there 2-0 win over Waikato last week but will be up against a very determined and talented Hawke's bay side who are brimming with confidence after their 3-1 win last week against Manawatu.

Manawatu will travel to Otago with a point to prove after a run of disappointing results.

NZFC Standings

	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
Auckland	10	8	2	0	23	6	+17	26
Waitakere	10	8	1	1	30	7	+23	25
Wellington	10	7	1	2	24	13	+11	22
Hawke’s Bay	9	4	2	3	14	12	+2	14
Waikato	9	2	2	5	10	13	-3	8
Manawatu	9	2	1	6	14	26	-12	7
Otago	9	1	1	7	4	22	-18	4
Canterbury	10	0	2	8	7	27	-20	2