Oceania Champions League 2011-2013
Ramon Tribulietx stepped up from an assistant coaching role to guide Auckland City FC to a triple championship, ushering in a new footballing era for the New Zealand champions.
Champions League 2011
A disappointing finals loss to Waitakere United in the New Zealand domestic championship left Auckland City hungry for success in the Champions League.
Stepping up in the wake of Paul Posa’s resignation, Tribulietx took the reins alongside co-coach Aaron McFarland and Auckland City began their 2011 O-League campaign in Group B with a definitive win against AS Magenta.
The New Zealanders had lost many of their core players through retirement and injury, but three first-half goals were enough to put early nerves to rest.
A series of draws saw all teams drop points against one another but Auckland were finally able to clear the melee with a 1-0 victory over Magenta. In a match that looked to be played to another draw, it was Spanish import Manel Exposito who broke the deadlock after 83 minutes.
It was a turning point in group B and with Waitakere losing a crucial match to Tefana, Auckland City emerged from the group stage undefeated, comfortably through to the final and six points clear of second placed Waitakere.
Group A kicked off in variable fashion, with newcomers Amicale FC of Vanuatu stunning title holders Hekari United 2-1 at Port Moresby.
The O-League debutants impressed as Fenedy Masauvakalo opened the scoring for Amicale in the 23rd minute.
Jack Wetney would score again for Amicale early into the second half, and while Henry Fa’arodo got one back for Hekari, it was not enough for the defending champions.
Hekari, who were also preparing for the FIFA Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi later that year, would not be able to repeat the heroics of the previous season and closed their O-League campaign with only one win.
Amicale continued their strong form, emerging from the shadow of Vanuatu giants Tafea.
After a narrow loss to Lautoka, they continued to gain points in the ensuing rounds.
They would meet Lautoka once more and this time Amicale were the victors in a comprehensive 5-1 victory which saw star striker Vasauvakalo collect a hat-trick.
Despite a loss in their final group game against Koloale, Amicale were through to the final, continuing their dream run in their debut O-League season.
In front of a Port Vila crowd of over 8000 people, City were made to work for the 2-1 win under scorching heat conditions which would have otherwise ended in a draw if not for a late winner by Luis Corrales.
City led the match going into the second half but it was Amicale skipper Vasauvakalo, the forerunner for the golden boot, who equalised for the home in the 67th minute.
From then on the visitors struggled to respond until Corrales came off the bench and made his mark in the 82nd minute, keeping Auckland alive going into the second leg.
Playing at home, Auckland City won the final 4-0 and 6-1 on aggregate, where Alex Feneridis opened the scoring in the 26th minute. No more goals were scored until Daniel Koprivcic found the net in the 62nd minute, and then Manel Exposito and Adam McGeorge added to the tally at 72’ and 82’ respectively.
Auckland qualified for the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, where they would lose 2-0 to Japanese champions Kashiwa Reysol in the quarter-final play-offs, but this third OFC title marked the beginning of Auckland City’s comeback and subsequent domination of the Champions League.
Champions League: Auckland City
Runners-up: Amicale
Golden Boot: Fenedy Masauvakalo (Amicale) 8
Champions League 2012
2012 saw defending champions Auckland City take a comfortable route to the final against their Group B opponents Amicale, Koloale, and Hekari, while in Group A Tahitian side Tefana made history as they qualified for the Champions League final for the first time.
With Waitakere United and Auckland drawn in opposing groups, it was an unexpected victory for Tefana, especially after losing 10-0 to Waitakere on the first match day.
However Tefana bounced back from that loss and were undefeated for the rest of their group stage run, finishing top of the group just a point against Waitakere United.
The first of the two-legged final was played at Kiwitea Street, with Auckland emerging with a 2-1 win courtesy of second half goals from David Mulligan and Daniel Koprivcic.
Axel Williams responded for Tefana in the 72nd minute but the aggregate was in Auckland’s favour heading into the second leg.
It was a less clear-cut victory for Auckland in Papeete, with Tefana squandering a chance for an early lead and eventual Golden Boot winner Exposito scoring for Auckland just before the first half whistle.
Tefana pressed on against the visitors and it looked like the tide would turn in their favour when Alex Feneridis was sent off after 69 minutes for a rough challenge against Sebastian Labayen.
However the Tahitians could not take advantage and the result remained 3-1 on aggregate to Auckland City, and the New Zealanders retained the Champions League title for the second year running.
Tribulietx, now the sole head coach of the New Zealand side, paid compliments to the Tefana side after the game.
“They were very strong defensively and difficult to play against. We knew it was going to be tight and in the end one goal was enough for us. I think we deserve it when you look at the work we have put in over the season and we are very happy.”
Qualifying for the FIFA Club World in Japan, Auckland City faced Sanfrecce Hiroshima in a tightly fought match but eventually went down 1-0 after Toshihiro Aoyama fired at long range to beat Auckland keeper Tamati Williams.
Champions League: Auckland City
Runners-up: AS Tefana
Golden Boot: Manel Exposito (Auckland City) 6
Champions League 2013
The Champions League format was altered slightly in 2013, with a preliminary stage as well as a semi-finals play-off added to the path to the final. The runners-up of Group A would play the winner of Group B, and vice versa to decide the two final teams.
Auckland City squeezed their way through to the semi-final play-off, dropping points at home against Tahiti’s AS Dragon and Waitakere to finish second in Group B behind their inter-city rivals.
Auckland played against Group A winners Ba, who were undefeated in the group stage, and advanced to the final after accumulating a 7-1 aggregate against the Fijians.
Waitakere played off against Group A runners-up Amicale, winning 4-1 on aggregate and dashing the Vanuatuans’ hopes of repeating the glory days of 2011.
The final itself was also different, with a single match played on neutral ground instead of the previous two-legged format.
United and City found themselves in a Super City final derby in front of a sell-out crowd of 3,000 at Mt Smart Stadium, the first ever final to feature two clubs from the same country.
Auckland City started strong as Adam Dickinson was on hand to receive a rebound off Waitakere keeper Danny Robinson in the 16th minute after Takuya Iwata’s effort was palmed away.
This was closely followed by Alex Feneridis not five minutes later and Robinson was again beat by a superb strike from the Auckland midfielder.
United was able to reply with a goal in the 40th minute from Chad Coombes, but after the half there were no further goals to be scored, although Tim Myers was sent off after having received a second bookable offence.
Auckland held on as Waitakere put on the pressure in the closing minutes of extra time and it would be the third consecutive trophy for coach Ramon Tribulietx.
It was a satisfying win for Tribulietx after having to watch as Waitakere’s runaway exploits in the domestic league as well as the group stage left Auckland continually in runners-up position.
“This was the tightest of our title wins in this competition and we
knew it probably would be because all the derbies have been very close this year,” Tribulietx said.
“I was pleased with the belief of the players as well, having lost a few times to Waitakere this season it was impressive that they were able to come back and win a game like this. We’ll start to think about the World Cup next week but for now we just want to enjoy this moment.”
It was history in the making as Auckland City earned their third consecutive Champions League title, and won the right to represent Oceania in the FIFA Club World Cup in Morocco. It was the fifth time City had earned a spot in the quarter-final playoff, the most out of any team to make an appearance at the Club World Cup alongside Egyptian team Al-Ahly.
Champions League: Auckland City
Runners-up: Waitakere United
Golden Boot: Sanni Issa (Ba) 9