Dragon proved worthy of their title after going through the season unbeaten, posting 11 wins and three draws from their 14 games. One of those victories was a recent 1-0 success over Tamarii Faa’a, a result that clinched them the championship.
Over 500 spectators turned out to witness them take the title but those fans had to wait until deep into injury time to have anything to celebrate.
The tie appeared to be heading for a scoreless stalemate until André Teikihakaupoko popped up in the 94th minute to secure both the win and the title.
Dragon, coached by Graugnard Ludovic, went on to confirm their superiority by finishing the season with two further wins, 5-0 over Tapuhute and 3-2 over 2012 O-League finalists Tefana.
Tamarii Faa’a secured a runners-up placing after defeating Pirae – who made the final of the OFC Club Championship in 2006 – 3-2 in their next game but finished on a low note with a surprise 6-0 loss to Tapuhute, the same side that fell to a similarly heavy loss against Dragon just the week before.
Dragon will now compete against other champion clubs from across the Pacific in the 2013 edition of the O-League. As well as the new Tahitian qualifiers, sides from Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu will definitely be taking part while the involvement of a further country will be determined next month at the O-League preliminary tournament in Tonga.
Teams from hosts Tonga, American Samoa, Cook Islands and Samoa will battle it out for the right to take on New Caledonia’s Mont-Dore in a play-off for a place in the 2013 O-League. Mont-Dore must take part in the play-off after securing less points than the seven other teams in the 2012 O-League.
Dragon will have sizeable boots to fill in the O-League as current Tahitian representatives Tefana have lost only one game in this season’s campaign and have a chance to win the title in taking on Auckland City in the home-and-away final. The first leg takes place in Auckland on April 29 while the second will be held in Tahiti on May 12.
For more on Tahiti football go to www.ftf.pf

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