A drama-filled 2-2 draw between Tahiti United and PNG Hekari has ultimately eliminated both teams from the Challengers Group Play-Off picture, with a point apiece not enough to allow either team to catch the group leaders.
Late goals from Lekima Gonerau and Joseph Athale gave the game a pulsating ending but cancelled out both club’s attempts to reach the last four.
PNG Hekari welcomed back Head Coach Jerry Allen to the bench following his visa issues, the man in charge making five changes to the team that were beaten by Vanuatu United in the first game of the Challengers Group.
Tahiti United meanwhile were content with just the one amendment to the team that were beaten by Solomon Kings first time out in Auckland, Sam Garcia bringing back talismanic skipper Teaonui Tehau for Mateo Degrumelle.
It was Tahiti who carved open the games first opportunity just ten minutes in, but when Matatia Paama squared across the face of goal, Germain Haewegene screwed his shot past the far post. Shortly afterwards, Teaonui Tehau had the ball in the back of the net but was correctly ruled offside.
Hekari’s Kasum Gabriel fared better a quarter of an hour in. Played in down the left hand side of the penalty area, the midfielder cracked a low shot across Jackson Gardner and into the back of the net for his maiden OFC Pro League strike.
The side from PNG continued to threaten, a corner from Joseph Joe coming back off the crossbar, before Logan Biwa bundled home a cross from close range three minutes from the break, only for the goal to be disallowed for handball.
Whilst rarely threatening during the opening forty-five minutes, Tahiti went into the interval on level terms via straightforward means. A left-wing corner was met at the near post by the leaping Tevita Waranaivalu who planted a firm header past Christinus Biasi.
Chances for both teams were at a premium at the start of the second-half, Tahiti beginning to gain the ascendency as the fixture went on, denied by some stubborn PNG defending and some wayward finishing.
Hekari offered sporadic moments on the counterattack, seeking to use the pace of Rex Naime to unsettle the Tahiti rearguard, as a spate of yellow cards racked up in the official’s notebook, the encounter becoming fractious with the season on the line for both outfits.
A point was no good to either team in their efforts to make the Play-Off clash, so it was little surprise that caution was thrown to the wind in the final stages. The men from PNG thought they had won it when Naime smashed a shot at goal in the 84th minute, only for Gardner to claw the ball wide, but the Tahiti ‘keeper was powerless to prevent Hekari moments later.
A free kick from close to the touchline was flicked on by Naime over the head of Gardner where Gonerau pounced to nod home. Incredibly, the drama wasn’t done and within sixty seconds Athale arrived unmarked in the area to power home the equaliser.
However, try as they might, PNG substitute Ati Kepo brilliantly denied by a sprawling Gardner, neither team could get the vital goal to keep their season alive.
Tahiti United FC: 2 (Tevita WARANAIVALU 45+3’, Joseph ATHALE 88’)
PNG Hekari FC: 2 (Kasum GABRIEL 15’, Lekima GONERAU 87’)
HT: 1-1
Photo credit: OFC Media via Phototek