New Caledonian club Drehu Athletico Club will be looking to follow in the footsteps of compatriots and inaugural OFC Women’s Champions League winners AS Academy Féminine when they touch down in the Solomon Islands for the fourth edition of the tournament.
AS Academy Fémade history by winning the very-first staging of the OFC Women’s Champions League in 2023 in Port Moresby, something fellow New Caledonian club Drehu Athletico club are taking inspiration from ahead of their 2026 campaign in Honiara.
“We want to become the second New Caledonian team to achieve the challenge of winning the OFC Women’s Champions League after AS Academy,” says Drehu Athletico Club head coach Leon Waitronyie.
“Unlike they did, however, we have the New Zealand powerhouse (Auckland United) standing in our way.”
Drehu have been drawn alongside the two-time defending champions Auckland United in Group B, a group which only features three teams due to the withdrawal of AS Pirae from Tahiti, and also includes qualifying winners Puaikura FC from the Cook Islands.
Waitronyie is also the coach of the New Caledonia U-20 women’s national team who will participate in a FIFA women’s event for the first time at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup™ in Poland later this year. He also recently selected and coached the senior national team during their FIFA Series campaign in Thailand in March.
The domestic women’s league in New Caledonia started late for Drehu Athletico Club on the 16th of May, just over a month ago, but Waitronyie has stated his side’s goal remains to win the OFC Women’s Champions League.
History
Drehu Athletico Club will be making their debut at the OFC Women’s Champions League this year.
No club from New Caledonia was represented at last year’s edition, whilst AS Academy previously competed in 2023 and 2024, winning the inaugural staging of the tournament in 2023.
Squad
The squad’s preparation for the OFC Women’s Champions League has been difficult with 40% of the players based on Lifou in the Loyalty Islands, and the remaining 60% based in Noumea.
Unsurprisingly, Waitronyie’s squad features a core of players who will travel to Poland for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. As well as a shot at continental silverware, the OFC Women’s Champions League also serves as preparation for the global event for some of the Drehu players.
In fact, six of the 23-strong squad were called up for the senior national team’s FIFA Series campaign, and all are eligible to compete for the U-20s on the global stage at the end of the year.
Player to Watch
Kané Dralu
17-year-old Kané Dralu is one of those set to feature for New Caledonia at FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2026 and is one of the stars of the nation’s talented crop of young female players.
She’ll be key for Drehu Athletico Club up front during their OFC Women’s Champions League campaign and has previously starred at OFC competition before for New Caledonia at U-16 level.
Dralu also made her senior international debut for New Caledonia during the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027™ Oceania Qualifiers, making an instant impression with a goal in a 2-1 win over Vanuatu.
Drehu Athletico Club Squad list
