Side from New Zealand win their third consecutive OFC Champions League crown – but gap to the rest of the continent is closing
Review
The end result was more predictable than ever as Auckland City beat their Tahitian hosts AS Pirae to claim a record 12th OFC Champions League crown, but the earlier stages showed further signs of the gap closing.
New Zealand’s grand final runners-up have now won the last three OFC titles and ten of the last 12 dating back to 2011, but only won Group A on goal difference after being held 2-2 by Fijian side Rewa in their opening game.
Auckland captain Cam Howieson put his team ahead before the game took a dramatic turn in a crazy six-minute spell. Two goals in three minutes from Josaia Sela briefly put the Fijians ahead, before Ryan de Vries equalised for Auckland in the 67th minute.
The New Zealanders had to settle for a point, and then only just took all three in their next game after a 93rd-minute goal from Liam Gillion saw off 2010 champions Hekari United from Papua New Guinea. Their final game was more comfortable at least, thrashing Solomon Warriors 5-0 to seal top spot.
By that stage, the Solomon Islands champions had already been eliminated after losing their first game to Hekari and then being edged out 3-2 by Rewa. Meanwhile, Hekari went into the final match of Group A needing a win against Rewa to claim a semi-final spot. The game was in the balance going into the final minutes, but a goal from Fijian attacking midfielder Tevita Waranaivalu claimed a 3-2 win for Rewa, who went through in second place.
In Group B, Vaivase-Tai, Samoa’s representatives – and the sole qualifier from the preliminary round – put up some resistance but predictably found themselves outclassed. Alton Leiataua’s goal in a 5-1 defeat against Vanuatu’s Ifira Black Bird in their final game was Vaivase-Tai’s sole return and at least represented an improvement on a 6-0 opening defeat to Pirae and an 8-0 drubbing from New Caledonia’s AS Magenta.
With the two French territories grinding out a 0-0 draw and winning both their other games, Pirae claimed top spot by a single goal after Magenta could only beat Ifira Black Bird 2-1 in their final game thanks to a stoppagetime winner – Pirae had thrashed the Vanuatuan outfit 5-1.
In the first of the semi-finals, Auckland faced old rivals Magenta, who had knocked the New Zealanders out at the same stage in 2019. Germain Haewegene had scored eight goals in 11 games in the New Caledonia Premier League and five in the group stages, but Pierre Wajoka’s side had three days less to recover from their last game compared to their opponents and laboured.
Goalkeeper Conor Tracey kept a third consecutive clean sheet for Auckland and 17-year-old Stipe Ukich converted in the 6
