2023 Men’s National League – Week 2
Christchurch United vs Wellington Phoenix Reserves
Christchurch United began their MNL campaign by laying down another statement in a year that’s been full of them. A commanding Southern League title defence. A Chatham Cup title. Then last week they beat Eastern Suburbs for the second time this year – the only team to beat Suburbs at all – and with that legitimised their status as a National League contender. The one thing counting against them was whether they could translate their results from being a big fish in the Southern League pond to the MNL against a bunch of other teams who are also the best in their regions. But yeah nah no need to worry about that. Paul Ifill made one change to his eleven from last week: Dan MacLennan in for Joel Peterson, with the Rams continuing with the back four that they ended in against Suburbs.
WeeNix bossman Chris Greenacre kept the same defensive quartet that limited Auckland City so well last time. However there were a couple of changes elsewhere with Dan McKay absent, one of their best and most experienced players, while Daniel Makowem dropped to the bench. In true 2023 Welly Nix fashion that cleared the paths for two of the academy’s absolute premier emerging players in Anaru Cassidy and Gabriel Sloane-Rodrigues. Oskar Zawada did a Q&A on his instagram earlier in the week in which he singled out Sloane-Rodrigues as the hottest talent in the system. Both Cassidy and GSR are in line for the U17 World Cup in November. The Phoenix are all about the pathways these days.
Couldn’t tell ya what happened in the first five minutes because the stream had some dramas. Might’ve had something to do with the wild winds reaping havoc across the country, though stuttering starts and black screens have been annoyingly common so far as the FIFA+ partnership battles through some teething issues (NZF’s apparent preference for having commentators working remotely sure gets exposed in moments like that). But we didn’t miss any goals so no biggie.
It was Christchurch United who were on top, albeit with some ragged finishing keeping them from making the most of it. Those wild winds were bending the pine trees in the background so of course any hanging aerial ball was being affected too – taking away what otherwise should have been a major advantage for the Rams. So instead they largely kept the ball on the deck, knocking it back and forth, trying to find ways to progress behind the lines. Nix centre-backs Marco Lorenz and Seth Karunaratne continued where they left off last time and they weren’t alone in really hustling around and giving the CU guys absolute minimum space on the ball. It really was amazing how often the WeeNix lads could get a pesky foot in to disrupt things. The bouncy artificial surface was a bit annoying too, yet both these teams should be used to that.
There just wasn’t any space for the Rams to work with and if they took an extra touch to try and find some then the ball would suddenly be gone. And so we circled back around to those chaotic aerials into the breeze, not only the initial crosses but also the bobbly stuff afterwards, like when Eddie Wilkinson tried a couple of snapshots or when Aaron O’Driscoll headed over the top from a corner. Nil-all at the break.
Things stretched out as the second half began. Both teams looked to press nice and high (albeit cautiously)... and it was from that press that the Rams busted through. Turning the ball over in a good spot then finding just enough room to do the rest. Eddie Wilkinson with a clever little dink into the area, Sam Philip with a beauty of a left-footed finish first time into the bottom corner. Smooooth.
Often a goal makes all the differencein the bag, and with that one in the bag it seemed like CU were getting the hang of things, moving the ball quicker in the knowledge that there was no time to dwell. One such move sent Jago Godden through on the end of some silky one-touchers but while he got around the long out-stretched leg of Alby Kelly-Heald, he couldn’t get a shot away and the Rams couldn’t figure out what to do with the leftovers. Soon Ben Lapslie had pushed forward and curled one over. The Nix back four were still hurling themselves in front of everything but the problem was that there were now a lot more things that needed hurling in front of. Eventually the inevitable did occur: a headed goal from a set piece. Aaron O’Driscoll did the business getting his noggin onto an Eoghan Stokes delivery. The Irish Connection.
That was immediately followed by a quadruple substitution by the Nix. You know how that goes. Sloane-Rodrigues was one of the lads replaced – gotta be honest, we didn’t really see much of him in this game. There were a few hints in the first half with a shot pinged wide and the occasional stepover but his National League showcase will have to wait for another day. Elsewhere Daniel Makowen found an opening on 89’ from a rare ball forward that the CU CBs didn’t immediately deal with. DM lined up a crack first time with Scott Morris slightly out of position but he sliced it into the fence behind the goal. Cool to see Nick Murphy and Eric Sugahara get some late minutes for the Rams against a few of their NZ U17s teammates. Sam Philip had a chance for CU right at the death but AKH made the near post save. The final whistle soon followed. 2-0 to Christchurch United. Sweet as.
Two games and two clean sheet victories for Christchurch United, that’s how the real deal teams go about their work. Auckland City are doing similar things. Aaron O’Driscoll and Cameron Lindsay have been completely dominant so far. Scott Morris has taken care of the rest. And that Wilkinson/Philip combination up top gives them a little something extra on top of the winter stuff. The Rams have a tough one away to Auckland United next week, though it’s the last three weeks that are shaping up to be the decisive ones. That’s when they take on Wellington Olympic (A), Cashmere Technical (H), and Auckland City (A). With a potential grand final to follow... if it all goes to plan.
Two defeats and zero goals for the Wellington Phoenix. Nothing to panic about. The fixture list gets more generous from here on out (until they meet Olympic in round nine). So far Chris Greenacre has used 18 different players and that doesn’t include anyone on a senior deal – although four scholarship contracts are up for grabs to be announced after this National League season. That’s what the lads are competing for. We shall see who stands out above the crowd in the coming weeks.
Christchurch United 2-0 Wellington Phoenix Reserves
Goals (Assists)
53’ | CU | 1-0 | Philip (Wilkinson)
78’ | CU | 2-0 | O’Driscoll (Stokes)
Wellington Olympic vs Napier City Rovers
There was not a single draw in the first round of the men’s comp. Five winners from five games and these two teams were the ones that won by the most. This was a top of the table clash! (... for what that’s worth after only one game). Wellington Olympic made just a single change to the side that popped Manurewa, with Oliver Davies replacing Gavin Hoy in the eleven. Davies top scored for Olympic’s reserve team this year after previously playing for Havelock North. He’s 19 years old and originally from Gisbourne. Otherwise it was all your usual faves for the Central League champs. Meanwhile Napier City didn’t change a thing after a fine performance in the win over Petone. A luscious Martin Luckie Park was the venue. Off we go.
It took all of ten seconds before Jack-Henry Sinclair was blitzing down the right wing and lashing a shot just past the far post. Pretty soon Joel Stevens was threatening with a fizzing cross from the other side. And in the fourth minute of action, Stevens hit a magical switch over to JHS who took the ball down sweetly on the move and then popped one infield for Gianni Bouzoukis to tap home the opening goal. So... yeah, pretty emphatic from the Greeks early on.
Admittedly, NCR’s Deri Corfe did then force a save after some slick work creating room to shoot. But Basalaj was up to the task and pretty soon the Olympic gloveman was back to wishing he had binoculars to follow the action 90-odd metres away. Because fast forward this sucker until the 30th minute and Olympic were up by four. Jack-Henry Sinclair buried a couple of undeniable ones from Kailan Gould assists, shifting the ball along where it needed to go. One was a thumper from JHS, the other was a sweet one-two. Then some pace from Joel Stevens on the other wing and a precise striker’s run from Bouzoukis gave the latter his second of the arvo.
This was Wellington Olympic at their free-flowing best. They hadn’t been able to get out running in this way against Manurewa last week (not at first anyway) but Napier City, who are much more familiar with WO’s game, just didn’t have an answer. Which perhaps shouldn’t have been a surprise because Olympic did score ten times against NCR in winter action (in 6-3 and 4-1 wins). This team is unstoppable when they get those quick outlets to their wingers on the move. Stevens and Sinclair. Not only are they unstoppable but they’re absolutely joyful to watch... unless your team is on the other end. NCR did have some occasional hints on attack yet that pace out wide was just slaying them. Cold-blooded killing them. Olympic were committing acts of righteous violence and it felt like they could add to that scoreline at any moment.
But NCR did muscle down after that dirty half hour and in fact they pulled a goal back just before the break. Some interplay between Christian Leopard and Jonny McNamara had started things. Jack Cawley made a superb goal-line block for the Greeks to deny Ry McLeod’s effort... but the rebound fell to Deri Corfe who buried it for his third of the competition already. 4-1 at half-time. Okay then. That’s not quite so bad.
Rovers threw on Cameron Emerson in place of McLeod at the break but it didn’t really make a difference. This was Wellington Olympic in full flow... although Christian Leopard did go close with a runaway for NCR about ten mins into the half. Alas, he missed the target so Olympic simply went up the other end and did the deed themselves. Gould stole the ball off Doe in the midfield. KG fed in Sinclair who took it around the keeper. Then JHS flipped it across for Gianni Bouzoukis to complete his hat-trick after only 56 minutes of football.
Bad to worse. Coach Bill Robertson subbed off Ta Eh Doe after he picked up a yellow card for the second consecutive game. Don’t wanna risk a red on top of what was already a perilous situation, right? Yeah well maybe tell that to Jonny McNamara whose frustrations were already clear when Jack Cawley didn’t give him the ball back after a foul so McNamara slapped it out of his hands. About a minute later he and Cawley had some kind of incident off the ball which left Cawley on the deck and the referee brandishing a red one. That’s him out for the next couple weeks... and Rovers still had 25 more minutes to survive.
The first fifteen of those went alright. Tor Davenport-Peterson did put the ball in the net (from a Sinclair assist of course) but it was flagged offside. The last ten no so much. Sinclair completed his hatty with a driving low volley on 81’ and then Ben Mata added his prerequisite penalty on 85’. Both those goals were set up by substitute Gavin Hoy. Sinclair’s was a driven half-volley, Mata’s was his typical composed gentle nudge sending the keeper the wrong way.
A tip-off from the Olympic statman (cheers Steve) says that Mata has now scored 20 goals across all competitions this year... and 16 of them have been penalties. Also Bouzoukis and Sinclair’s hat-tricks were the 99th and 100th in the club’s history going back to 1970 (which was when they got in on the Central League pyramid). Bouzoukis has nine career hatties for the Greeks. He has 96 goals in 122 games for the club. If you don’t think he’s one of the best centre-forwards in the country then think again.
Olympic had a 7-1 win against Christchurch Utd in last year’s National League. This is becoming an annual thing for them. The Greeks have scored 12 goals in two games. Jack-Henry Sinclair scored three and had two assists to go with his goal and assist last week – that’s seven goal contributions already, no other player has more than three so far. Gould and Hoy had a pair of assist each. And Hamish Watson didn’t even play... this team has such a remarkable array of attacking talent that they did all that while Watto was presumably busy on the worksite or whatever.
As for Rovers, at least Deri Corfe got another one. He’s scored in both games so far... but those two games have been completely contrasting. A 4-0 win then a 7-1 loss. 17 goals conceded in three games against Olympic this year. They’re better than this and they’ll show that again before the season is over but if there’s one consolation from this hefty defeat it’s that they won’t have to play this lot again until 2024. Rovers have now lost ten times in a row against Olympic in all competitions, and they’ve conceded at least four goals in each of the last six (again, cheers Steve).
Wellington Olympic 7-1 Napier City Rovers
4’ | WO | 1-0 | Bouzoukis (Sinclair)
11’ | WO | 2-0 | Sinclair (Gould)
22’ | WO | 3-0 | Sinclair (Gould)
29’ WO | 4-0 | Bouzoukis (Stevens)
45+1’ | NCR | 4-1 | Corfe
56’ | WO | 5-1 | Bouzoukis (Sinclair)
65’ | NCR | Red Card to Jonny McNamara
81’ | WO | 6-1 | Sinclair (Hoy)
85’ | WO | 7-1 | Mata [p] (Hoy)
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Petone vs Cashmere Technical
125 years of Petone football and on Saturday the club hosted National League footy for the first time. Petone Memorial Park against Cashmere Technical, both teams seeking to bounce back from round one defeats. Petone were perhaps caught off-guard in their MNL debut as they lost 3-0 to a Napier City Rovers team that they’d won and drawn against during the winter. Cashmere Tech started great with the first goal against Auckland United but a red card altered that one drastically and they ended up going down 2-1.
Four changes for Petone. In came Jamaya Shearer, Amir Mandalawi, Isaac Snell, and Jared Eglinton. Shearer played on the wing, Eglington as one of their more advanced central midfielders alongside Sam Pickering who operated a bit higher with Mandalawi as the CDM. The Pickering bros also swapped the armband over. Ollie wore it last time, Sam wore it this time. Snell jumped into the back four at right back with Coran Perks sliding centrally next to Abdallah Khaled.
Cashmere Tech didn’t need to do anything drastic, they just needed to keep eleven men on the park. So two changes for them with one being enforced as Lachie McIsaac was obviously suspended. Captain Tom Schwarz returned to the line-up in place of him with Sam Richards moving out to left back. Declan Tyndall also replaced last week’s goal scorer JJ Richards in the starting team.
For about ten minutes this one was a cautious grind, both teams testing the waters. Petone had some useful possession but Technical were sitting back and letting them. Then out of nothing Yuya Taguchi switched the ball over to Lyle Matthysen on the left wing for CT, who whipped a low cross into the far post where Aidan Barbour-Ryan stretched out to touch it into the net for 1-0. Just like that. Three decisive actions like Zorro carving out his initial.
Soon it was back to the previous pattern, only now Petone had some extra sauce on their burgers. Khaled chipped a long ball over the top to Matt Brazier who took a silky touch but blasted his shot high. Then Eglinton headed over from a corner before Shearer hit the post following a delicious pass from Brazier. Sam Pickering took some paint off the crossbar with a chipped attempt, although that one always looked unlikely. Then just before the half there was a great (and convenient) chance for Perks in the area who punted it off target just like a defender. Pickering (of the Sam variety) also drew a save out of Matt Foord in stoppage time.
To be fair there were also some Cashmere moments in amongst all that. A super pass from Coughlan towards Tyndall who struck the crossbar. A chip-and-chase from Schwarz for Coughlan whose header went wide. But despite being 1-0 down at the half it was Petone who were on top. They had that locked-in focus, jogging off the pitch when the whistle went and then making sure they were the first team out for the second half kick-off.
Unfortunately it’s one thing to give yourself a chance, it’s another thing to take that chance. Petone couldn’t do that in the first half. Cashmere Technical, a much more experienced side at this level, weren’t gonna let them get away with it. They turned up the heat in the second half... starting with Coughlan’s goal on 53’. This was a weird one. Tech had won a free kick and Aidan Barbour-Ryan tried to get the ball back off Khaled for a quickie. Khaled shrugged him off and threw it to Cory Mitchell instead... so Mitchell dropped it at his feet and picked out GC who did the rest. In stopping one quick free kick, Khaled allowed for another one.
2-0 became 3-0 on 58’ when a period of sustained attack ended with a Yuya Taguchi and Lyle Matthysen one-two (reminiscent of the Gould x Sinclair one that earlier WO vs NCR game), with Taguchi doing the honours. Petone did get one back on 66’ when Sam Pickering’s clever backheel sent Matt Brazier into the area where he was clipped by Foord. Brazier then buried the penalty as he usually does. This guy was top scorer in the Central League. He is well aware of how to make that net rustle... and of course it would be Matt Brazier who supplied Petone’s first ever National League goal.
However five minutes later Yuya Taguchi whacked an in-swinging corner kick into a stiff breeze and the defender on the line wasn’t able to clear it before it crossed the line. The second such Olimpico goal of the year after Kailan Gould did similar last week for Olympic – both goals were partly cleared and required linesman decisions to confirm them. Then, with a dozen to go, Tech kept sending blokes forward and they were all queueing up for touches in that Petone area before Coughlan whipped in his second of the arvo. Set up by Taguchi while Caleb Cottom gets a shout out for knowing to stay out of the way and let the big dog eat.
Both teams cleared the benches from there, including CT giving backup keeper Alex Ballard a debut after he was picked up from Dunedin City Royals to cover for when Matt Foord is expected to depart for the U17 World Cup (their usual number one, Danny Knight, is also goalkeeper coach for that team). Petone have used all five available subs in both games with 19 different players having taken the field. This is a young team with a lot of homegrown players so they’re not wasting the opportunity. 5-1 was the final score.
Another chunky defeat for Petone who have conceded eight goals in two games and have yet to meet any of the regional league champions (or any of the Auckland clubs for that matter). There could be some more rough days ahead... but it’s all part of the journey. They were the better team in the first half, just gotta figure out how to make the scoreboard reflect that.
Lovely bounce-back victory for Cashmere Technical though. Yuya Taguchi scored twice and had two assists doing great things in his midfield role. Garbhan Coughlan of course got in amongst the fun with a couple of goals. Lyle Matthysen had two assists while Aidan Barbour-Ryan has clearly picked up a thing or two from playing with Coughlan because he was twisting out of tackles all afternoon... plus he scored the first goal. Last week Tech went 1-0 up in the 11th minute against the run of play but soon copped a red card and went on to lose. This week Tech went 1-0 up in the 11th minute against the run of play and ended up storming to a 5-1 win.
Petone 1-5 Cashmere Technical
11’ | CT | 0-1 | Coughlan (Matthysen)
53’ | CT | 0-2 | Coughlan (Mitchell)
58’ | CT | 0-3 | Taguchi (Matthysen)
66’ | PT | 1-3 | Brazier [pen]
71’ | CT | 1-4 | Taguchi
78’ | CT | 1-5 | Coughlan (Taguchi)
Auckland United vs Eastern Suburbs
A Saturday evening game? 6pm kickoff with the lights on at Keith Hay Park? See now this is what we’re talking about. Keith Hay Park was the home of the Football Ferns during the World Cup so it’s one of many grounds around the country that have had their facilities boosted with FIFA money. Auckland United kept the same starting team that bossed it against ten-men Cashmere Tech last time out (although it took them a long time to break through the defences for a 2-1 win). Noah Billingsley did return from suspension to make the bench though he wasn’t required in the end.
Eastern Suburbs made three changes after losing to Christchurch United in week one. Jackson Jarvie came in at right back, joining his U20 World Cup teammate Aaryan Raj who was at centre-back again. That allowed Campbell Strong (NZ U23s) to move into the midfield while Kingsley Sinclair, back at the club after spending some time in the lower leagues of Germany, slotted in on the left wing. Additionaly there was the veteran Stephen Hoyle who also coaches the women’s team at ESAFC – the women weren’t playing until Sunday and both games were in Auckland so that freed up Hoyle for participations... who these days tends to do his mahi in defence so he linked up with Adam Thomas and Raj in a back three. That gave wingbacks Jarvie and Francis De Vries more room to roam. It also meant they matched the defensive shape of AUFC.
Not a lot of action in the early phases. Suburbs knocked the ball around nicely at the back but other than a couple of clever touches from Jake Mechell they weren’t finding much joy in progressing it. Xavier Green had one shot for United cutting inside and curling into Joe Knowles’ hands but other than that the home side weren’t up to much either. Dre Vollenhoven and Campbell Strong clashed in a couple of hard tackles, trying to set a tone for their teams. Suburbs did begin to turn the screws a little with some corner kicks into the same swirling breeze that seemed to harass all of Aotearoa over the weekend but that didn’t lead to anything. Next it was AU’s turn with deflected shots from Vollenhoven and Nico Zambrano plus a Josh Redfearn header that was cleared off the line by Adam Thomas. Zambrano later lashed a counter-attacking volley wide of the post. Waite made a good save stepping up after Daniel Bunch had snuck in behind off a long boot from his keeper (using that sturdy breeze). But nope, 0-0 at half-time.
The game had begun to open up towards the end of that half, which was nice, and thankfully it continued on that trend in the second stanza. Mechell probably ought to have scored for Subs within a minute of the resumption. Bunch with the speed out wide. Mechell with the shot from the cut-back, just in front of the penalty spot. The ball boy with the collection after Mechell’s shot was scooped over the top. Strong had a couple of moments too... though Knowles then made a wicked save off DV as United countered. It took about 35 minutes in the first half for as many chances as there were in the first five of the second half. Pretty soon after all that we saw Dre Vollenhoven blast a long-ranger off the crossbar. Almost a special one, there.
But it’s goals that count, not close calls and chances. Green and Atkinson, the two wingbacks, had rocket shots for AU that threatened while Vollenhoven always looked like he could do something sneaky. And in fact that’s what he did with a burst down the right edge, leading to a shot from Redfearn that was blocked but Nico Zambrano was there to put it away. 1-0 to Auckland United after 74 mins. We got there in the end, folks.
That lead only lasted ten minutes and it disappeared in a mist of controversy. Stephen Hoyle had stepped up and carried on his run beyond his pass. Boxing out in the area, he cracked a shot towards goal which struck teammate Daniel Bunch and that deflection sent the ball into the bottom corner as keeper Mack Waite appealed for a handball. The FIFA+ coverage ain’t exactly gonna clear it up (although it does show that Bunch was onside which was another possible argument). Suffice to say that it could have been.
So it was that this game ended 1-1... though there was almost aaaaalmost a dramatic late winner for the home side. Yousif Al-Kalisy had been battling away all evening for United with another strong all-round midfield performance and it was his tenacity that sparked a move in the dying seconds. Xavier Green, now playing through the middle after Vollenhoven had limped off, slipped a great ball in for Josh Redfearn who failed to hit the corners with the keeper wrong-footed. Al-Kalisy stayed with the play to sneak around Knowles but his tight-angle finish was cleared off the line by a well-placed Francis De Vries. Then a free kick brought an end to the contest.
Two extremely solid defences had the better of that one. Adam Thomas had a superb game with his timely challenges and steady ball-playing. Al-Kalisy and Strong were really good in the midfield on opposing sides. United were aggrieved at the goal they conceded and regardless of whether it was legit or not that was a freak instance that went against them. On the whole a draw was probably fair though. The Lilywhites haven’t won either of their first two matches and they’re yet to meet Wellington Olympic or Auckland City... there’s some hard yards to be gained if they’re going to make the grand final from here. Both of these teams probably have some questions about their finishing at the end of moves but they’re each so sturdy that they’re going to be in the mixer against anyone.
Auckland United 1-1 Eastern Suburbs
74’ | AU | 1-0 | Zambrano
84’ | ES | 1-1 | Bunch (Hoyle)
Auckland City vs Manurewa AFC
How about the introduction for Manurewa? Back on the national scene after a few decades and their first two games are against last year’s grand finalists. Their 5-2 loss to Wellington Olympic was better than it sounds, for long stretches they were able to contain the Central League triple-champs, at least from open play, and with 57 minutes gone that one was poised at 2-2. But we saw against Napier City what that Greeks team are capable of when they get a roll-on and the same thing happened in the last half hour against Rewa. Still, lots to build from for Paul Marshall’s team.
After using two goalkeepers in week one, Rewa went at signed a third midweek with Western Springs gloveman Regan Diver joining the crew for the MNL. They also welcomed Connor Probert back into the team after he missed the Olympic game. Two strong changes for Rewa. Paul Marshall is a former Auckland City coach too, don’t forget. Took them to the 2006 Club World Cup.
Auckland City ground out a 1-0 win against a dogged WeeNix team to get their National League campaign underway. That was without Ryan De Vries, who has been in colossal goal-scoring form over recent months, but RDV was back for this game. As was Cam Howieson who’d only featured off the bench last time. Howieson slotted into a midfield with Mario Ilich and Michael Den Heijer – in other words the best midfield combination in the country. It was the same back four but Conor Tracey was back between the sticks. Rayan Tayeb also got a start on the wing while Gerard Garriga got to test his luck a little further forward as well.
See now the problem with this game was as such...
Yeah so the stream caked it and there’s no sign of a replay on FIFA+, either because it’s not up yet or because they didn’t actually record it. No doubt Mr Infantino is hot on the case trying to make amends. We can’t exactly analyse a game that wasn’t viewable... though eyewitness reports suggest it wasn’t an all-time classic. In a game dominated by defenders, without a whole lot of pace to it, Auckland City won 1-0 thanks to a 24th minute goal from you know who: Ryan De Vries with his 30th goal of 2023 across all competitions.
Rewa frustrated Wellington Olympic for long spells with their aggressive defensive approach and it sounds like they did similar things here, closing out quickly and limiting the home team’s space at Kiwitea Street. However City perhaps didn’t help themselves there. Albert Riera’s selections did seem rather cautious with RDV only playing half a game and it wasn’t until just over twenty minutes to go that Liam Gillion was finally brought on. To be fair, they were missing a long list of forwards. Emiliano Tade hasn’t featured yet in the Nats. Joe Lee didn’t play this one. Dylan Manickum is away with the NZ futsal team. Angus Kilkolly was unavailable too.
That’s the thing to remember when looking at back to back 1-0 wins for Auckland City. We haven’t seen them at full capacity yet. There’s plenty more to come. But even if there isn’t they won’t complain if they keep on grinding out 1-0ers the rest of the way, which they’re more than capable of doing. ACFC’s own match report gave central defender Adam Mitchell their man of the match nomination whilst also crediting a strong showing from his CB mate Christian Gray. Would be interesting to know how much Manurewa really threatened, Riera did claim his team allowed them too many “half-chances” but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything.
Regardless, it’s a commendable defeat for Manurewa whose fixture list is going to ease up from here - starting with a gig against the Wellington Phoenix Reserves next round. The Nix have also had a brutal start, losing 1-0 to Auckland City and 2-0 to Christchurch United. The only other team without a point yet is Petone, Rewa’s fellow debutant. It takes time to settle into National League rhythm. That’s become clear enough in both the men’s and women’s comps since the NL went club-based. The higher standard with no weeks off. The travel outside of your own region. It’s not easy... but Manurewa have at least seen where the high watermark lies.
Auckland City 1-0 Manurewa
24’ | AC | 1-0 | De Vries
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