Aotearoa Domestic Football Roundup – May 11
Men’s Northern League
Auckland FC are 90-120 minutes away from potentially making it to an A-League grand final despite not having actually won any of their past seven matches. A couple more penalty shootouts and you never know they might win the championship on the back of a nine-game winless streak. Their Pro League team has no issues winning... and have also incorporated Jonty Bidois into the side during the current phase (taking the place of Liam Gillion who has reclaimed a spot in the ALM squad). Bidois thus becomes the fourth fella alongside Luka Vicelich, Van Fitzharris, and Adama Coulibaly to have played for all three AFC teams. That means lots of movement between these squads as things have gotten settled and as a consequence it’s a fresh and rebuilt Auckland FC Reserves team this year.
That team has been struggling to win games in the Northern League to a degree even worse than the A-League team. Lots of late goals conceded... and they leaked another one this week. Fortunately for them, it didn’t matter because they’d already scored three. It was a 3-2 victory for AFC Reserves against Melville United. First win since week one for AFC, snapping a six-game skid. Soma Scott’s goal (16’) had Melville leading for much of the way but the half-time introduction of Harley Hill (and Ben Perez Baldoni) made all the difference as Nathan Martin (48’) scored once, directly from a corner kick no less, and Harley Hill scored twice (49’, 68’), before Stafford Dowling grabbed a very late consolation for the visitors.
Hill was signed from Melville’s rivals Hamilton Wanderers so perhaps there was some extra motivation. Curious to see that Jama Boss featured off the bench for Melville these past two weeks having started the season at Manukau – Boss has played for both of those clubs on multiple occasions already. This comes as 20yo English striker Luis Hamblin swapped over to Hamilton Wanderers after scoring four times in the first four games for Melville. Harley Hill joins James Elder on three goals for the Ressies thus far, both new striking additions, so if Jonty Bidois doesn’t kick on then they’re already brewing the next wave of centre-forwards in the system. Having said that, Bidois had a goal and assist in the win vs Bula so he’s doing fine.
No surprises why Manukau United are struggling to retain players when they’re stuck at the bottom of the ladder. Scottish big man Russell Currie has also departed for Western Springs and got ten minutes against them this week as the Swans won 5-0. Manukau have scored five goals thus far and four of them were provided by Currie (3) and Boss (1). Shout out to Joey Ugwa for being the only scorer who didn’t gap it soon afterwards. Western Springs did the deed with goals from Caspar McGavin (13’), Ryan Watson (47’), Oliver Cunnington (64’), Joseph Zawko (75’ pen), and Watson’s second (83’). Cunnington’s was the pick of the bunch, a great solo run from wing-back. Watson now has six goals in total showing why he was picked for the U20 World Cup last year. Manukau had Reuben-Louis Visser red carded with quarter of an hour to go, marched for the foul for the penalty that made it four (nobody seemed sure why – very harsh decision although it didn’t affect the outcome). Manukau remain last with one point from nine games – they’ve conceded 23 goals in five away losses. Western Springs grab their third win in the last four as they begin to find their groove.
Auckland City have also found a groove lately, coinciding with Nikko Boxall and Dylan Manickum returning to the side. Boxall didn’t play this week but Manickum did... though it was Angus Kilkolly who scored the 88th minute winner that gave his team a 1-0 win over the in-form East Coast Bays. Could prove to be a pretty valuable moment in the top four race, that one. Auckland City were at risk of dropping to last if they’d lost to Manukau weeks ago and instead they’ve gone WDWWW to soar up the ladder. ECB are still four points ahead of them though.
Of course, the team that benefits most from an ECB defeat is Birkenhead United. They hosted Tauranga City and won 2-0 with the goals coming via Monty Patterson (62’ pen) and Alex Connor-McClean (85’). Looked a lot like Campbell Higgins got the ball in his challenge on Patterson for the penalty but Birko were applying the pressure and those things can happen when you’re on the front foot in games. ACM’s late clincher comes after he and captain Dino Botica each brought up 150 appearances for the club over the past fortnight. With that win (and yet another clean sheet – six in nine games!), Birkenhead United have gone five points clear at the top of the Northern League.
Don’t sleep on Eastern Suburbs either because they won 2-0 against Bay Olympic which means they have an even better defensive record than Birko, having kept seven clean sheets and only conceded three times in nine matches. They’re yet to allow a goal at Madills Farm - four cleanies in a row at home. This Bay win was the latest... with goals from Jake Mechell (20’) and Hector Echague (76’) ensuring they also got the three points. Bay Olympic have lost four in a row and are the only team to fail to beat Manukau.
There was also a 1-1 draw between Auckland United and Fencibles United where Ben Wallace got on the board for his new/old team after 38 mins (AU) but Finn Wessels equalised after 70 mins for Fencies. Both teams are in the midtable, AUFC slipping out of the top four after this result was combined with Auckland City’s win. This was a first point away from home for Fencibles following three losses in which they conceded 13 goals. Home form’s been class though with four wins from five.
Women’s NRFL Premiership
Auckland United were kind enough to give Maggie Jenkins a rest as Melville United came to visit. Sasha Adamsen only played off the bench too. But that didn’t slow them down at all as AUFC gassed it to a 6-0 victory splitting the goals evenly between the two halves. Scorers were Yume Harashima (20’), Tui Dugan (36’), Shev Edwards (43’), Sasha Adamsen (57’, 60’), and Aniela Jensen (67’). Charley March (AU) and Laura Bennett (MU) got to go head to head here before linking up together in the NZ U20s squad that was named a few days ago – they’re playing a couple of (non-broadcasted) friendlies against their Australia equivalents in preparation for the U20 World Cup later in the year. Emily Lyon (West Coast Rangers) is the only other non-Phoenix player selected from the domestic stuff but obviously most of the others have come through these leagues in recent years.
The game of the round was Eastern Suburbs vs Fencibles United. Two teams in strong form, both with designs on the top four... possibly a lot higher. Kenya Brooke (28’) and Mihiro Kisu (35’) traded first half goals for Suburbs and Fencies respectively, both of them being headers from corners, before the game swung in a five minute spell where Maddi Ollington (54’) and Juliette Lucas (58’) scored in quick succession for ESAFC. Very similar goals set up on each occasion by Erika Skindlov. A 3-1 win for the Lilywhites keeps them in second place with the division’s best defensive record (three goals conceded in seven games). Fencibles remain fourth after what was only their second defeat – the other coming against Auckland United.
West Coast Rangers did what they needed to do with a 3-0 win away against Ellerslie. Goals for Shannon Henson (3’), Maisy Dewell (46’), and then a second for Henson (85’) sorted that one out. Henson had been on a bit of a goal drought but she’s now scored four goals in two weeks.
And then in a crunch game between the two winless teams... Tauranga Moana beat Western Springs 1-0 thanks to a 22nd minute goal from Miah Smith. The performances have gotten a lot better since Ben Bate took over as coach but poor old Springs still have not scored a goal. They’ve now played every team once and have been beaten by them all, including 1-0 home defeats against both Melville and Tauranga, their main wooden spoon opponents. National League revamps are probably going to save them from relegation so in that sense it’s an ideal time for rebuilding without consequence yet it’s still strange to see Western Springs in such a pickle. This was Tauranga Moana’s day. They avoided the drop last year because they were able to get timely results against their rivals and this was them doing the same thing again in 2026.
Men’s Central League
Good news: FC Western have scored a goal. Alman Kwan put away his chance after 54 minutes at home against Miramar Rangers to end a drought of over 500 minutes without scoring since their promotion to the Central League. That was the good news... the bad news was that they were already 2-0 down at the time and ended up losing 3-1. Martin Bueno (27’ pen, 72’) and Nicolas Bobadilla (31’) were the familiar contributors for Rangers who thus locked another three points away to stay top of the division. Six wins and a draw, still undefeated. No worries there.
Wellington Olympic have turned a corner in recent weeks and that continued with a 3-1 win over the Wellington Phoenix Reserves. Nathan Walker struck quickly for the WeeNix (3’), his second of the season nicking the ball away on the press... but the Greeks were too strong. Goals came from Kieran McMinn (29’), Devin Slingsby (42’), and Seb Barton-Ginger (72’ pen) – the new signings once again leading Wellington Olympic to victory. McMinn, Slingsley, and SBG have each scored three overall. It was another very strong WeeNix team with Anaru Cassidy returning after suspension as they again named a side with five starters with A-League experience. They’ve lost four games in a row though... that talent isn’t leading to results right now. In contrast, Olympic have won five in a row since starting the campaign with a 1-1 draw vs Miramar and a 3-0 loss to Napier City. Even those bad results don’t look so bad in hindsight given how impressive those two opponents have been and how Olympic have since managed to integrate their new additions. Their past four wins have seen them score 18 times.
The Golden Boot leader at this stage is Kyle Carr from Western Suburbs. This after the American pocketed his fifth in a 1-0 win against Petone at Endeavour Park with a sweet guided finish 22 minutes into the match, set up smoothly by Reilly Marlow-Jones. Wests have only conceded twice in seven games. Napier City only once in six games. No wonder nobody’s scoring many goals – Carr’s five goals make him the lowest-scoring Golden Boot leader across the top six divisions, with the exception of the Women’s South Island League that’s only two rounds deep (and Georgia Nixon of Dunedin City Royals already has four). It’s also jam-packed at the top with three clubs sitting within three points of leaders Miramar Rangers: one of those is Western Suburbs, the other two are Napier City and Wellington Olympic. Napier City have a game in hand too.
Speaking of Napier City Rovers, they won 5-0 against Waterside Karori. Ben Stanley (21’), James Hoyle (35’), Jacob Fenton (42’), Liam Schofield (55’), and Cam Emerson (78’) all found the back of the net. Goalkeeper Will Tønning has only conceded once in 540 minutes but the one criticism of NCR was that they weren’t scoring a whole bunch with only eight goals in five previous games. Well, they took a five-for in this one. Also, Island Bay United carried on from where they left off last week, chasing their 5-0 win vs Western with a 4-1 win away to Upper Hutt City. Fijian international Brendan McMullen had them ahead in the first minute and then AJ Hale made it 2-0 after ten. Rio Winkworth pulled one back from the penalty spot (22’) only for an own goal to immediately undo that work. Timothy O’Farrell then added a late one for IBU (82’) to conclude the afternoon’s performances. Two big wins for Island Bay following after two big defeats immediately prior (a combined 11-1 vs Wests & Olympic). That’s how you bounce back.
Chatham Cup
Alrighty, cup footy has arrived for 2026. We’d already had the preliminary rounds but now we’ve reached the competitions proper for both the Chatham Cup and the Kate Sheppard Cup. Nothing to mention for the Northern and Central League clubs who never enter the Chathams until later rounds. The Southern League clubs from the Southern Federation also got byes, with Wānaka, Dunedin City Royals, and Northern joined by Old Boys and Queens Park as the fortunate two from the lower tiers who got through without having to play in order to keep the numbers balanced. But all the Mainland sides were active alongside all the remaining clubs from outside the various top flights (hence no Southern League fixtures this week).
Cashmere Technical have been thrashing everybody so FC Twenty11 weren’t going to worry them from two divisions below. That was a 12-0 win for Tech, very convincing. Ferrymead Bays were given a proper contest by Western AFC, conceding an own goal after 11 minutes but eventually winning 2-1 thanks to a Treye Butler brace (36’, 59’). Nomads and Coastal Spirit, two Southern League teams pitted against each other, went to extra time. Jesse Burge scored in the 80th minute for Nomads only for Leonardo Uribe to convert an 89th minute penalty. However, Nomads had more in the tank with William Turner (105’) and Burge (119’) scoring on the way to a 3-1 result.
No such issues for Christchurch United as Joel Peterson, Amani Masiyakumira, Matthew Duncan, and Oliver Grosso all scored in a 4-0 win away against Selwyn United. Nor for Nelson Suburbs in a 6-1 win vs Rangers AFC despite going 1-0 down early. Outside of the top tier clubs, there was also Mosgiel 2-0 Northern Hearts, Halswell United 3-1 Burwood, St Albans Shirley 1-2 Waimakiriri, Roslyn-Wakari 1-2 Otago University, Timaru 1-0 Green Island, and FC Nelson 4-1 Tahuna.
And since none of the top clubs from the Northern and Central regions and were involved, and it’d take ages to write out all the individual scores, here they are courtesy of the NZ Leagues account...
Kate Sheppard Cup
It’s only the top division clubs in the Northern region that got to skip out on round one of the KSC... them and the Southern Federation clubs (Otago and Southland regions) because there was “an error identified in the calculation of draw progressions” which meant that those clubs all got given byes through to the second round despite being accidentally drawn out of the hat initially. Byes are common in the early rounds in order to get it down to an exact number of teams for the sake of the brackets... plus it’s all regional match-ups at this stage. The various Canterbury and Central clubs were all involved though. That meant no South Island League matches and no Central League matches this week with cup footy taking all the focus in those parts.
The most notable result in the southern section was Cashmere Technical 8-0 Coastal Spirit where Margi Dias scored a hatty and Kailey Short got two as Tech made it very clear who the strongest team in Christchurch is right now. Universities of Canterbury won 3-0 against Ferrymead Bays with Kelsey Barrett scoring a double. Nelson Suburbs were way too good for Golden Bay, winning 8-1 with Isobel Roach (4 goals) and Jordan Lande (3 goals) doing most of the damage. And although they had some trouble with it, NW United came through 3-2 victors against Halswell... meaning that all the top tier clubs advanced unscathed.
That was not the case in the central section since Palmerston North Marist and Palmerston North United were squared up against each other. This was a thriller with PNU going 3-0 up after 38 mins before Marist pulled one back before the break. Two goals in the last dozen minutes then took this thing to extras... where Isabella Yarwood scored three times for PN United to emerge with a 6-3 scoreline in their favour. Now that’s what you want from a cup derby.
Meanwhile, Wellington United were kept busy with an 8-0 win away to Wairarapa United. Hannah Pilley got another three-bagger as the Diamonds scored seven times within 40 minutes and then rolled the subs from then onwards. The rest of them all had byes – including the Wellington Phoenix U20 women who play in the Kate Sheppard Cup while their U18s team is the one that contests the Central League. Te Kotahitanga won 5-0 against North Wellington in the other match from this region, with Vanessa Addy scoring three. Both of them are Capital Premier League clubs (aka the next tier down).
Up in the northern section there were no NRFL Premiership clubs in action, they all had byes (except for Melville who don’t appear to have entered), and there were no upsets either. A couple games between inter-division opponents: Cambridge won 2-0 vs Uni-Mount, while Onehunga Mangere beat Hibiscus Coast by the same margin. Both of those results reflect the league table. Birkenhead United are leading the chase for promotion and they won 3-0 away against Waitemata. Onehunga Sports won 3-1 away vs Lakes FC. Franklin United and Northern Rovers both got lucky with byes into the second round. Beyond that, West Hamilton United knocked Hamilton Wanderers out on penalties after a 2-2 draw. Waikato Unicol won 5-2 vs Thames FC. And Bay Olympic won 2-0 against East Coast Bays. That leaves 32 teams in the hunt with round two coming at the end of the month.
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