Auckland City hold on to pip Tasman United
As they turn their attention to the OFC Champions League, Auckland City will be buoyed by their strong run of domestic form.
After beating Tasman United 1-0 at Saxton Field in Nelson on Saturday, they have now gone eight games unbeaten in the ISPS Handa Premiership.
Their unbeaten run stretches to 14 if you consider just the on-field results - their only loss since the opening round came when they fielded an ineligible player in their home game against Tasman prior to Christmas.
Young Kiwi forward Callum McCowatt put them in front late in the first half on Saturday, and while it was enough to give City the win, it meant they couldn’t rest easy to the final whistle.
‘‘To be fair, their keeper had a great game,’’ City coach Ramon Tribulietx said.
‘‘He saved four or five great chances for us, and that kept the game on the edge, and at the end they had a header from a set piece that could have been a goal, but outside of that, we defended the other set pieces very well, and the counters, so I’m happy with the performance.’’
While conceding that they were unable to fashion many chances, Tasman coach Davor Tavich was pleased with his side’s performance, and in particular, the efforts of the four teenagers in his starting XI - Labu Pan, Lyle Matthysen, Callan Elliot and Matt Tod-Smith.
‘‘There’s definitely a good future for this region,’’ he said, ‘‘seeing how the boys performed today agains the best team, in my opinion, in New Zealand.’’’
City may be followed closely at the top of the table by Team Wellington and Eastern Suburbs, but the standings are not an accurate reflection of the teams’ performances, given City’s eligibility blunder.
They are four and five points clear of the chasing duo, but would be seven and eight points clear if it were not for that mistake.
They have to live with it though, and it means they won’t be able to afford any mistakes when they return to the national league on March 11, to play Eastern Suburbs at Kiwitea St.
For the next two weeks, their attention turns to the group stage of the Champions League, where they have three games in eight days at Trusts Arena in Auckland, starting next Sunday.
City have done well to absorb losing Ryan de Vries and Daewook Kim, who signed professional deals overseas in January, and they will have to continue to adapt in the Champions League, where new rules limit them to a maximum of three foreign players, plus one from another OFC nation.
They have gone with goalkeeper Enaut Zubikarai, defender Angel Berlanga and striker Emiliano Tade as their three foreigners, and Micah Lea’alafa as their OFC player.
Tribulietx is also hopeful Albert Riera’s New Zealand citizenship will come through in time for him to take part.
For now, Tasman can only dream of playing in the Champions League, but because of it, they have two weekends off before their next match, away to the Wellington Phoenix reserves on March 11.
They lost Paul Ifill and Mark Johnston to injuries during Saturday’s loss, and will hope the break gives the duo time to recover, as they turn their focus to finishing fifth, which would be an impressive achievement in their second year in the league.
‘‘We will need to get at least one win and a draw from our last two games, which is definitely not going to be easy,’’ said Tavich.
‘‘We’re going to have to be on top of our game to get four points from our last two games.’’