Holders get tough quarterfinal draw

Defending champions Birkenhead United have been handed a tough test in the next round of club football’s national men’s knockout competition, but will at least get to play at home.

They will host fellow Aucklanders Onehunga Sports in the quarterfinals of the Chatham Cup, after the draw was made yesterday.

The two teams currently sit at the top of the Northern Premier League, where Onehunga enjoy an eight-point lead with six games remaining. Onehunga won the first meeting between the two sides this season 3-0, while the second ended in a 1-1 draw.

In the other quarterfinals, Auckland’s Central United will host Wairarapa United, Western Suburbs will host Bay Olympic in Wellington, and Nelson Suburbs will host Cashmere Technical in a Mainland region derby.

The four quarterfinals will be played on the weekend of August 5 and 6, with exact dates and times to be confirmed.

The quarterfinals of the National Women’s Knockout Cup will take place on the same weekend, with the draw for that competition made following the previous round at the end of June.

In Auckland, Glenfield Rovers will host Forrest Hill Milford, in a North Shore derby that doubles as a rematch of last year’s final, which Forrest Hill won on penalties, and Eastern Suburbs will host Three Kings United, in a match that brings together the two title contenders in the Northern Premier Women’s League.

In the central region, Upper Hutt City will host Palmerston North Marist, another battle of title contenders, this time in Capital Football’s W-League; while in the south, Coastal Spirit from Christchurch travel to play Dunedin Technical.