AUCKLAND – With their closest rivals inactive or otherwise engaged, Auckland City doubled their advantage at the top of the New Zealand Football Championship with a 4-1 win over
YoungHeart Manawatu punctuated by goals to Koreans Ki-Hyung Lee and Chan-Goo Yoon.
Lee rocketed a fourth minute free kick and Yoon scored with his first touch on debut – after being snapped up in the transfer window – to bookend goals from City skipper Ben
Sigmund and Paul Urlovic and send the defending champions six points clear.
Adam Cowan grabbed an injury time consolation for Manawatu, but Auckland now sit atop the standings with 38 points from 15 matches.
Auckland are in pole-position to regain the minor premiership from Waitakere United and the automatic entry to a home NZFC final that goes with that honour, and can even start
eyeing the league’s first 50 point season with six matched remaining.
More immediately though, their attention turns to the midweek O-League clash with Waitakere. A win for Auckland on Wednesday would all-but decide Group A after their intercity
rivals dropped points in a 1-1 draw with AS Manu Ura on Saturday night.
With Waitakere on O-League duty in Tahiti, Wellington given the week off and fourth-placed Hawke’s Bay United’s game postponed in Canterbury there was no other action in the top half of the
NZFC.
Meanwhile, Otago’s luck finally turned as goals from John Lang and Andy Coburn gave Otago United their first points on the road this season with a 2-0 win over nine-man Waikato
FC in Tauranga on Sunday.
Waikato FC started new signings Matt Friel and Dale Beattie in midfield but Beatie’s debut was a forgettable one, the Scottish ex-professional sent off in the three minutes into
the second half with his side already a goal down.
Jeff Sole was the second man to see red, sent off just after the hour – only a few minutes after he misjudged a long throw to let Coburn in to secure Otago’s second win this
season.
Round 14 Results and standings
Saturday
Auckland City 4 (Ki-Hyung Lee 4, Ben Sigmund 56, Paul Urlovic 60, Chan-Goo Yoon 66)
YoungHeart Manawatu 1 (Adam Cowan 90+1)
Halftime: 1-0
Sunday
Waikato FC 0
Otago United 2 (John Lang 41, Andy Coburn 60)
Halftime: 0-1
Postponed due to waterlogged pitch
Canterbury United v Hawke’s Bay United
English Park, Christchurch
STANDINGS
|
Name
|
P
|
W
|
D
|
L
|
F
|
A
|
GD
|
Pts
|
|
Auckland City
|
15
|
12
|
2
|
1
|
33
|
10
|
13
|
38
|
|
Waitakere United
|
14
|
10
|
2
|
2
|
40
|
11
|
29
|
32
|
|
Team Wellington
|
14
|
9
|
2
|
3
|
30
|
17
|
13
|
29
|
|
Hawke’s Bay United
|
13
|
5
|
4
|
4
|
19
|
20
|
-1
|
19
|
|
Waikato FC
|
14
|
4
|
3
|
7
|
16
|
20
|
-4
|
15
|
|
YoungHeart Manawatu
|
14
|
4
|
2
|
8
|
23
|
37
|
-14
|
14
|
|
Otago United
|
14
|
2
|
3
|
9
|
8
|
27
|
-19
|
9
|
|
Canterbury United
|
14
|
0
|
2
|
12
|
11
|
38
|
-27
|
2
|
Story Courtesy of New Zealand Football. For more information visit www.nzsoccer.com