West Coast Rangers stay atop the Lotto NRFL first division after holding their nerve to draw 1-1 against nearest rivals Manurewa.
Both the leading pair benefitted from the loss by third-placed Tauranga City at East Coast Bays in a day of close results.
Here’s our round-up of latest games:
Rangers and Rewa share points in top-of-the-table clash
The two top teams in the division went toe-to-toe at Manurewa’s Jellicoe Park with both sides knowing they could ill afford to lose.
But the 1-1 between them best suited West Coast Rangers as it kept them top of the ladder with a two-point break over Manurewa.
The result extends Manurewa’s unbeaten run to 10 games.
Rangers drew first blood, going ahead through veteran striker Allan Pearce in the 14th minute.
That’s how the score remained at half-time.
Ten minutes into the second spell, Manurewa found their equaliser when captain Jeremias Perez scored from the penalty spot.
The game headed for a tense finale and referee Stephen Merriman was kept busy, issuing nine yellow cards (five for Rewa, four for Rangers), mainly for fouls.
In the 80th minute, he added a red card, sending off Rangers’ Clarke Foulds for a wayward elbow.
Main photo: Manurewa continue their undefeated run. Photo: Shane Wenzlick / Phototek.
Two-goal burst by Bays sinks Tauranga City
Two goals in as many minutes gave East Coast Bays the edge in their 2-0 win against Tauranga City at Bay City Park.
The win was important for Bays as it keeps them in with a chance of catching the division’s leading pair.
Callum Simmonds put Bays ahead in the 28th minute.
Two minutes later, Daniel Morgan made it 2-0.
And that’s how it stayed, despite both coaches clearing their benches to replace four outfield players each in a bid to change the course of the game.
MAP and Mountain Men settle for mid-table draw
Mount Albert Ponsonby continue to be hard to bowl at their Anderson Park home, and they drew 1-1 with Onehunga Mangere United.
The sides played out a scoreless first half before striker Gilberto Souza put United ahead in the 69th minute.
In recent games, MAP have proved resilient and they fought back.
Substitute Timothy Sudmann came on with six minutes to go, and almost immediately he found the home side’s equaliser.
Both sides are safely mid-table and won’t be going up or down at season’s end.
10-man Waitemata go down late to Rovers
Bottom-placed Waitemata proved hard to beat despite going down to 10 men and giving away a penalty to Northern Rovers.
In the end, Rovers won 2-1 to stay in the cluster of three clubs chasing leaders West Coast Rangers and Manurewa.
The sides were goalless at half-time.
The turning point came on the hour when Rory Turner put Rovers ahead from the penalty spot.
In the 68th minute, Waitemata captain Shane Tanner was sent off for picking up a second yellow card.
Despite that, the home side found an equaliser in the 74th minute through Scott Sellar.
However, Rovers regained the lead through Jason Quinland in the 81st minute.
Waitemata stay bottom and will no doubt watch carefully the result of Sunday’s match between 10th-placed Ellerslie and 11th-placed Albany United.
Fencibles leapfrog Metro with 2-1 win
Fencibles United climbed above Metro on the table after a 2-1 win at Riverhills Park.
Ryan Clarke put United ahead in the 11th minute.
Metro levelled after 33 minutes through Joe Minto’s first goal of the season.
Having turned around 1-1, Fencibles got the winner in the 71st minute through Zac Tobin.
Results
Games played Saturday July 23, 2022
Manurewa 1 (Jeremias Perez 53′ pen)
West Coast Rangers 1 (Allan Pearce 14′)
East Coast Bays 2 (Callum Simmonds 28′, Daniel Morgan 30′)
Tauranga City 0
Mount Albert Ponsonby 1 (Tim Sudmann 86′)
Onehunga Mangere United 1 (Gilberto Souza 69′)
Waitemata 1 (Scott Sellar 74′)
Northern Rovers 2 (Rory Turner 61′, Jason Quinlan 81′)
Fencibles United 2 (Ryan Clarke 11′, Zachary Tobin 71′)
Metro 1 (Joe Minto 33′)
Fixture
To be played Sunday July 24, 2022
Albany United (11th) v Ellerslie (10th)
Rosedale Park, Auckland, 3pm
Standings
Thanks
Our coverage of Northern League and Lotto NRFL men’s football is made possible through the support of our partners at Cube, specialists in print, design and signage. We encourage clubs and businesses to consider Cube when looking for professional help in their branding and promotional planning.
More stories
