While many clubs are pacing themselves through pre-season football, others were playing for big stakes at the weekend.
The Wellington Phoenix men picked up a crucial win in their quest for play-off football; the women Nix caused the upset of the year, flipping A-League leaders Sydney FC.
Wellington Olympic and Auckland City could not be separated in the first leg of their OFC Champions League play-off, meaning it all goes down to the wire next weekend when the second leg gets played at Kiwitea St.
In the men’s and women’s Ford Futsal Superleagues, national women’s champions Papakura City got off to a winning start while Auckland City romped through their three games played in Tauranga.
Here are the big game results for the weekend of March 11-12, 2023:
OFC Champions League play-off
Game played on Saturday March 11,2023
Wellington Olympic 1 (Joel Stevens 37′)
Auckland City 1 (Christian Gray 79′)
READ MORE: Late goal keeps Auckland City in pole position after draw with Wellington Olympic >>>>
Women’s A-League
Game played on Saturday March 11, 2023
Sydney 0
Wellington Phoenix 1 (Kate Taylor 32′)
READ MORE: Phoenix beat leaders to pull off biggest upset of the women’s A-League season >>>>
Men’s A-League
Game played on Sunday March 12, 2023
Wellington Phoenix 1 (Oskar Zawada 21′)
Sydney 0
READ MORE: Expectant father Oskar Zawada scores winner to keep Phoenix in play-off push >>>>
Ford Futsal Women’s Superleague
Northern Travel Series
Game played on Saturday March 11, 2023
WaiBOP Power 0
Papakura City 5 (Jordana Bremner 0′, 4′, Hannah Reddy 15′, Abby Wright 22′, Ella James 39′)
Game played on Sunday March 12, 2023
Papakura City 4 (Abbey Venmore 12′, Hannah Reddy 26′, own goal 34′, Shivanthi Anthony 39′)
WaiBOP Power 1 (Jamie Evans 22′)
Ford Futsal Men’s Superleague
Northern Travel Series
Game played on Saturday March 11, 2023
Waikato Rapids 3 (George Dixon 25′, Casey Sharplin 27′, Maxwell Ericksen 30′)
Bay of Plenty Surge 2 (Thomas McMillan 22′, 33′)
Bay of Plenty Surge 4 (Aran Carter 1′, 15′, 29′, Mario Ramos 38′)
Auckland City 8 (Bahram Ahmadi 16′, 29′, 37′, Thomas Picken 19′, 32′, 33′, 39′, Shaun Morgan 26′)
Auckland City 9 (Bahram Ahmadi 6′, 23′, Art Twigg 9′, 31′, Aalok Paudel 3′, Stephen Ashby-Peckham 13′, Jirayu Twigg 21′, Dominic Hawkins 26′, Eduardo Espinosa 38′)
Waikato Rapids 2 (Maxwell Ericksen 11′, 35′)
Games played on Sunday March 12, 2023
Auckland City 9 (Eduardo Espinosa 9′, 36′, Bahram Ahmadi 10′, 36′, Dominic Hawkins 12′, 36′, own goal 29′, Stephen Ashby-Peckham 34′)
Bay of Plenty Surge 1 (Thomas McMillan 30′)
Waikato Rapids 2 (Casey Sharplin 17′, 31′)
Auckland City 7 (Thomas Picken 1′, 29′, Dominic Hawkins 11′, Adam Paulsen 12′, Jirayu Twigg 13′, Art Twigg 14′, Josh Margetts 19′)
Bay of Plenty Surge 2 (Aran Carter 33′, Thomas McMillan 36′)
Waikato Rapids 3 (Maxwell Ericksen 2′, Casey Sharplin 10′, Jonathan Tobias 32′)