It was a historic 48 hours for football in Auckland. On Saturday night, the city’s A-League side claimed the grand final, and by Sunday afternoon, the OFC Pro League team had completed a remarkable double.
Auckland FC’s A-League men defeated Sydney FC 1-0 at Go Media Stadium on Saturday night, and less than 24 hours later, their OFC Pro League counterparts added a second trophy with a 2-1 win over South Melbourne FC. Two trophies, two confederations, one weekend, all in their own backyard.
A first-ever for a club to win two Grand Finals, in two confederations!
Go Media Stadium was packed to the rafters for the A-League Grand Final, with over 28,000 fans filling the ground. For those who missed out on tickets, Auckland FC hosted a watch party at Takutai Square, and thousands flocked there too, soaking up the atmosphere.
Quietly, and without fanfare, Saturday night also cemented Steve Corica as the most successful coach in A-League grand final history. His third championship as a head coach, to go with two he won as a player, takes him clear of Ange Postecoglou, Kevin Muscat, Graham Arnold and Ernie Merrick for the most grand final wins in the competition’s history.
The poetry of the moment wasn’t lost on anyone. Back in 2006, Corica was the match-winning goalscorer at the Sydney Football Stadium. Twenty-one years on, he became the architect of the first A-League Championship won on foreign soil, and did it against the club that let him go.
The game itself was a tight, tense arm wrestle, niggly and feisty, with tempers on a knife-edge and a trophy at stake. Then, arguably against the run of play, Cam Howieson tried his luck in the 60th minute, got a deflection off Jordan Courtney-Perkins, and the hosts found a way. As they have done for most of their two-year existence.
This is a quintessential Auckland FC story.
A 30-year-old who has played over 200 games for the famous Auckland City amateur club was the first man recruited by Corica and the Auckland hierarchy. A local boy, he chose the perfect moment to open his account for the club, and didn’t a packed Go Media Stadium love it.
Saturday’s celebrations continued long into Sunday morning with thousands of Auckland FC fans packed out the streets of Auckland’s CBD as the newly crowned champions cruised past in a double-decker bus, followed by a celebration event at Tautaki Square, Britomart.
As the celebrations continued for the A-League team, Auckland FC’s OFC Pro League team took the field at Eden Park for the Championship decider, feeding off the momentum of a city riding high.
Daniel Normann opened the scoring in the 23rd minute, before Matt Ellis made it 2-0 in the 72nd. South Melbourne pulled a goal back in the 97th minute through Yuki Uchida, but the game was done, and Auckland FC’s OFC Pro League team added to the party vibe on Sunday when they lifted the inaugural trophy.
Matt Ellis, like Cam Howieson, is another local product, a Kiwi who came through Auckland City FC before making the step up to Auckland FC. Not long ago, the two were sharing the same pitch in amateur football. Now they are grand final goalscorers.
The OFC Pro League, first proposed in 2022 as part of the Oceania Football Confederation’s vision to professionalise the game across the Pacific, got its inaugural season underway this year. Auckland dominated the eight-team competition, finishing the regular season with 10 wins, two draws and two defeats from 14 games.
It was head coach Steve Corica who lured Luke Casserly over to New Zealand to be both a first-team assistant and, as the new OFC Pro League came to life, to take charge of the side in that competition as well.
Their friendship dates back to their playing days at Marconi Stallions FC, where they lived alongside another lifelong friend, Socceroos icon Mark Schwarzer.
A club winning two grand finals, across two confederations, in a single weekend. For Auckland, it was a weekend that will take some topping.