Eight Phoenix academy players lifted the OFC U-16 Men’s Championship on Saturday evening after a 2-0 win over New Caledonia.
Joseph Chalabi, Cruz Pietersen, and Jack Clegg all started, with Clegg scoring the opener just before halftime.
Ben Trenberth, Marley Hunt, and Joe McIntyre featured from the bench, while Willem Des Tombe and Cailean Hamilton were unused substitutes.
The team were deserved winners, having not conceded a goal all tournament.
Their performance also qualifies them for the U-17 World Cup to be held in Qatar next year.
It was a mixed weekend for the academy on the domestic front.
The men’s reserves closed their Central League campaign with a dominant 7-0 win at Waterside Karori.
Luke Supyk grabbed a hattrick, with Ryan Watson, Lachlan Candy, Xuan Loke, and Anaru Cassidy scoring the others.
The women’s reserves couldn’t replicate that result, falling 4-1 to Island Bay despite an early Manaia Elliott opener.
Both men’s and women’s reserves will now turn their attention towards the upcoming National League campaign.
The men’s U-18s earned a point to Karori, Jack Perniskie and Luqman Ibrahim both netting in a 2-2 draw.
The women’s U-18s suffered a heavy loss to the same opposition, losing 7-2. Matilda Smith and Maisy McDonald scored for the Nix.
Kaleb McCleod and Fionn Howard earned a 2-0 win for the U-16 boys, also over Karori.
There was another loss for the U-15 boys, who went down 3-1 to Upper Hutt City. Vasilios Kastrinakis’ penalty was a late consolation.
And the U-14 boys hammered Wellington Olympic 6-1.
There were goals for Sam Brooking, Kieran McMahon, Caleb Brown, Zeko Mouroukis, and a Tristan Bancroft double.
This weekend, the women’s reserves take on Auckland United in the Kate Sheppard Cup final, aiming to lift the academy’s first ever piece of major silverware.
The men’s U-18s and boys’ U-16s will take part in the Ivan England tournament at Fraser Park, while the U-16 girls face Island Bay United.
The U-15 boys play Onslow/North Wellington while the U-14 boys take on Upper Hutt City.
Cover photo credit: New Zealand Football
