• Blake Callinan, (19), goalkeeper, New Zealand • Eli Jones, (18), goalkeeper, New Zealand • Oscar Mason, (21), goalkeeper, New Zealand • Michael Den Heijer, (29), defender, New Zealand • Nathan Lobo, (23), defender, New Zealand • Tass Mourdoukoutas, (26), defender, Australia • Everton O’Leary, (21), defender, New Zealand • Jonathan Robinson, (24), defender, United States • Luke Vicelich, (17), defender, New Zealand • Ronan Wynne, (24), defender, New Zealand • Zac Zoricich, (23), defender, New Zealand • James Bayliss, (20), midfielder, Australia • Aidan Carey, (24), midfielder, New Zealand • Reid Drake, (30), midfielder, New Zealand • Daniel Normann, (23), midfielder, Norway • Isa Prins, (20), midfielder, New Zealand • Aston Burns, (19), forward, New Zealand • Kian Donkers, (21), forward, New Zealand • Oscar Faulds, (24), forward, New Zealand/Sweden • Bailey Ferguson, (18), forward, Australia • Liam Gillion, (23), forward, New Zealand • Emiliano Tade, (37), forward, New Zealand/Argentina
The final two additions to our OFC squad. 😍
Liam and Luka join our OFC Pro-League squad from the A-League Men’s team, while remaining eligible for A-League selection.
Under Pro-League regulations, U23 players are available for selection.
Rory Falloon is coaching their Reserves team in Northern/National League. He would seem the natural choice, that being the pathway Casserley took.
Niche Cache
Don’t look now but Auckland FC have won five of their past eight matches. Same as last year they’re finding form at the back end of the campaign and if they continue to mirror last year’s antics then they’ll be a force in the National League too. Charlie Hale has scored nine goals in eight matches since transferring from the Phoenix Academy. AFC have won 4/5 games in which fellow mid-season recruit Piet-Heyn van Baarzel has started, bringing a much needed defensive boost along with him. With one game to go, Rory Fallon’s lads are almost guaranteed to finish seventh. They were ninth last year with a 6-5-11 record (33 goals for, 37 goals against). More wins (8), more points (27), more goals (38), and a higher finish (8th at worst) than their first year in the Northern League with a game to go. Gotta respect it.
With the National League overlapping the OPL they will need to recruit someone new to either run the NL campaign or the OPL. I'm picking Fallon to stay where he is for now and a new coach to come in for the Pro League.
Auckland FC are chasing FIFA riches at the Intercontinental Cup in Jeddah, despite government warnings.
After winning the inaugural OFC Pro-League in June, Auckland FC booked their place in the opening match of the annual knockout tournament featuring the champion club sides from all six FIFA confederations.
Their first match is against the Asian confederation winners, Saudi Arabian club Al-Ahli, on 27 August.
To play this game Auckland FC will go to a region that the New Zealand Government has advised to avoid non-essential travel to.
Auckland FC chief executive officer Nick Becker said the trip was "essential for the club, definitely".
"For us to be able to play on this global stage is a huge privilege and something that everybody has worked really hard for, so in that sense of things it is incredibly important for the club.
"We're confident that it's fine [to travel], we'd obviously never put our players and staff in unnecessary danger and we've been given assurances that we'll be absolutely fine when we get there."
