2017 OFC Champions League

The 2017 OFC Champions League was the 16th edition of the Oceanian Club Championship, Oceania's premier club football tournament organized by the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC), and the 11th season under the current OFC Champions League name.

2017 OFC Champions League
Tournament details
Host countriesQualifying stage:
 Tonga
Group stage:
 New Caledonia
 New Zealand
 Tahiti
DatesQualifying stage:
28 January – 3 February 2017
Competition proper:
25 February – 7 May 2017
TeamsCompetition proper: 16
Total: 18 (from 11 associations)
Final positions
ChampionsNew Zealand Auckland City (9th title)
Runners-upNew Zealand Team Wellington
Tournament statistics
Matches played36
Goals scored161 (4.47 per match)
Attendance26,100 (725 per match)
Top scorer(s)New Zealand Ryan De Vries
England Tom Jackson
Portugal João Moreira
(6 goals each)
Best player(s)Spain Ángel Berlanga
Best goalkeeperSpain Eñaut Zubikarai
Fair play awardNew Zealand Auckland City
2016
2018

In the final, Auckland City defeated Team Wellington 5–0 on aggregate and won the OFC Champions League seven consecutive seasons and nine times in total, and qualified as the OFC representative at the 2017 FIFA Club World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.[1]

Format change

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The OFC decided to expand the tournament and change the format for the 2017 edition:[2]

  • The competition consisted of four stages: qualifying stage, group stage, semi-finals, and final.
  • For the qualifying stage, like in the previous season, four teams took part in this stage, which included one team each from the four developing associations. The stage was played in round-robin format at a single venue, with the winners and runners-up advancing to the group stage (instead of only the group winners).
  • For the group stage, 16 teams took part in this stage (increased from 12 teams), which included two teams each from the seven developed associations, plus the qualifying stage winners and runners-up. They were drawn into four groups of four teams (increased from three groups), where each group was played in round-robin format at a different venue (instead of all groups played at a single venue), with the group winners advancing to the semi-finals.
  • For the semi-finals, the four teams were drawn into two ties, which were played in home-and-away format over two legs (instead of a single match).
  • For the final, the tie was played in home-and-away format over two legs (instead of a single match).

Teams

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Location of teams of the 2017 OFC Champions League.
  Teams entering the group stage; (H) Group stage host
  Teams entering the qualifying stage; (h) Qualifying stage host

A total of 18 teams from all 11 OFC member associations entered the competition.

  • The seven developed associations (Fiji, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Vanuatu) were awarded two berths each in the group stage.
  • The four developing associations (American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga) were awarded one berth each in the qualifying stage, with the winners and runners-up advancing to the group stage.
Association Team Qualifying method
Teams entering the group stage
  Fiji Ba 2016 Fiji National Football League champions
Rewa 2016 Fiji National Football League runners-up
  New Caledonia Magenta 2015 New Caledonia Super Ligue champions
Hienghène Sport 2015 New Caledonia Super Ligue runners-up
  New Zealand Team Wellington 2015–16 New Zealand Football Championship grand final champions
Auckland City 2015–16 New Zealand Football Championship regular season premiers
  Papua New Guinea Lae City Dwellers 2015–16 Papua New Guinea National Champions League runners-up
Madang 2015–16 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League fifth place[Note PNG]
  Solomon Islands Marist 2016 Solomon Islands S-League champions
Western United 2016 Solomon Islands S-League runners-up
  Tahiti Tefana 2015–16 Tahiti Ligue 1 champions
Central Sport 2015–16 Tahiti Ligue 1 runners-up
  Vanuatu Malampa Revivors 2015 VFF National Super League runners-up
Erakor Golden Star 2016 Port Vila Top Four Super League winners
Teams entering the qualifying stage
  American Samoa Utulei Youth 2015 FFAS Senior League champions
  Cook Islands Puaikura 2016 Cook Islands Round Cup champions
  Samoa Lupe o le Soaga 2014–15 Samoa National League champions
  Tonga Veitongo 2015 Tonga Major League champions
Notes
  1. ^
    Papua New Guinea (PNG): On 2 February 2017, the OFC announced that Hekari United, the 2015–16 Papua New Guinea National Champions League winners, had been disqualified after the Papua New Guinea Football Association filed a formal complaint due to the team's dispute with the football association.[3] On 8 February 2017, the OFC announced that they would be replaced by Madang, the 2015–16 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League Northern Zone third place, which was the next best team in the league to accept participation.[4]

Schedule

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The schedule of the competition was as follows.

Stage Draw date Match dates Matchday Matches
Qualifying stage 24 August 2016
(Auckland, New Zealand)
28 January – 3 February 2017 Matchday 1 Team 4 vs. Team 1, Team 2 vs. Team 3
Matchday 2 Team 1 vs. Team 3, Team 4 vs. Team 2
Matchday 3 Team 1 vs. Team 2, Team 3 vs. Team 4
Group stage
  • Group A: 25 February – 3 March 2017
  • Group B: 26 February – 4 March 2017
  • Group C: 11–18 March 2017
  • Group D: 11–17 March 2017
Matchday 1 Team 4 vs. Team 1, Team 2 vs. Team 3
Matchday 2 Team 1 vs. Team 3, Team 4 vs. Team 2
Matchday 3 Team 1 vs. Team 2, Team 3 vs. Team 4
Semi-finals 20 March 2017
(Auckland, New Zealand)
8–16 April 2017 First leg Semi-finalist 1 vs. Semi-finalist 2, Semi-finalist 3 vs. Semi-finalist 4
Second leg Semi-finalist 2 vs. Semi-finalist 1, Semi-finalist 4 vs. Semi-finalist 3
Final 30 April – 7 May 2017 First leg Finalist 1 vs. Finalist 2
Second leg Finalist 2 vs. Finalist 1

Draw

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The draw of the qualifying stage and group stage was held on 24 August 2016, 12:30 NZST (UTC+12), at the OFC Headquarters in Auckland, New Zealand.[5][6][7]

For the qualifying stage, the four teams were drawn into each of the four positions 1–4 to determine the fixtures.

Qualifying stage draw
Pot 1

For the group stage, the 16 teams (14 teams entering the group stage and two teams advancing from the qualifying stage) were drawn into four groups of four, with each group containing one team from each of the four pots 1–4, which also represented the positions in each group to determine the fixtures. Teams from the same association could not be drawn into the same group. The teams were seeded based on the following:

  • The teams seeded 1–11 were based on the team results of the 2016 OFC Champions League.
  • The teams seeded 12–14 were based on the association results of the 2016 OFC Champions League.
  • The teams seeded 15–16 were the qualifying stage winners and runners-up respectively, whose identity were not known at the time of the draw.
Group stage draw
Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4
  1.   Erakor Golden Star[note 1]
  2.   Western United[note 1]
  3. Qualifying stage winners
  4. Qualifying stage runners-up
Notes
  1. ^ a b c d e f g The identity of the teams from Cook Islands, Fiji, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu were not known at the time of the draw.
  2. ^ Hekari United were included as part of the draw, but were disqualified and replaced by Madang after the draw.

Qualifying stage

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In the qualifying stage, the four teams played each other on a round-robin basis. The winners and runners-up advanced to the group stage to join the 14 direct entrants.

Matches were played between 28 January – 3 February 2017 in Nukuʻalofa, Tonga. All times were local, TOT (UTC+13).

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification PUA LUP VEI UTU
1   Puaikura 3 3 0 0 9 2 +7 9 Group stage 2–1 3–1
2   Lupe o le Soaga 3 1 1 1 6 6 0 4 1–1
3   Veitongo (H) 3 1 1 1 4 6 −2 4 0–4 3–1
4   Utulei Youth 3 0 0 3 5 10 −5 0 3–4
Source: OFC
(H) Hosts
Utulei Youth  3–4  Lupe o le Soaga
  • Bourne   12' (pen.)
  • Kerewi   40', 68' (pen.)
Report
Veitongo  0–4  Puaikura
Report

Puaikura  2–1  Lupe o le Soaga
Report
  • Ataga   75'
Veitongo  3–1  Utulei Youth
  • Uele   13'
  • H. Falepapalangi   50'
  • Moala   90'
Report

Puaikura  3–1  Utulei Youth
Report
Lupe o le Soaga  1–1  Veitongo
  • Ataga   66'
Report

Group stage

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In the group stage, the four teams in each group played each other on a round-robin basis. The four group winners advanced to the semi-finals.

The hosts of each group were announced on 10 October 2016.[8] The schedule was confirmed on 17 January 2017.[9]

Group A

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Matches were played between 25 February – 3 March 2017 in Nouméa, New Caledonia. All times were local, NCT (UTC+11).

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification MAG CEN MAD LUP
1   Magenta (H) 3 3 0 0 11 3 +8 9 Semi-finals 4–2 5–0
2   Central Sport 3 2 0 1 12 7 +5 6 3–0
3   Madang 3 1 0 2 7 15 −8 3 3–7
4   Lupe o le Soaga 3 0 0 3 4 9 −5 0 1–2 3–4
Source: OFC
(H) Hosts
Madang  3–7  Central Sport
Report
Lupe o le Soaga  1–2  Magenta
Report

Lupe o le Soaga  3–4  Madang
Report
Magenta  4–2  Central Sport
Report
Attendance: 1,000

Central Sport  3–0  Lupe o le Soaga
Report
Magenta  5–0  Madang
Report

Group B

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Matches were played between 26 February – 4 March 2017 in Koné, New Caledonia. All times were local, NCT (UTC+11).

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification WEL HIE BAF PUA
1   Team Wellington 3 3 0 0 15 2 +13 9 Semi-finals 3–1 8–0
2   Hienghène Sport (H) 3 1 1 1 5 5 0 4 3–1
3   Ba 3 1 1 1 2 9 −7 4 1–1
4   Puaikura 3 0 0 3 2 8 −6 0 1–4 0–1
Source: OFC
(H) Hosts
Puaikura  1–4  Team Wellington
Report
Ba  1–1  Hienghène Sport
Report
Attendance: 850

Puaikura  0–1  Ba
Report
Team Wellington  3–1  Hienghène Sport
Report
Attendance: 1,200

Team Wellington  8–0  Ba
Report
Attendance: 200
Hienghène Sport  3–1  Puaikura
Report
Attendance: 700
Referee: Arnold Tari (Vanuatu)

Group C

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Matches were played between 11–18 March 2017 in Auckland, New Zealand. All times were local, NZDT (UTC+13).

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification AUC WES LAE MAL
1   Auckland City (H) 3 3 0 0 15 1 +14 9 Semi-finals 2–0 11–0
2   Western United 3 2 0 1 8 6 +2 6 1–2 2–1
3   Lae City Dwellers 3 1 0 2 8 9 −1 3 3–5
4   Malampa Revivors 3 0 0 3 3 18 −15 0 2–5
Source: OFC
(H) Hosts
Malampa Revivors  2–5  Lae City Dwellers
Report
Attendance: 200
Referee: Salesh Chand (Fiji)
Western United  1–2  Auckland City
Report

Western United  2–1  Malampa Revivors
Report
Auckland City  2–0  Lae City Dwellers
Report

Lae City Dwellers  3–5  Western United
Report
Auckland City  11–0  Malampa Revivors
Report

Group D

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Matches were played between 11–17 March 2017 in Pirae, Tahiti. All times were local, TAHT (UTC−10). <onyinclude>

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification TEF MAR ERA REW
1   Tefana (H) 3 2 1 0 8 4 +4 7 Semi-finals 2–2 2–0
2   Marist 3 1 1 1 7 6 +1 4 4–2
3   Erakor Golden Star 3 1 0 2 5 7 −2 3 2–4 2–1
4   Rewa 3 1 0 2 4 7 −3 3 2–1
Source: OFC
(H) Hosts
Marist  4–2  Rewa
Report
Attendance: 250
Erakor Golden Star  2–4  Tefana
  • T. Kaltack   19', 90+5'
Report
Attendance: 1,500

Erakor Golden Star  2–1  Marist
  • T. Kaltack   38', 85'
Report
Attendance: 500
Tefana  2–0  Rewa
Report

Rewa  2–1  Erakor Golden Star
Report
  • T. Kaltack   58'
Tefana  2–2  Marist
Report
Attendance: 1,500

Knockout stage

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In the knockout stage, the four teams played on a single-elimination basis, with each tie played on a home-and-away two-legged basis. If tied on aggregate, away goals were the first tie-breaker.

The draw for the knockout stage was held on 20 March 2017, 11:30 NZDT (UTC+13), at the OFC Headquarters in Auckland, New Zealand, to decide the matchups and the order of legs of the semi-finals, and the order of legs of the final.[10][11]

Bracket

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Semi-finals Final
          
1   Tefana 0 0 0
4   Auckland City 2 2 4
  Auckland City 3 2 5
  Team Wellington 0 0 0
3   Magenta 2 1 3
2   Team Wellington 2 7 9

Semi-finals

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Matches were played on 8 and 16 April 2017.[11]

Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Tefana   0–4   Auckland City 0–2 0–2
Magenta   3–9   Team Wellington 2–2 1–7
Tefana  0–2  Auckland City
Report
Attendance: 1,500
Auckland City  2–0  Tefana
Report
Attendance: 800

Auckland City won 4–0 on aggregate.


Magenta  2–2  Team Wellington
Report
Attendance: 3,000
Team Wellington  7–1  Magenta
Report
  • Cexome   33'

Team Wellington won 9–3 on aggregate.

Final

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Matches were played on the 30 April and 7 May 2017.[12]

Auckland City  3–0  Team Wellington
Report
Attendance: 1,000
Team Wellington  0–2  Auckland City
Report

Auckland City won 5–0 on aggregate.

Top goalscorers

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— Team eliminated / inactive for this stage.

Rank Player Team Q GS SF F Total
1   Ryan De Vries   Auckland City 4 0 2 6
  Tom Jackson   Team Wellington 4 2 0
  João Moreira   Auckland City 3 1 2
4   Guilherme Guedes   Marist 5 5
  Tony Kaltack   Erakor Golden Star 5
  Nicolas Marin   Magenta 4 1
7   César Castillo   Central Sport 4 4
  Bertrand Kaï   Hienghène Sport 4
9   Suivai Ataga   Lupe o le Soaga 3 0 3
  Andy Bevin   Team Wellington 1 2 0
  Maro Bonsu-Maro   Puaikura 3 0
  Cherbel Khouchaba   Lupe o le Soaga 0 3
  Clayton Lewis   Auckland City 2 1 0
  Emiliano Tade   Auckland City 1 1 1
  Lapalapa Toni   Lupe o le Soaga 2 1

Awards

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The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament.[13]

Award Player Team
Golden Ball   Ángel Berlanga   Auckland City
Golden Boot   João Moreira   Auckland City
Golden Glove   Eñaut Zubikarai   Auckland City
Fair Play Award   Auckland City

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Auckland City into Club World Cup". Stuff. Liam Hyslop.
  2. ^ "New expanded format for 2017". Oceania Football Confederation. 28 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Hekari United disqualified". Oceania Football Confederation. 2 February 2017.
  4. ^ "Madang FC complete lineup". Oceania Football Confederation. 8 February 2017.
  5. ^ "Live draw for expanded Champions League". Oceania Football Confederation. 23 August 2016.
  6. ^ "2017 OFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW". YouTube. 24 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Group make-up revealed for Champions League". Oceania Football Confederation. 24 August 2016.
  8. ^ "Group hosts named for 2017". Oceania Football Confederation. 10 October 2016.
  9. ^ "2017 Champions League Match Schedule confirmed". Oceania Football Confederation. 17 January 2017.
  10. ^ "2017 OCL Semis & Finals Draw". YouTube. 19 March 2017.
  11. ^ a b "Re-matches on as semi-finals confirmed". Oceania Football Confederation. 20 March 2017.
  12. ^ "All Kiwi final coming to Auckland and Wellington". Oceania Football Confederation. 19 April 2017.
  13. ^ "Navy Blues claim seventh in-a-row". Oceania Football Confederation. 7 May 2017.
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