AS Pirae have made an emphatic start to their Group B campaign at the OFC Champions League 2023 in Vanuatu with a 3-0 win over Tiga Sport.
The Tahitian qualifiers secured victory over New Caledonia representatives Tiga Sport in Port Vila, scoring all three goals in a first half blitz.
AS Pirae fired from the outset, with two shots on goal within the first five minutes before they opened the scoring in the seventh minute.
Yohann Tihoni zipped down the right wing and timed his run to perfection to meet a 30-metre cross on the full at the far post and volley home from an acute angle.
Dominant in midfield, AS Pirae doubled their score in the 25th minute with a sizzling volley by defender Tevaitini Teumere from outside the box following a corner. It will take a spectacular effort to usurp it for goal of the tournament.
Tiga Sport struggled to get players forward and the odd foray into opposition territory was easily contained by the AS Pirae defence.
In the 40th minute, on a rare occasion when the full Tiga Sport complement pressed hard, a swift counter-attack from the Tahitian side unleashed Ariiura Labaste.
His initial shot was blocked but the athletic striker tapped the rebound home to establish a three-goal half-time advantage.
Tiga Sport had more possession and were full of running in the second half, but had little to show for their efforts. It wasn’t until the 52nd minute that they had their first attempt on goal and their first shot on target didn’t materialise until the 75th minute.
Neither side truly threatened in the second 45 minutes as AS Pirae, with only five substitutes, sat on their comfortable lead.
AS Pirae are missing their usual coach and three players due to work commitments, but all personnel will be available to join the squad if they make next week’s semi-finals.
Meanwhile in another Group B match, representing Papua New Guinea is Hekari United, who is looking to uphold a revered legacy when it kicks off its OFC Champions League 2023 campaign against local club Ifira Blackbird in Port Vila, Vanuatu today.
Only two clubs in the Pacific – New Zealand’s Auckland City and Ba from Fiji – have played in more OCL tournaments than the Papua New Guinea powerhouse.
And Hekari United is one of only two Pacific Island clubs to win the tournament in the modern OCL era (from 2007) when a New Zealand team has been competing.
Hekari coach Erick Komeng was in the playing line-up when the club triumphed in a two-leg final against Waitakere United in 2010 and he says his young, fully-fit squad will compete strongly again.
“We have a legacy to keep up,” Komeng said ahead of the Group B contest.
“The name Hekari is well known in the Pacific. Telling the stories of that win back to this young team, they are motivated.
Group B looks tight. Hekari and the local Vanuatu representatives are joined by New Caledonia’s Tiga Sport and AS Pirae from Tahiti.
In Group A opening matches in Luganville yesterday saw Auckland City FC recover from an early 1-0 deficit to beat a 10-man Solomon Warriors 3-1, whilst Fiji’s Suva FC powered to a resounding 6-0 win over Samoan side, Lupe Ole Soaga.