Vitiaz United F.C.

Vitiaz United FC was a semi-professional association football club based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, apparently founded sometime in 2013.[1]

Vitiaz United
Full nameVitiaz United Football Club
Founded2013 (2013)
GroundLaiwaden Oval
Capacity1,000
ManagerRogena Strach
LeagueNational Soccer League
2019–202nd

The club last competed in the 2019–20 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League,[2] following a successful regional campaign which saw them win the Division One of the Port Moresby Soccer Association in late 2019.[3]

History

According to the club's Facebook page, the side was founded sometime in 2013.[1] However, competitive records of the club begin in 2017, when the club was in Division One of the Port Moresby Soccer Association – the second level of football in the country's capital. The side finished 6th in Division One that year,[4] before being demoted to Division Two for unknown reasons.[5] In 2018, however, they secured promotion back to Division One, finishing second behind Gurupweu.[5]

An excellent 2019 season saw the club win Division One and earn promotion to the PMSA Premier Division for the 2020 season.[3] The club won 14 games and lost just three en route to the title, conceding nine goals.

In November 2019, it was confirmed that the side were one of 12 clubs in contention for a spot in the upcoming 2019–20 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League.[6] On 11 December 2019, it was confirmed that the side would be one of two debutants in the new season.[2][7]

The side began the season strongly, providing a tough challenge to perennial contenders Lae City and Hekari United, beating the former 2–1 on 25 January[8] and playing out a goalless draw with latter on 29 February,[9] becoming genuine contenders for the title themselves after losing just one game in the first half of the season.[10] The side continued to challenge for the Minor Premiership until a couple of late-season defeats, to FC Bougainville[11] (the only side to beat them home and away all season) and Gulf Komara,[12] saw them slip out of contention for both the regular season title and OFC Champions League qualification. The last game of the season saw them draw 0–0 against Lae City which was enough to see them finish third and qualify for the playoffs.[10] In the semi-final, the side secured a shock victory over eight-time champions Hekari United after extra time and penalties,[13] before narrowly losing 1–0 to Lae City in the Grand Final.[14]

Ahead of the 2021 season, the club declared that they were declining to take part in the competition, citing financial difficulties.[15]

Final squad

Squad for the 2019–20 PNG National Soccer League

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Papua New Guinea PNG Russell Chris
4 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Joshua Talau
5 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Rodney Talau
6 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Junior Sigit
7 FW Papua New Guinea PNG Eliud Fugre
8 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Max Efale
9 FW Papua New Guinea PNG Joel Tiampo
10 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Eliot Foni
11 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Yagi Yasasa
14 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Donovan Murray
15 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Scott Henry
16 FW Papua New Guinea PNG Jonathan Allen
18 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Matthew David
19 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Peter Dabinyaba Jr.
20 DF Papua New Guinea PNG Mathias Oyabua
21 MF Papua New Guinea PNG Randal Passam
22 GK Papua New Guinea PNG Andrew Baniau

Honours

National Competitions

Regional Competitions
  • Port Moresby Soccer Association Division One
    • Champions: 2019

References
  1. "Vitiaz United Football Club". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  2. "Sport: PNG announces scaled-down National Soccer League". RNZ. 2019-12-11. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  3. "Papua New Guinea 2019". RSSSF. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  4. "Papua New Guinea 2017". RSSSF. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  5. "Papua New Guinea 2018". RSSSF. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  6. "Eight spots up for grabs in PNG's Premier Competition". Oceania Football Confederation. 2019-11-14. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  7. "10-Team PNG NSL kicks off this weekend". Oceania Football Center. 2019-12-10. Retrieved 2019-12-12.
  8. "CHAMPIONS GO DOWN!". Post Courier. 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  9. "Vitiaz hold Hekari as Lae smash Kutubu on OFC return". Oceania Football Center. 2020-03-01. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  10. "Papua New Guinea 2019/20". RSSSF. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  11. "B'ville upset Vitiaz". The National. 2020-09-14. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  12. "Vitiaz United suffer another upset". Post Courier. 2020-09-20. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  13. "Vitiaz Stun Hekari on Penalties While Lae Edge Past Valiant Gulf Komara". Oceania Football Center. 2020-10-05. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  14. "Lae City Claim Sixth Title After Professional and Polished Performance against Vitiaz". Oceania Football Center. 2020-10-11. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  15. "League Runners-Up Vitiaz United Will NOT Take Part in 2021 PNG NSL". Oceania Football Center. 2021-06-06. Retrieved 2021-07-03.
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