Football: Wellington, Auckland win

Henry Fa'arodo
Henry Fa'arodo
Wellington and Auckland City hold the advantage after the first leg of the ASB Premiership semifinals.

Wellington beat Hawkes Bay United 2-1, and Auckland City beat rival Waitakere United 2-0. Both games were on Saturday and will be followed by the second-leg clashes this Sunday.

A goal in each half from Solomon Islander Henry Fa'arodo helped Wellington hold off Hawkes Bay, which struck through a first-half Saul Halpin penalty.

Fa'arodo opened the scoring for the visiting side in the eighth minute, tucking home the rebound from an Alex Fenderidis free kick.

Sean Lovemore, Hawkes Bay's league-leading scorer, went close to an equaliser, and the home team got on level terms 10 minutes before the break, Halpin dispatching a spot kick after referee Campbell-Kirk Waugh awarded a penalty for a push in the area.

Fa'arodo continued to threaten in the second half, and he scored the winning goal for Wellington when he converted an excellent cross from substitute Cory Chettleburgh at the near post.

In the 51st meeting of the two Auckland sides, first-half goals to new All White Ryan De Vries and Oscar Garcia helped Auckland City to its 2-0 win over defending champion Waitakere.

De Vries slotted home from close range after 27 minutes, and Garcia added a second goal just before halftime when he turned the ball into the Waitakere net from inside the area.

Waitakere had some opportunities in the second half but could not find the net, while De Vries missed a chance to get his second goal when he dinked over the crossbar.

 

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