Can Auckland United snatch the sought-after threepeat?
All that stands in their way is a very good Eastern Suburbs side.
Auckland United will host cross-town rivals Eastern Suburbs in the National League final at Keith Hay Park this evening in what will be a huge clash between the two.
Very little has separated the two sides in the National League this season, where Dunedin side, Southern United, finished fifth.
Auckland United sit at the top with 22 points for a record of seven wins, one draw, one loss — which came last week and is their first loss in the league since 2023 — and have scored 31 goals.
Eastern Suburbs qualified second with 20 points and a record of six wins, two draws and one loss this season and have scored 30 goals.
Ruby Nathan, Victoria Neuefeind and Tayla O’Brien are Eastern’s leading goal scorers with five each, while Zoe Benson, Ava Collins, Chloe Knott and Kiara Bercelli — who is originally from Wanaka — lead Auckland’s scorers with four each.
Auckland United and Eastern Suburbs had a 1-1 draw on October 29. Nathan scored in the 50th minute but Ava Pritchard equalised in the 88th minute.
Auckland United, who won the Kate Sheppard Cup in 2024 and 2025, won the national title in 2023 with a 2-0 victory against Southern United and in 2024 with a 3-1 victory against Waterside Karori.
Eastern Suburbs last won the title in 2022 when they beat Western Springs 4-0.
