Match Report: Round 3 vs Manukau Utd
Dettol Northern League Round 3 Match Report: East Coast Bays vs Manukau Utd, Bay City Park, Friday 3rd April 2026.
Bays create numerous chances in comprehensive win
The first match of the Easter double header saw Bays at home against newly promoted Manukau Utd. Bays were looking for their first of the season win after back-to-back draws. Bays lined up with the same starting line up as the Birkenhead game and the only change saw Ryusei coming on to the substitutes bench. And it was a huge welcome back to Nick Gaze who has resigned for Bays after a year away at Auckland FC.
Bays started the game at a rapid pace. Moses sent a pass out to the left wing and Liam was away down the wing. His cross into the middle was headed on by Guy before being cleared away. A foul on Guy saw Orlando’s free kick to the back post fractionally clear Jackson. Orlando’s next corner to the back post was headed behind just before Billy could get to it. A poor pass by Jackson saw a shot by Horgan saved low down by Louie. A long ball forward saw a shot across the face of goal by Marius. Liam’s next cross in saw Marius’s shot into the body of a defender. Louis intercepted a ball in midfield before driving forward and his right foot shot was deflected behind.
At the other end, a shot by Shah deflected off Billy led to a sharp save as Louie pushed the ball over the crossbar for a corner. A ball over the top by Liam saw Guy away but he was flagged offside. A long diagonal ball by Jackson from left to right saw the ball headed behind for a Bays corner. Orlando’s corner to the back post was headed behind by Liam but I am not sure if he knew much about it as it hit him rather than being a clear header. A cross in from Cam saw a shot by Guy go wildly over. Guy was on a mission all afternoon in closing down the defenders and from one of these he set up Ihaia who turned inside a defender and shot over.
Currie beat Jackson to the ball, and this led Currie being pulled back by his shirt. The subsequent free kick to the back post was eventually cleared by Louie. Currie set up Shah who then set up Hakim, but his cross cleared everyone at the back post. A trip on Louis saw Orlando line another free kick. Orlando decided a drive along the ground was in order, but the free kick was cleared away. Horgan then had a great turn, and his long-range shot went straight to Louie. A clearance in the Bays half saw Louis play a ball right down the middle. Guy was away but the ball just got away from him nearer the goal. Another ball over the top saw Marius away and his cross/shot seemed to be handled. No penalty given but a corner instead.
Just when it looked like the sides were heading into half time level Bays took the lead in the 45th minute when a ball down the right saw a cross in and Ihaia placed a left footer into the back of the net from close range. The half time whistle went, and the score read East Coast Bays 1 Manukau Utd 0. Bays were well worth their lead with the many chances created but a number of chances wasted. Manukau lived off a few scraps but were well in the game with a few half chances.
Straight after half time good play down the right saw Cam take a return pass from Guy and burst down the right win. His cross to the back post saw Ihaia shoot over the top from close range. Down the other end a quick ball forward saw Nadir away. He cut inside but his weak shot rolled straight along the ground to Louie. Another ball down the right flank saw Louis’s cross into the middle saw the ball headed behind for a Bays corner. Orlando’s corner to the back post was headed back across goal by Billy and was met expertly by Ihaia with a brilliant bicycle kick that flew past the Manukau keeper. A brilliantly taken goal which meant Bays were now leading 2-0 after 56 minutes gone.
Bays continued their relentless pressure. A ball across from Ihaia saw a partial header by Guy. The ball ended up on the opposite side for Louis to tee it up Cam who had his shot blocked. Orlando’s corner was played short to Guy who laid the ball back to Moses. His shot was deflected off a defender over the crossbar. Manukau made two changes in the 63rd minute with Sumner and Jones Molyneux coming on for Shah and Horgan going off. A minute later Bays made two changes of their own with Peter & Ben coming on for Ihaia and Louis.
Four minutes later the game was pretty much over as Bays made it 3-0 with an excellent team goal. Guy sent the ball down the right wing. Cam burst forward and sent an excellent cross into the middle of the box for Marius to drive home emphatically into the net. After 67 minutes gone the score now read East Coast Bays 3 Manukau United 0. Ben made an immediate impact as he intercepted a pass and played the ball forward to Marius. His left footed shot went into the side netting. Guy then intercepted a pass and again set up Marius whose right foot shot hit the base of the post before going out for a goal kick.
Moses made a break down the left wing before finding Marius. His cross found Guy who sliced his shot wide. Liam made a break down the left and his cross to the back post found Ben whose shot came off a defender for yet another corner. In the 74th minute Bays made two more changes with Nathan and Ryusei coming on for Marius and Liam. Cam was making a number of breaks down the right side and from one of these he turned inside, and his shot was turned over. After 77 minutes Manukau made two more changes with Shafahi & Ugwa coming on for Alhamdan and Boss.
A foul by Orlando led to a yellow card being waved at Cam. The free kick in saw a shot by Molyneux punched over the bar by Louie. Orlando played another ball out to the right and Cam put in another cross that was eventually cleared away. Guy managed to close down the keeper and rob him of the ball. But the keeper did well to recover and block Guy from shooting past him. Billy sent a long ball from right to left that found Nathan breaking forward and his cross was blocked. In the 85th minute Bays made their last change with a battered Billy coming off to be replaced by James.
A ball down the right wing was flicked on by Cam on to Guy who laid the ball back to Ryusei who had his shot blocked. Ben Hooper sent his corner to the back post and James sent his header over while he was clearly being held by a defender. No foul given. In a rare Manukau attack Ugwa had a shot palmed over the crossbar by Louie for a corner. Jackson played another ball forward to Nathan and his cross was deflected for yet another corner. The game finished with a cross in from the left wing by Ugwa that saw a header by Currie go straight to Louie.
The fulltime whistle went, and Bays had won the game fairly comfortably by 3-0. It was great to see so many chances created and Bays should have won the game by a lot bigger margin. But it was a win on the board for the 2026 season and there were a lot of good individual performances on the day. In an unusual after match action the Manukau coach would not give his player of the day to one of his own players but instead gave it to Billy. Joe awarded his player of the day to Moses for holding the team together in a very steady performance. Next up is part 2 of the Easter double header with a trip to Seddon Fields to take on Western Springs on Easter Monday with a 5.30pm kick off. See you there.
Final Score: East Coast Bays 3 vs Manukau Utd 0
East Coast Bays: L Caunter, J Jarvie, I Delaney (P Harrison 64), O Thorpe, M Akimana, G E Penda, B Jones (J Edgeler 85), M Zabarauskas (R Ishibashi 74), L Andersen (N Maisey 74), C Brown, L Wicks (B Hooper 64)
Manukau Utd: R Kumar, L Armando Navarro, U Hakim, O Rotimi, D Horgan (M Jones Molyneux 63), Y Alhamdan (M Shafahi 77), I Nadir, M Ishtiyaq Shah (N Summer 63), J Boss (J Ugwa 77), R Currie, M Kenneth
Goals: EC Bays: I Delaney 45 & 56, M Zabarauskas 67
