Eleven teenagers have created history for Northland football, becoming the first boys' team from the region to win an Auckland Football Federation metro league.
The North Force under-16 side was consistently too good for its Auckland opposition throughout the season, winning 11 of 16 matches in the 16th Metro grade.
Made up of Drew Young, Kyle Levell, Dylan Rodgers, Liam Barber-Kake, Bradley Douglas, Alex Kayryakov, Connor Teh-Hall, Jesse Matthews, Adam Streamer, View Rungpao, and Connor Willy, the representative side suffered only one loss - not that it worries them now.
Coach Dan Johnston said he was fortunate to have such a talented bunch of players, adding he always knew they could win the league.
"We always set out to win the league. [But] the boys exceeded my expectations," he said of the season. "I did believe we were good enough to do it, but believing it and doing it are two different things.
"I still can't believe we won it. It hasn't sunk in yet - I have to look at the league table to believe it."
While accepting the feat might be taking time, the team didn't waste a second in stamping their mark on the league - winning their first game 5-0 in emphatic fashion.
From there, the North Force boys just kept on rolling.
Johnston remembers one particular game that essentially guaranteed them the title, in which the Northlanders scored three goals in 15 minutes to seal the win.
But not only did North Force score three goals in 15 minutes, they did it through a different structure they had not trained for.
"If we wanted to win the league we had to win that game [against East Coast Bays, traditionally one of the best teams around]. Everything went against us ... we were 4-2 down with 15 minutes left, so we changed tactics to something we'd never done before and managed to score three goals and win 5-4.
"That was the real point that we thought we can win the league. I guess that's the good thing about the boys. We've got a group who are very versatile.
"We've got some amazing individuals but what got us through was the way the team reacted to everything. All the boys know what to do in different scenarios."
FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH: North Force under-16 player Connor Teh-Hall playing for his 16th Metro grade team which became the first Northland boys' team to win a metro grade.PHOTOS/SHARON TEH-HALL
Northland Football Federation development manager Dave Alabaster said the team deserved all of the kudos they got.
"It is a big deal for us and we're all very proud," he said, adding the previous best finish from a Northland team was fourth or fifth.
