However it was Team Wellington extending their advantage rather than an equaliser that came next, as Jarrod Smith put it past Mateinaqara from close range just ahead of the half-time break.
The second half, Team Wellington appeared to shut up shop in an effort to hold on to their lead and the desired three points. Hekari continued to press as they searched for a weak point in the defence, and while they found a way to penetrate every now and then, Team Wellington's central duo of Bill Robertson and Chris Bale proved almost impassable.
"I'm pleased. It was good to get the goals in the first half, especially the one just before half-time," Team Wellington coach Matt Calcott says.
"We were rapt to be two goals up at half-time. We just had to ensure that we were nice and tight for the second half and didn't give away too many chances. We ran the clock down well and had a couple of good chances on the break as well."
For Hekari coach Jerry Allen however, the disappointment of not being able to finish some certain goals hurt.
"I think we didn't deserve to be down two goals at half-time," he says.
"The boys played pretty well but we just conceded two goals."
The second match was another important one, with three points a much required outcome for both AS Tefana and Tafea FC following their opening losses. Unfortunately the draw almost certainly rules them out of contention for a spot in the semi-finals.
It started well for the Tahitians with 2012 OFC Nations Cup winning striker Steevy Chong Hue almost managing to find his way to goal within the first three minutes. Tafea were equally inspired with Bill Nicholls practically handing a goal to Jean Kaltack, as he drew the keeper and crossed inside to his strike partner who only had to place it into an empty net, only for the former U-20 Vanuatu international to send it rocketing outside the upright.
Nicholls continued to make driving runs up the left flank, while Solomon Islander Gibson Daudau was equally disruptive up the right - however Tafea's ability left a lot to be desired. The Port Vila-based side finally got their break in the 35th minute when Nichols chipped the ball over the last defender for Kaltack He didn't miss this time, bouncing his volley over Steevens Hiriga to open the scoring and put himself back in the running for the tournament Golden Boot.
Not a side to hang their heads at a deficit, Tefana continued to press the Ni-Vanuatu side and it wasn't really until speedster Sylvain Graglia entered the mix just ahead of the break that the Tahtians really looked to threaten their opponents goal.
Chong Hue had a great chance early in the second half when he weaved past two defenders and shot, only to skim his effort over the crossbar. The match started to get a little terse at this point as desire for the win built and tempers started to flair.
An incident not far from the Fourth Official near the hour mark seemed to spark a series of events that did no favours to either side. A clash between Chong Hue and Edisson Stephens seemed to be the instigating event and resulted in the Tafea man receiving a caution. Yellow was brandished at Chong Hue a short time later, but when he caught Stephens further up the field that colour soon turned to red as a second caution earned him his marching orders.
Down to ten men it seemed like a mission impossible for AS Tefana to overcome the player disadvantage and continue to threaten the Tafea goal without leaving themselves exposed at the same time. They did well to contain their opponents who seemed in a hurry to put the match to bed, and eventually it was Tafea who left themselves overexposed at the back.
The fresh legs of substitute Lorenzo Tehau made short work of the tiring Tafea defenders to go 1v1 with Selonie Iaruel, who chose that moment to reach out for the ball only to take Tehau down instead. The goalkeeper was given a caution before veteran Tahtiian footballer Angelo Tchen sent him diving one way, while slotting past him in the opposite direction from the penalty spot.
With just five minutes left to restore their lead, Tafea continued pushing ahead, but they just didn't have enough left in them to get past their opponent.
Tafea coach Moise Poida says missed opportunities cost his side the win.
"We prepared to win this game. We both lost games in the first match and so we wanted to win here, that was our objective," he states.
"We had some chances to score, especially in the first half. I think the opportunity was there for us to go through, so it's very difficult for us to only take one point from this game."
It was an equally hard result for Tefana's Sebastian Labayan to stomach, as he too expected more than a point to come from this encounter.
"It wasn't that it was a difficult match, but rather that we completely missed our objective in the first half. On the other hand, the second half we were much better."
"We have had one loss and a draw and it's obvious that mathematically it's impossible to qualify for the semi-finals."
