Soccer: Overlooked team out to prove mettle

By BOB PEARCE

Tauranga City will have a point to prove when they travel to Auckland today to take on Metro in soccer's Chatham Cup.

The Bay of Plenty team won last year's northern premier league and would have been promoted into the North Island league.

But when the Ansett National Club Championship was established this season, they were left out in the cold.

Tauranga again lead the northern premier league after winning their last 10 games and coach Larry Seales reckons they will test Metro in their fourth-round Cup game at Albie Turner Field in Mt Albert.

Metro escaped from the bottom of the national league last week by beating fellow strugglers Central. They have the home advantage but Tauranga have managed to progress this far in the competition despite playing all their games away.

In the other Auckland game today, neighbours University-Mt Wellington and Eastern Suburbs clash at Madills Park in Kohimarama. Mount lead the national league and must be favoured to be too strong for Suburbs.

Tomorrow, Central will be out to end their losing streak against first-division Bay Olympic, while Waitakere should account for Onehunga Sports from the same division.

In the central and southern regions, the ties are: Wellington v Island Bay, Olympic v Miramar, Halswell v Napier and Nelson v Dunedin.