The Navy Blues have continued their impressive run of form in the OFC Champions League after outclassing Madang 5-0 at the Trusts Arena on Wednesday.

Goals to Dan Morgan, Callum McCowatt, Dalton Wilkins and a brace to Emiliano Tade see Auckland City progress into the knockout stages of the tournament with a game in hand.

Coach Ramon Tribulietx was pleased with the result but also acknowledged the hardships that come with playing a tough side like Madang.

“I think we started really well but, when we went 2-0 up, we didn’t control the game," he said.

“After 10 minutes of the second half, we started to take control again and we got three more. We created some unbelievable chances but we didn’t score from this. But we kept creating very clear chances and that’s the way to go.”

The Navy Blues will take on Lautoka on Saturday, who are also currently undefeated in Group C after wins over Madang (3-1) and AS Venus (2-1). 

Up for grabs for the winner of that match is the opportunity to snatch a home quarter-final with both teams already safely through to the last eight alongside AS Dragon, Nalkutan, Solomon Warriors and Lae City Dwellers.The picture in Group D remains less clear with Team Wellington and AS Magenta leading the way with four points each while undefeated Marist sit in third with two points and a final match with Lupe Ole Soaga to come.

Tribulietx is wary of the experience Fijian side Lautoka possesses.

“We know they’re a good team, they've got some very good, dangerous players up front and we need to be aware of that," he said. 

“We understand this game is going to be very difficult, we might control it a little better than this one because of the way they play but that means they’re in their best situation to hurt us from the counter attack.”

The Baby Blues (Lautoka) are making their third OFC Champions League appearance and have never before faced a New Zealand side in the tournament.

Auckland City on the other hand faced Ba in 2013 in a two-legged semi-final play-off, with the Navy Blues winning 7-1 on aggregate. 

Auckland City met Nadi the following year at Churchill Park in Fiji with Joao Moreira, Daewook Kim and Tade helping the Navy Blues secure a 3-0 win.

The match against Lautoka will be played at Trusts Arena in Auckland on Saturday 3 March at 4pm.

OFC Champions League
Group C

Auckland City 5 (Dan Morgan 13', Callum McCowatt 17', Emiliano Tade 74', 87', Dalton Wilkins 90' + 2')
Madang 0 
HT: 2-0