South Melbourne FC have reached the inaugural OFC Pro League final with a dominant 4-0 semi-final win over Vanuatu United FC in Auckland, with club leadership hailing the result as an “extraordinary achievement” given their unique position in the competition.
Co-chairs Bill Papastergiadis and Andrew Mesourouni told The Greek Herald they were “thrilled” with the result, emphasising the club’s success despite being “the only team not funded by FIFA” in the league.
They said the squad had performed “professionally throughout this league” and highlighted that Hellas had scored the most goals across the competition and enters the final “in great form.”
The pair described the achievement as a continuation of the club’s international pedigree and said South Melbourne remained committed to competing “at the highest possible level both domestically and internationally.”
They also pointed to the club’s investment in the competition and the scale of global interest, noting that “many millions have watched the OFC matches to date” and expecting “enormous” television audiences for Sunday’s final.
On the pitch, South Melbourne produced a commanding performance at Go Media Stadium, taking control early through a Jordan Swibel backheel finish in the 17th minute before an own goal and a Max Mikkola strike made it 3-0 by half-time.
Swibel remained central to the contest, his corner involvement forcing the own goal before Mikkola added a deflected third. After the break, Tommy Giannakopoulos completed the scoring in the 57th minute after Swibel’s header rebounded off the post.
The victory extends South Melbourne’s winning run to five matches as they prepare for the final at Eden Park, where they will face either Auckland FC or South Island United.
