# 2023 NRFL Leagues

The 2023 NRFL Leagues was the 59th and 57th seasons respectively of the NRFL Championship and NRFL Conference, football competitions in New Zealand. Established in 1965, currently twelve teams compete in the Championship while 8 teams compete in the Northern and Southern sections of the Conference League.

## Northern League

The Northern League sits above the two NRFL Divisions and is also overseen by Northern Region Football, despite being run by New Zealand Football as part of the New Zealand National League.
Twelve teams competed in the league – the top ten teams from the previous season and the two teams promoted from the 2022 NRFL Division 1. The promoted teams are West Coast Rangers and Manurewa. This was both Manurewa's first season in the Northern League. West Coast have returned at the first time of asking after being relegated in 2021. They replaced Waiheke United (one season) and North Shore United (two seasons).

### Northern League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Auckland City (C) | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 64 | 9 | +55 | 60 | Winner of Northern League and qualification to National League Championship |
| 2 | Eastern Suburbs | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 51 | 17 | +34 | 56 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 3 | Auckland United | 22 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 50 | 24 | +26 | 43 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 4 | Manurewa | 22 | 11 | 3 | 8 | 46 | 37 | +9 | 36 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 5 | Western Springs | 22 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 39 | 35 | +4 | 33 | |
| 6 | Hamilton Wanderers | 22 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 39 | 49 | −10 | 30 | |
| 7 | West Coast Rangers | 22 | 8 | 2 | 12 | 33 | 49 | −16 | 26 | |
| 8 | Birkenhead United | 22 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 46 | 44 | +2 | 25 | |
| 9 | Melville United | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 30 | 47 | −17 | 23 | |
| 10 | Bay Olympic | 22 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 33 | 55 | −22 | 15 | |
| 11 | Takapuna (R) | 22 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 23 | 50 | −27 | 15 | Relegation to NRFL Championship |
| 12 | Manukau United (R) | 22 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 26 | 64 | −38 | 12 | Relegation to NRFL Championship |

## Championship

Each team can field a maximum of five foreign players as well as one additional foreign player who has Oceania Football Confederation nationality. Over the course of the season, each team must also ensure players aged 20 or under account for 7% of available playing minutes.
Following their 7–1 win over Mount Albert-Ponsonby on the final day, Tauranga City were crowned champions. They were promoted alongside East Coast Bays a week earlier.

### Championship teams

Twelve teams competed in the league – eight teams from the previous season, the two teams relegated from the 2022 Northern League and two teams promoted from the 2022 NRFL Division 2. The relegated teams were Waiheke United and North Shore United, while the promoted teams are Hibiscus Coast and Ngaruawahia United. West Coast Rangers were promoted alongside Manurewa, while Albany United and Waitemata were relegated.
| Team | Location | Stadium | 2022 season |
| East Coast Bays | Northcross, Auckland | Bay City Park | 4th |
| Ellerslie | Ellerslie, Auckland | Michaels Avenue | 7th |
| Fencibles United | Pakuranga, Auckland | Riverhills Domain | 9th |
| Hibiscus Coast | Stanmore Bay, Auckland | Stanmore Bay Park | 1st in Division 2 (promoted) |
| Metro | Mount Albert, Auckland | Phyllis Street | 8th |
| Mount Albert-Ponsonby | Mount Albert, Auckland | Anderson Park | 5th |
| Ngaruawahia United | Ngāruawāhia | Centennial Park | 2nd in Division 2 (promoted) |
| North Shore United | Devonport, Auckland | Allen Hill Stadium | 12th in Northern League (relegated) |
| Northern Rovers | Glenfield, Auckland | McFetridge Park | 6th |
| Onehunga-Mangere United | Māngere Bridge, Auckland | Māngere Domain | 10th |
| Tauranga City | Mount Maunganui, Tauranga | Links Avenue | 3rd |
| Waiheke United | Waiheke Island, Auckland | Onetangi Sports Park | 11th in Northern League (relegated) |

### Championship personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| East Coast Bays | Joe Hall | Louie Caunter | Lotto Sport Italia | None |
| Ellerslie | Ben Fletcher | Seb Poelman | Lotto Sport Italia | Trillian Trust |
| Fencibles United | Marty Rodwell | | Nike | New World Howick |
| Hibiscus Coast | Ryan Faithfull | | Lotto Sport Italia | RNB Transport |
| Metro | Scott MacKay | | | |
| Mount Albert-Ponsonby | Darren White | Lewis Black | Lotto Sport Italia | Woodview Construction |
| Ngaruawahia United | Kyle Park | | Joma | None |
| North Shore United | Dylan Burns | | Nike | Atlas Concrete |
| Northern Rovers | Paul Gothard | Dion Buckingham | Lotto Sport Italia | None |
| Onehunga-Mangere United | Tim Ragg | | Nike | None |
| Tauranga City | Barry Gardiner | | Adidas | None |
| Waiheke United | Sam Negash | | Nike | Fullers 360 |

### Championship table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Tauranga City (C, P) | 22 | 17 | 2 | 3 | 73 | 20 | +53 | 53 | Promotion to Northern League |
| 2 | East Coast Bays (P) | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 60 | 18 | +42 | 51 | Promotion to Northern League |
| 3 | Ngaruawahia United | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 48 | 31 | +17 | 42 | |
| 4 | Mount Albert-Ponsonby | 22 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 47 | 38 | +9 | 41 | |
| 5 | Hibiscus Coast | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 31 | 24 | +7 | 37 | |
| 6 | North Shore United | 22 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 47 | 37 | +10 | 39 | |
| 7 | Ellerslie | 22 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 41 | 45 | −4 | 29 | |
| 8 | Fencibles United | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 32 | 40 | −8 | 28 | |
| 9 | Northern Rovers | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 23 | 42 | −19 | 20 | |
| 10 | Onehunga-Mangere United | 22 | 3 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 44 | −25 | 14 | |
| 11 | Metro | 22 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 27 | 64 | −37 | 10 | |
| 12 | Waiheke United (R) | 22 | 2 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 65 | −45 | 9 | Relegation to NRFL Northern Conference |
* Metro won 3–0 against Northern Rovers, but Metro fielded an ineligible player. Result upgraded to a 3–0 win for Northern Rovers.
* Metro drew 1–1 with Onehunga-Mangere United, but Metro fielded an ineligible player. Result upgraded to a 3–0 win for Onehunga-Mangere.

### Championship results table

| Home \ Away | ECB | ELL | FEN | HBC | MET | MAP | NGA | NSU | NTR | OHM | TGA | WHU |
| East Coast Bays | — | 5–0 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 6–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 5–0 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 7–0 |
| Ellerslie | 0–3 | — | 3–3 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 3–4 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| Fencibles United | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–1 |
| Hibiscus Coast | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–0 | — | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 5–0 |
| Metro | 2–4 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2–2 | — | 1–5 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 0–8 | 3–3 |
| Mount Albert-Ponsonby | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–4 | 4–0 | 2–2 | — | 2–2 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 |
| Ngaruawahia United | 2–0 | 3–2 | 7–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 5–2 | — | 2–3 | 3–1 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 4–1 |
| North Shore United | 2–0 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 2–1 | 6–0 | 2–6 | 2–1 |
| Northern Rovers | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 3–3 | — | 1–0 | 1–4 | 1–0 |
| Onehunga-Mangere United | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | — | 0–5 | 1–0 |
| Tauranga City | 3–2 | 5–3 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 7–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | — | 9–1 |
| Waiheke United | 2–3 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 0–6 | 1–2 | 1–5 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | — |
* ↑ Metro won 3–0, but Metro fielded an ineligible player. Result upgraded to a 3–0 win for Northern Rovers.
* ↑ Metro drew 1–1 with Onehunga-Mangere, but Metro fielded an ineligible player. Result upgraded to a 3–0 win for Onehunga-Mangere.
* ↑ Tauranga City won 3–0 after Northern Rovers defaulted.

### Championship scoring
#### Championship top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Jonty Bidois | Tauranga City | 22 |
| 2 | Stjepan Kovacic | Ngaruawahia United | 14 |
| 3 | Dylan Stansfield | East Coast Bays | 12 |
| 4 | Reuben Henderson | Ngaruawahia United | 11 |
| 4 | Gilberto Souza | Metro | 11 |
| 6 | Colby Brennan | Tauranga City | 10 |
| 7 | Thomas Page | North Shore United | 9 |
| 7 | Brennen Priestley | Fencibles United | 9 |
| 9 | Nick Petherick | North Shore United | 8 |
| 9 | Sam Tutton | Mt Albert Ponsonby | 8 |

## Northern Conference
### Northern Conference teams

Nine teams are competing in the league – the top six northern teams from Division 2 last season, the two teams relegated from the 2022 NRFL Division 1 and the champions of the 2022 NRF Championship. The relegated teams are Albany United and Waitemata. Originally, although Central United won the 2022 NRF Championship, they were unable to be promoted due to their MoU with Auckland City. As a result, Oratia United were reprieved of relegation. However, after Central United successfully appealed to the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand, they were entered into the competition three weeks after it commenced. As a result NRF decided the league would restart, voiding all previously played matches.
| Team | Location | Stadium | 2022 season |
| Albany United | Albany, Auckland | Rosedale Park | 11th in Division 1 (relegated) |
| Beachlands Maraetai | Beachlands, Auckland | Te Puru Park | 7th |
| Bucklands Beach | Pakuranga Heights | Lloyd Elsmore Park | 4th |
| Central United | Sandringham | Kiwitea Street | 1st in NRF Championship (promoted) |
| Franklin United | Drury | Drury Sports Grounds | 5th |
| Northland | Morningside, Whangārei | Morningside Park | 6th |
| Oratia United | Oratia, Auckland | Parrs Park | 10th |
| Waitemata | Beachlands, Auckland | Te Puru Park | 12th in Division 1 (relegated) |
| West Auckland | Kelston, Auckland | Brains Park | 3rd |
* 1 2 Oratia United were reprieved from relegation as Central United were originally unable to gain promotion due to their MoU with Auckland City. After appeal to the Sports Tribunal of New Zealand, Central United were re-entered into the competition.

### Northern Conference table

Table before restart :
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Albany United | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 7 | Qualification for Conference play-offs |
| 2 | Bucklands Beach | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 7 | |
| 3 | West Auckland | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 6 | |
| 4 | Franklin United | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 6 | |
| 5 | Beachlands Maraetai | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −1 | 4 | |
| 6 | Waitemata | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | −3 | 2 | |
| 7 | Northland | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | −3 | 1 | |
| 8 | Oratia United | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 | −7 | 0 | Relegation to NRF League One |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Franklin United (C, P) | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 36 | 18 | +18 | 38 | Qualification for Conference play-offs |
| 2 | Bucklands Beach | 16 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 38 | 17 | +21 | 31 | |
| 3 | Oratia United | 16 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 35 | 32 | +3 | 26 | |
| 4 | Waitemata | 16 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 26 | 26 | 0 | 21 | |
| 5 | Beachlands Maraetai | 16 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 31 | 37 | −6 | 19 | |
| 6 | Albany United | 16 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 32 | 34 | −2 | 18 | |
| 7 | Northland | 16 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 24 | 27 | −3 | 15 | |
| 8 | West Auckland (R) | 16 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 32 | 43 | −11 | 15 | Relegation to NRF League One |
| 9 | Central United (R) | 16 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 22 | 42 | −20 | 15 | Relegation to NRF League One |

### Northern Conference results table

| Home \ Away | ALB | BLM | BUC | CEN | FRA | NOR | ORA | WTM | WAK |
| Albany United | — | 2–0 | 0–5 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 6–4 |
| Beachlands Maraetai | 3–2 | — | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–4 | 4–0 | 1–4 | 1–3 | 0–2 |
| Bucklands Beach | 1–1 | 4–2 | — | 6–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 2–1 |
| Central United | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–6 | — | 0–2 | 0–3 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 |
| Franklin United | 2–0 | 5–5 | 1–0 | 2–2 | — | 2–1 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 |
| Northland | 0–0 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 6–0 | 0–1 | — | 1–5 | 2–2 | 2–2 |
| Oratia United | 4–3 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–4 | 1–3 | 0–1 | — | 2–0 | 2–2 |
| Waitemata | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | — | 4–2 |
| West Auckland | 5–3 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 0–5 | 0–4 | 6–3 | — |

## Southern Conference
### Southern Conference teams

Eight teams are competing in the league – the top two southern teams from Division 2 last season, and the top 6 from the 2022 WaiBOP Premiership.
| Team | Location | Stadium | 2022 season |
| Cambridge | Cambridge | John Kerkhof Park | 8th |
| Claudelands Rovers | Claudelands, Hamilton | Galloway Park | 9th |
| Ngongotahā Lakes | Ngongotahā, Rotorua | Tamarahi Reserve | 6th in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
| Otumoetai | Matua, Tauranga | Fergusson Park | 2nd in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
| Papamoa | Papamoa Beach, Papamoa | Gordon Spratt Reserve | 4th in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
| Taupo | Tauhara, Taupō | Crown Park | 3rd in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
| Te Awamutu | Te Awamutu | The Stadium | 5th in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
| Waikato Unicol | Silverdale, Hamilton | Jansen Park | 1st in WaiBOP Premiership (promoted) |
* ↑ Ngongotaha AFC finished 6th last season. They signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Lakes FC at the end of the 2022 season to have a combined team for the 2023 season onwards.

### Southern Conference table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Waikato Unicol (C) | 21 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 70 | 23 | +47 | 53 | Qualification for Conference play-offs |
| 2 | Cambridge | 21 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 80 | 32 | +48 | 52 | |
| 3 | Taupo | 21 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 49 | 35 | +14 | 38 | |
| 4 | Claudelands Rovers | 21 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 40 | 35 | +5 | 24 | |
| 5 | Papamoa | 21 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 37 | 60 | −23 | 22 | |
| 6 | Otumoetai | 21 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 38 | 47 | −9 | 19 | |
| 7 | Ngongotahā Lakes | 21 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 29 | 63 | −34 | 16 | |
| 8 | Te Awamutu | 21 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 25 | 73 | −48 | 16 | |

### Southern Conference results table

| Home \ Away | CAM | CLR | NGO | OTU | PAP | TAU | TAW | WKU | CAM | CLR | NGO | OTU | PAP | TAU | TAW | WKU |
| Cambridge | — | 1–4 | 6–0 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 10–1 | 3–1 | — | 6–3 | — | — | 4–0 | 4–2 | — | 4–1 |
| Claudelands Rovers | 0–2 | — | 3–1 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 7–0 | 1–4 | — | — | — | 0–0 | — | — | 4–0 | 1–3 |
| Ngongotahā Lakes | 1–1 | 2–2 | — | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 1–0 | — | — | — | 1–6 | — | — |
| Otumoetai | 1–5 | 1–0 | 1–2 | — | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–3 | — | 6–1 | — | — | 7–0 | — | — |
| Papamoa | 1–7 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 1–3 | — | 0–2 | 2–1 | 3–3 | — | 3–3 | 5–1 | 3–4 | — | — | — | — |
| Taupo | 4–1 | 2–1 | 5–3 | 5–2 | 5–1 | — | 3–0 | 0–4 | — | 1–0 | — | — | 1–0 | — | 0–0 | 1–3 |
| Te Awamutu | 1–2 | 1–3 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 2–6 | 0–7 | — | 1–1 | 2–7 | — | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | — | — | — |
| Waikato Unicol | 3–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 6–0 | 2–0 | 6–1 | — | — | — | 5–1 | 5–2 | 5–0 | — | 5–0 | — |

## Women's Premiership

The NRFL Women's Premiership acts as a qualifier for the New Zealand Women's National League.
Eight teams are competing in the league – the top seven teams from the previous season and the promoted side from the 2022 NRF Championship. The promoted team is Hibiscus Coast as winners of the NRF Championship.

### Women's Premiership table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Auckland United (C) | 14 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 42 | 13 | +29 | 34 | Winner of Northern League and qualification to National League Championship |
| 2 | Eastern Suburbs | 14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 52 | 18 | +34 | 31 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 3 | Western Springs | 14 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 42 | 22 | +20 | 24 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 4 | Ellerslie | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 23 | 21 | +2 | 23 | Qualification to National League Championship |
| 5 | West Coast Rangers | 14 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 28 | 15 | +13 | 22 | |
| 6 | Hamilton Wanderers | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 18 | 34 | −16 | 16 | |
| 7 | Hibiscus Coast | 14 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 13 | 36 | −23 | 13 | |
| 8 | Northern Rovers (R) | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 62 | −59 | 0 | Relegation to NRFL Women's Championship |

## Women's Championship
### Women's Championship table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Fencibles United (C, P) | 21 | 16 | 3 | 2 | 69 | 16 | +53 | 51 | Promotion to NRFL Women's Premiership |
| 2 | Onehunga Sports | 21 | 14 | 2 | 5 | 57 | 27 | +30 | 44 | |
| 3 | Franklin United | 21 | 11 | 6 | 4 | 48 | 25 | +23 | 39 | |
| 4 | Tauranga City | 21 | 12 | 3 | 6 | 54 | 34 | +20 | 39 | |
| 5 | Otumoetai | 21 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 47 | 47 | 0 | 32 | |
| 6 | Manukau United | 21 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 20 | 44 | −24 | 17 | |
| 7 | Central United | 21 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 17 | 57 | −40 | 11 | |
| 8 | Te Atatu (R) | 21 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 18 | 80 | −62 | 9 | Relegation to NRF Women's Conference |