2021 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League

Last updated
Papua New Guinea National Soccer League
Season2021
DatesJuly 24 – TBA
2022–23 →

The 2021 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League, for sponsorship reasons also known as the Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited National Soccer League, [1] is the 15th edition of the Papua New Guinea National Soccer League, the top-tier football league in Papua New Guinea. The league started on 24 July.

Contents

The defending champions are Lae City, who won their sixth consecutive title with a 1–0 victory over Vitiaz United in the previous season's Grand Final. [2]

Format

After initially deciding the league format would be the same as the previous season – one national league consisting of ten teams [3] [4] – the Papua New Guinea Football Association and NSL board eventually reverted to a format that they had previously used in the 2015–16 season, splitting the league into two regional divisions, a Northern Conference and a Southern Conference, each with seven teams. [5] [6]

Clubs

Seven clubs returned from the previous season: six-time reigning champions Lae City, eight-time champions Hekari United, fourth-placed side Komara Gulf, Morobe United, Morobe Wawens, Star Mountain and Tusbab Stallions. Grand Final runners-up Vitiaz United withdrew, citing financial difficulties. [7] Kutubu and Bougainville also withdrew from the league. A phoenix side, Lae City Dwellers, led by sacked Lae City FC coach Peter Gunemba, announced their return to the league in May 2021, [8] although there was an element of confusion as to which of the two sides had the right to claim the franchise's previous titles. [9] There were returns to the league for Tavur FC (also known as WNB Tavur), Sepik FC, and Port Moresby Strikers (also known as Southern Strikers), while Central Dabari FC was a late acceptance into the league. [10] There was also room for two development sides in each of the conferences.

Papua New Guinea National Soccer League 2021
Northern Conference
TeamPrevious bestOther honours
Lae City FC 2015–20: Champions(6x) 2018, 2019 OFC Champions League: Quarter-finalists
Morobe United 2009–10: Runners-up1998 National Club Championship: Runners-up

2001, 2005 Lae Regional Championship: Champions

Morobe Wawens 2018: 3rdNone
Tusbab Stallions 2019–20: 6thNone
Sepik FC 2008–09: 7thNone
Lae City DwellersN/ANone
Northern Youth FCN/ANone
Southern Conference
TeamPrevious bestOther honours
Hekari United 2006–14: Champions (8x) 2009–10 OFC Champions League: Champions

2017 National Premier League: Champions 2007 Port Moresby Premier League: Champions

Komara Gulf 2019–20: 4th2018 National Premier League: Champions
Port Moresby Strikers 2018: 5thNone
Star Mountain 2019–20: 7th1999 North Fly District: Champions
Tavur FC 2013: 7thNone
Central Dabari 2019: Southern Conference: 5thNone
Southern Youth FCN/ANone

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References

  1. ↑ "Kumul Petroleum takes naming rights to NSL". Post Courier. 2019-01-31. Retrieved 2019-06-30.
  2. ↑ "Lae City Claim Sixth Title After Professional and Polished Performance against Vitiaz". Oceania Football Center. 2020-10-11. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  3. ↑ "PNGFA to choose 10 teams for 2021 NSL season – The National". www.thenational.com.pg. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  4. ↑ "PNGFA yet to pick final 10 teams for NSL – The National". www.thenational.com.pg. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  5. ↑ "NSL to have two conferences: PNGFA – The National". www.thenational.com.pg. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  6. ↑ "PNG NSL Set for Dual-Conference 2021 Season". Oceania Football Center. 2021-06-30. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  7. ↑ "League Runners-Up Vitiaz United Will NOT Take Part in 2021 PNG NSL". Oceania Football Center. 2021-06-06. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  8. ↑ "Lae City Dwellers making a comeback". Post Courier. 2021-05-19. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  9. ↑ "Lae City Dwellers to Re-Unite Under Peter Gunemba". Oceania Football Center. 2021-06-06. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
  10. ↑ "Central United FC Make Late Bid for 2021 PNG National Soccer League". Oceania Football Center. 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2021-07-01.
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