The Wanaka AFC Premier football team is into the championship round of the Southern Premier Football League despite losing 5-1 on Saturday (August 15) against Otago University.

Wanaka needed to finish in the top four places of the league to contest the championship and went into this match sitting in a precarious fourth position.

Queenstown, sitting in fifth position, needed to win their match against top of the table Green Island to have a chance of leapfrogging Wanaka into the top four. Their bid failed with a 2-0 loss, much to the relief of the Wanaka faithful.

The game was played in perfect conditions at the Wanaka Recreation Centre, and Wanaka seldom troubled a dominant University side who scored three unanswered goals in the first half to all but shut Wanaka out of a sought-after victory.

The opener was gifted to University when Wanaka keeper Lukas Schafer miscued a clearance kick and Universities Rathbone beat Thomas Van Hees to the ball to place his shot past the young keeper.

Ben Stanley scored the second for University from close range after a clever through ball from Rathbone, then Rathbone scored again when he ran on to a through ball to beat Wanaka’s off side trap and round Schafer in goal to make it 3-0.

Wanaka had few clear cut chances in a below par first half performance.

Wanaka showed more urgency in the second half but it was unable to stop University’s flow and the visitors added two more goals before Wanaka’s Weston Bell found lively striker Adam Hewson who found the back of the net to make it 5-1.

Disappointment at losing the game and the Blair Davidson Shield was softened when news of Queenstown AFC losing to Green Island confirmed Wanaka’s place in the championship.

Wanaka will need to re group and lift their game in the coming weeks.