The 2024 Papua New Guinea Premier Soccer League is the 2nd season of the Premier Soccer League and the 16th edition of top-tier soccer in Papua New Guinea overall. The league began on 6 July 2024 with 8 teams, after being postponed for a planned March to July season.[1][2][3]
| Season | 2024 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 6 July – 2 November |
| Premiers | Hekari United |
| OFC Champions League | Hekari United |
| Matches played | 56 |
| Goals scored | 169 (3.02 per match) |
| Biggest home win | 9 goals Hekari United 9–0 Lae City Dwellers (August 10) |
| Biggest away win | 5 goals Admiralty Islands 0–5 Morobe Wawens (October 13) |
| Highest scoring | 9 goals Lae City Dwellers 5–4 Admiralty Islands (July 29) Hekari United 9–0 Lae City Dwellers (August 10) |
| Longest winning run | 8 matches Hekari United (July 27 – September 28) |
| Longest unbeaten run | 13 matches Hekari United (July 7 – October 12) |
| Longest winless run | 5 matches Admiralty Islands (July 7 – August 4) Lae City Dwellers (August 4 – September 14) |
| Longest losing run | 4 matches Morobe Wawens (July 6 – July 27) Lae City Dwellers (August 4 – August 31) Lae City (September 14 – October 5) |
← 2022–23
All statistics correct as of 20 October 2024. | |
Hekari United are the defending champions, having won the inaugural Premier Soccer League title with a 1–0 victory over Lae City Dwellers in the 2022–23 edition, ending their nine-year title drought.[4][5]
Teams
editAs early as January 2024, the Papua New Guinea Football Association has sent notice of Expressions of Interest to the eight PSL clubs from the previous season. The teams were Gulf Isou, Hekari United, Lae City, Lae City Dwellers, Madang FC, Morobe Wawens, Port Moresby Strikers, and United Highlands FC.[2]
On 2 July 2024, the PNGFA has confirmed on its Facebook page the 8 teams that will compete for the season, including Round 1 matchups.[1][6] After a nine-year absence, Admiralty Islands return to top flight football.[5]
| Team | Region | Previous Best | Other Honours | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Admiralty Islands | |||||
| Gulf Komara | Southern | 2015–16: Southern Conference: 4th
2019–20: 4th |
2018 National Premier League: Champions | ||
| Hekari United | Southern | 2006–14, 2022–23: Champions (9x) | 2009–10 OFC Champions League: Champions 2017 National Premier League: Champions |
PNG Football Stadium | 14,800 |
| Lae City | Northern | 2015–19: Champions (5x) | 2018, 2019 OFC Champions League: Quarter-Finalists | Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium | 1,500 |
| Lae City Dwellers | 2022–23: Runners-up | ||||
| Morobe Wawens | Northern | 2018: 3rd | None | Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium | 1,500 |
| Port Moresby Strikers (name changed from Southern Strikers) |
Southern | 2018: 5th | None | ||
| United Highlands |
Regular season
editLeague table
edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hekari United | 14 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 35 | 7 | +28 | 35 | Qualification to Champions League group stage and Playoffs |
| 2 | Gulf Komara | 14 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 23 | 17 | +6 | 23 | Qualification to Playoffs |
| 3 | Port Moresby Strikers | 14 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 22 | |
| 4 | Lae City | 14 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 18 | |
| 5 | Morobe Wawens | 14 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 20 | 21 | −1 | 17 | |
| 6 | United Highlands | 14 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 22 | 24 | −2 | 17 | |
| 7 | Lae City Dwellers | 14 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 21 | 33 | −12 | 14 | |
| 8 | Admiralty Islands | 14 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 13 | 32 | −19 | 10 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference
Results
editResults by round
editPositions by round
edit| Qualification to the 2025 OFC Champions League Group Stage and PSL Playoffs | |
| Qualification to the PSL Playoffs |
Playoffs
edit| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| October 26 – Port Moresby | ||||||
| Hekari United | 3 | |||||
| TBD – | ||||||
| Lae City | 0 | |||||
| Hekari United | ||||||
| October 26 – Port Moresby | ||||||
| Gulf Komara | ||||||
| Gulf Komara | 2 | |||||
| Port Moresby Strikers | 1 | |||||
| Third place match | ||||||
| TBD – | ||||||
| Port Moresby Strikers | ||||||
| Lae City | ||||||
Semi-finals
editThird-place playoff
editFinal
editSeason statistics
edit
Top scorersedit
|
Most assistsedit
|
Clean sheets
edit- As of 20 October 2024
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hekari United | 9 | |
| 2 | Morobe Wawens | 5 | |
| Port Moresby Strikers | |||
| 4 | Lae City | 4 | |
| 5 | Admiralty Islands | 2 | |
| Gulf Komara | |||
| Lae City Dwellers | |||
| 8 | United Highlands | 1 |
Hat-tricks
edit- As of 29 July 2024
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logan Biwa | United Highlands | Morobe Wawens | 4–2 (A) | 22 July 2024 |
 Matu Ben
|
Lae City Dwellers | Admiralty Islands | 5–4 (H) | 29 July 2024 |
References
edit- ^ a b "PREMIER SOCCER LEAGUE KICKS OFF THIS WEEKEND". Facebook. 2024-07-02. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ^ a b "PSL sides to get early notice". The National. 2024-01-16. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ^ "Thrilling Start: PNG Premier Soccer League kicks-off with action-packed weekend". Oceania Football Center. 2024-07-09. Retrieved 2024-07-11.
- ^ "Hekari regain title". The National. 2023-12-18. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
- ^ a b "Soccer primed". The National. 2024-07-05. Retrieved 2024-07-06.
- ^ "PREMIER SOCCER LEAGUE KICKS OFF THIS WEEKEND". Facebook. 2024-07-02. Retrieved 2024-07-02.