Auckland FC A-League champions after second season

Auckland FC are A-League champions after their second season in the league ended with the biggest prize in the competition.

A 1-0 win over Sydney FC in Saturday's grand final at a sold-out Go Media Stadium crowned Auckland as the A-League champions for the first time.

It was Cam Howieson's goal on the hour mark that was the difference.

Howieson has been playing football in Auckland for nearly a decade and was among the first signings when Auckland FC was formed.

It was fitting it that it was the midfielder who scored his first goal for the club on the biggest stage.

The first A-League grand final to be hosted outside of Australia got off to a cautious start with the home side dominating the chances in the first half as Sydney committed to playing out from the back.

The scores were level at 0-0 at halftime.

After the break Sydney's best chance came just before the hour mark but it was Auckland who would be the first to find the back of the net with a bit of help from a Sydney defender.

A flare thrown from the crowd, at the Auckland supporters end, on to the field after the goal was scored was a blight on the 28,374 fans who witnessed history.

Read how the grand final unfolded below:

Temporary seating had been added to the northern end of Go Media Stadium to help accommodate the nearly 28,000 fans who secured tickets earlier this week.

Auckland FC are known for the entertainment they offer off the pitch and the popular slide down the embankment is there but the football-themed bouncy castle will not be in its usual spot as the extra seating takes up some of that space.

'Ours to win'

Even going into the match, Auckland FC fans were confident of the win.

Cries of "up the port" and "ole ole ole" could be heard from the streams of people heading from Penrose Station to the ground.

A parade with an estimated more than 200 people with drums and flags headed towards the stadium, singing songs and chanting chants, more than an hour before kickoff.

One fan told RNZ said he thought it was absolutely "ours to win tonight."

Another said he was "beyond excited" to see Auckland host the grand final.

His prediction was particularly good.

"Auckland win, hands down ... I'm guessing 1-0 in 90, or it's gonna go to penalties."

Other predictions were less accurate, with one young Auckland fan predicting a 100-goal landslide.

A particularly dedicated fan said he had made the snap decision to travel up from Dunedin for the game.

"This morning I was on the plane bright and early."

However, there was also a decent contingent of Sydney fans who had crossed the Tasman for the final.

One said she had a particularly special reason for supporting the team.

"My husband and I probably almost had our first date at a Sydney FC game, so now that we have kids, we thought we would bring them along across the ditch and cheer on Sydney FC."

However, there was also a decent contingent of Sydney fans who had come over for the final, and were also equally confident their team will lift the trophy tonight.

One told RNZ she and her family were incredibly excited for the match.

"My husband and I probably almost had our first date at a Sydney FC game, so now that we have kids, we thought we would bring them along across the ditch and cheer on Sydney FC."

She said she was expecting her team to win 2-0.

"Sorry to disappoint the local fans."

Sydney arrive in New Zealand with a new coach, Patrick Kisnorbo, who has only been in the job since March but undefeated since he took over.

Auckland's coach Steve Corica has won A-League trophies five times before with Sydney but only one of his players, Dan Hall, has been an A-League champion before.

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