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New Zealand thrown out of Oceania's Olympic football qualifying

Vanuatu have won a protest against New Zealand at the Oceania Olympic Games qualifying tournament.

New Zealand's bid to qualify for the men's football tournament at the 2016 Olympic Games appears in tatters after the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) ruled it fielded an ineligible player in qualifying.

The OFC announced on Sunday that Vanuatu's protest against the use of an ineligible player by New Zealand's under-23 team in its semifinal win on Friday had been upheld.

While the OFC did not name the player, New Zealand Football (NZF) later confirmed in their own statement that the protest focused on South Africa-born left back Deklan Wynne.