Derek Safo Tieku (born 28 February 1995) is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Coastal Spirit in the Southern League and the New Zealand National League.

Club career Born in Berekum, Ghana, Fulham scouted Tieku at a young age. He would continue his career with fellow rival London club Crystal Palace, moving to South London at the age of 17.

After a few seasons with the Eagles, including a loan to Hayes & Yeading, Tieku played for Farnborough in non-league before moving abroad in 2015 to join Swedish fourth-tier club Österlen FF, where he made 11 appearances.

Eastern Suburbs Following his time in Sweden, Tieku joined Eastern Suburbs in New Zealand. On 30 October 2016, Tieku scored his first goal for the club during their inaugural season in the Stirling Sports Premiership, securing a 1–0 victory over Hawke's Bay United. He would conclude the season with one goal and two assists.

Tieku would score seven goals and make four assists in his second campaign during the 2017–18 season, securing a move to fellow Premiership side Hamilton Wanderers.

Hamilton Wanderers Tieku would sign for Hamilton Wanderers for the 2018–19 season. Tieku's first season with Hamilton was relatively quiet as he adjusted to his new club, managing to score two goals and provide one assist.

Tieku would score eight goals and produce five assists in the 2019–20 season. Tieku would become the team's captain for the first time in the 2–1 loss against the reserve squad of A-League club Wellington Phoenix.

On 14 February, Tieku would play against the now defunct club Waitakere United. He would score his first goal of the game in the 54th minute, assisted by Xavier Pratt. Waitakere would then go on to score two goals. Tieku would then score again a goal in the 75th minute assisted by Tommy Semmy. In the fourth minute of stoppage time, with the score tied at 2–2, Tieku secured a win for Hamilton Wanderers with another goal, assisted by Agustín Contratti, completing his first hat-trick for the club and sealing a 3–2 victory.

Tieku scored 12 goals and assisted two before the 2020–21 season ending abruptly due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand.

In the first edition of the newly created National League replacing the ISPS Handa Men's Premiership, Tieku would score a further seven goals.

In the 2021–22 season, Tieku finished the season as the golden boot winner of the Northern League with an impressive 17 goals and one assist. His performances included a hat-trick and an assist in a 6–0 victory over North Shore United, followed by another hat-trick in a 5–0 win against the same team.

In the 2022–23 season, Tieku would share the golden boot with Ryan De Vries in the Northern League with an impressive 19 goals and one assist. His standout performances included a hat-trick in a 3–3 draw over Manurewa and six separate braces. His performance in the season earned him a move to Wellington Olympic, where he made his debut in a 1–1 draw against Auckland City in the first leg of the OFC Champions League qualifying round.

After only playing 24 minutes for the club during both legs of the qualifying round, Tieku would resign with Waikato side Wanderers ahead of the new 2023–24 season. He would score 6 goals for the club before transferring to Auckland City.

During his time at the club, Tieku would make a total of 153 appearances for the club, majority being team captain. He would become Hamilton Wanderers' all time leading scorer, scoring a total of 93 goals, overtaking previous record holder Tommy Semmy. His performances in the 2021–22 and 2022–23 editions of the Northern League earned him the title of Two-Time Golden Boot Winner.

While playing for Wanderers, he also coached the women's first team in the NRFL Women's Championship.

Auckland City On 1 June, Tieku would sign for Auckland City on a free transfer. He would make his debut in a 1–0 loss to his former club Eastern Suburbs as a substitute, coming on the 57th minute for Ryan De Vries. On 29 June, Tieku would open up the score with an 180 degree turn "no-look" goal in the 7th minute in a 5–0 victory over Tauranga City.

Bay Olympic Tieku signed for Bay Olympic on 17 February 2025, for the 2025 Northern League.

Coastal Spirit Coastal Spirit signed Tieku on 26 September 2025 for the 2025 New Zealand National League.

Career statistics Club

+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsHayes & Yeading United (loan)2013–14Conference South1000—0010Österlen FF2015Division 211100—00111Eastern Suburbs2016–17NZ Premiership141———1412017–18NZ Premiership187——101872018NRFL Premier17611——187Total491411—105115Hamilton Wanderers2018–19NZ Premiership172———1722019NRFL Premier19810——2082019–20NZ Premiership168———1682020NRFL Premier84———842020–21NZ Premiership1412——1014122021National League17733——20102022National League221752——2719Total1135895—1012363Wellington Olympic2023National League000010—10Hamilton Wanderers2023National League221941——26202024National League10600——106Total322541——3626Auckland City2024National League13341—102620Bay Olympic2025National League22911——2310Coastal Spirit2025National League10300——103Career total2511131991030274122

Honours Auckland City Northern League: 2024 National League: 2024

Individual ISPS Handa Premiership Most Valuable Player: 2019–20 ISPS Handa Premiership Team of the Season: 2019–20 Northern League Most Valuable Player: 2022, 2023, 2025 Northern League Golden Boot: 2022, 2023

References

External links