The 1988 season came down to a two-horse race between traditional foes
Christchurch United and
Mount Wellington, neither of whom lost a match at home all season. At one point the gap between these first and third stretched to 17 points, though this was more than halved by the end of the campaign. Two players reached the milestone of 300 league appearances during the season.
Papatoetoe's
Keith Hobbs was first to the mark, followed on the last day of the season by Mount Wellington's
Ron Armstrong, the last surviving player from the league's inaugural season. Christchurch United were second in the table for much of the season, but eventually overhauled the Mount four weeks from the competition's conclusion. A good disciplinary record (with no red cards all season) and an undefeated run of 16 matches was almost enough for Mount Wellington to snatch the title, but even a league record-equaling 9–0 win over Manurewa was not enough to get them past the southerners. If the seven-point gap between second and third was large, the gap back to fourth was even greater.
Mount Maunganui was the only one of the league's remaining twelve sides to produce any challenge to the two leaders, and they finished in an isolated third place, 15 points clear of
Napier City Rovers in fourth. An early run of losses was more than compensated for by a second half to the season which saw the
Bay of Plenty side notch up 31 points in 13 games. They reduced the deficit on the top two, but the gap was far too great. Between them, the top three sides lost fewer games than any one of the league's remaining eleven teams. For
Papatoetoe the 1988 season saw most of the goals come at the wrong end of the pitch. An inability to score and a leaky defence contributed to its lowly position. The club's problems were not confined to those on the pitch, as the liquidation of the team's main sponsor mid-season left them in dire financial straits. if Papatoetoe's defence was a problem, then
Manurewa's was a nightmare. The team let through 69 goals during the season, but still held onto their now expected position just above the relegation zone.
Nelson United were also perennial strugglers, but this season their survival fight ended badly. Although they did not finish in the automatic relegation spot, they were removed from the league for 1989 after failing to meet NZFA criteria. Last place in the 1988 league went to
Manawatu United, who finished behind Nelson on goal difference. With only one home victory and a defence which allowed through 71 goals, the Palmerston North-based side were constantly near the bottom of the league, though it was only with the last match that their relegation spot was confirmed. ==League table==