All eyes set on 2011 OFC Futsal Championship Trophy: Futsal News
All the teams participating at the 2011 Oceanic Football Confederation (OFC) Futsal Cup have one goal in their minds. which is to win the championship trophy and earn a place at the 2012 FIFA Futsal World Cup in Thailand. The eight teams for the event the
have reached Fiji.
The Futsal Championship will start on May 15 at the Vodafone Arena, Suva. Solomon Island, the defending champion of the OFC Futsal Cup for the last three years, will be looking for another victory this year. There will be a strong competition coming from
outift of Fiji, Kiribati, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
The eighth edition of OFC Futsal Cup will feature eight teams. The number of participating squads has increased from five to eight along with the level of competition. The game has enormously spread over the Pacific region and with increased number of teams
the format of the Championship has also been changed. The teams are divided into two groups with four teams in each group.
The top two teams from the two groups will compete in the semi-finals. The Grand-Final will decide the lucky winner, who will be making their way to the 2012 FIFA Futsal Championship.
In the older format all the teams competed in one pool and the winner, having the maximum number of points, was awarded with the title.
The Kurukuru or the Solomon Island team is the only Non-Australian team, who has won the title thrice. The coach, Dickson Kadau, has made some changes in the team The line-up is almost the same as of last year, but Samuel Osifelo is making a comeback in
the squad. He featured in the Solomon's squad that qualified for the 2008 FIFA Futsal Championship.
The team is led by Captain Elliot Ragomo, who was nominated for the 2009 OFC Player of the Year award. Much of the success of the team lies on his shoulder as he is the goal-keeper of the team. The two other vital players of the Solomon's squad are Jack
Wetney and Micah Lea’alafa.
Solomon Island is in Group B along with New Caledonia, Tahiti and Tuvalu. The strongest competition for the Kurukuru team will be with New Caledonia and Tahiti. A head-to-head duel is expected. It would be major surprise for the Kurukuru squad if they do
not end-up among the top two teams of the group. The Tuvalu squad has never won any match at the OFC Futsal Championship.
The coach of the Solomon Island Dickson Kadau said, "My players have given their best in training and I am confident their hard work will bring them the results they want, hard work has been the main ingredient in our preparations and all the players have
displayed their desire to win with their performances in training.”
The clash amongst the two traditional rivals New Caledonia would be one of the major highlights of the Group ‘B’.
Tags: