Solomon Islands have always been amongst the center of attention when it comes to under seventeen football competition in the pacific. This reputation was formed after a lot of impressive under seventeen teams that Solomon Islands have produced over the years. Many down the road and again, Solomon Islands is sending another youthful and energetic under seventeen team to play in the FIFA U17 Championship which is the U17 world cup qualifiers in Tahiti.
The Solomon Islands national U17 team have been challenged not only football-wise but also mentally wise both players and team management prior to the tournament. A very disappointing moment for the team was when their visas for their most anticipated tour to Australia have no response from Australian Immigration. The team manager Mr. Paia spoke of how disappointed and frustrated they were to find out that their most anticipated tour to Australia was not possible anymore after Australia immigration slowed in replying them. The alternative route to New Zealand was only possible after New Zealand immigration accepted the visas for the team. The team then traveled to Auckland on the 4th of February where they settled at Gateway hotel before moving to the OFC academy the following the day. The boys then had to train in the cold weather in New Zealand and for many, it was an experience they will hold on for a long time.
Late in their arrival in Auckland, an exciting moment for the boys was when the friendly match against Manukau AFC was confirmed. These boys have never played an international friendly match and let alone a team of mature players. This was an opportunity for the boys to test themselves against an oversea team and the coaches took the opportunity as a much-needed game to crucially analyze the performance of his boys. The match ended in favor of the New Zealand senior club, Manukau AFC by a single goal to separate the teams. It was quite a very competitive game and one that shows the quality of the under seventeen boys. The head coach for Manukau AFC, Kevin Fallon has emphasized in his match reflection that the Solomon Islands boys were a very fit side and should have won the match if they had capitalized on their opportunities. He wishes the Solomon Islands boys all the best in the tournament. Solomon Islands head coach, Marlon Houkarawa has also inked in his coaching list some minor things to work on as he congratulated the boys for their effort but also challenged them to work harder on the points that he has identified.
FIFA U17 World Cup is a prestigious tournament held by FIFA for theunder-seventeenss. It is in fact the tournament that has captured a lot of talents from all over the world. Most prolific professional footballers have came through this ranks and have now enjoyed their time in professional footballing career. The youngsters from Solomon Islands are also hoping to create history not for themselves but the whole pacific by qualifying for the world cup. It is a dream for every young footballer to be in a world cup. Whilst Solomon may have that particular dream, the tournament structure itself could be one motivational aspect of getting to the world cup. In this year’s Oceania FIFA U17 World Cup qualifiers, two teams will be representing oceania. These two teams will be the two finalist. Meanwhile, Solomon Islands is grouped between Samoa, New Zealand and Fiji. The head coach, Marlon Houkarawa also encouraged his boys to look to into creating history for their country.
The team travelled to Tahiti early hours of Wednesday morning and have all the advice they can get from coaches and even Solomon Islands sensational midfielder, Micah lea’alafa during one of the team talks at the OFC Academy. Now the mission is set, the goal is sighted and the pathway is known. There is no doubt that this Solomon Islands youngsters are on a mission to create history.
No comments:
Post a Comment