Courtesy: New Zealand FA Official Web Site





New Zealand face tough Solomons opener in futsal champs

The New Zealand futsal team’s OFC Futsal Championship opener against reigning champions Solomon Islands is the toughest start possible but coach Matt Chandler wouldn’t have it any other way.

August 5, 2010

AUCKLAND – The New Zealand futsal team’s OFC Futsal Championship opener against reigning champions Solomon Islands, in Suva on Monday is the toughest start possible but coach Matt Chandler wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Futsal Whites return to the now annual futsal championships after missing the 2009 edition but under the full umbrella of New Zealand Football for the first time.

The Solomon Islands have dominated futsal in Oceania since Australia departed the confederation for Asia in 2006, but New Zealand coach Matt Chandler says his side won’t fear any team.

“It is a hard way to start but it’s probably the best way,” Chandler said.

“For us to succeed we have to believe we can and for us to play the Solomon Islands first will really give us an idea of what we have to do. We can’t control who we play but we can control how we play and how we execute.”

The week-long seven-nation tournament serves as a timely acid test for the Futsal Whites with next year’s edition doubling as the qualifying tournament for the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012.

“We’ve set ourselves a realistic goal of finishing in the top two but we had a good tournament last weekend and there’s a really strong inner belief that we can really do something in this tournament.

“There was a thorough selection process that happened before I was on board but the group we’ve ended up with is incredibly talented and really going forward this tournament is a real test for us to how we close we are to qualifying for 2012 and ultimately as a group of people the goal is to put this country into a World Cup.”

Captained by Marvin Eakin, one of just three survivors of the 2008 team that finished fourth in the same event, the current crop contains a mix of fresh faces and familiar faces including former Auckland City player Miro Major and Wellington Olympic striker Micky Malivuk who picked up a Chatham Cup winners medal last season and currently leads the Central League golden boot race.

Futsal is a five-a-side version of indoor football, played by with a smaller low-bounce ball on a basketball sized court without rebound walls. It is the only indoor version of football endorsed by FIFA and New Zealand Football.

The Futsal Whites warmed up for the tournament by winning the South Pacific invitational in Auckland last weekend beating an Auckland-based Brazilian futsal academy in the final.

“If you looked at the players playing in the other teams, there were a lot of players who have been to the OFC champs in the past and some other very good futsal players who are ineligible to represent New Zealand but have made this country their home.

“We had lost, albeit narrowly, to the Brazil Academy recently so to go there after limited build up and win gives us a lot of belief”

The Futsal Whites depart for Fiji on Friday.

All games from the OFC Futsal Championships will be streamed live on www.oceaniafootball.com.

2010 OFC Futsal Championships
Vodafone Arena, Suva, Fiji
August 8-14

New Zealand v Solomon Islands – Aug 9, 8pm
New Zealand v Vanuatu –Aug 10, 6.30pm
New Zealand v Tahiti – Aug 11, 5pm
New Zealand v Fiji – Aug 12, 5pm
New Zealand v Tuvalu – Aug 13, 6.30pm
New Zealand v New Caledonia – Aug 14, 8pm


Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com