Courtesy: New Zealand FA Web Site


Patient Futsal Whites get second win at OFC Champs

Patience was a key virtue for the New Zealand futsal team as they wore down a resilient Tahiti side for an ultimately dramatic 2-1 win in their third game of the OFC Futsal Championships in Fiji.

August 11, 2010

AUCKLAND – Patience was a key virtue for the New Zealand futsal team as they wore down a resilient Tahiti side for an ultimately dramatic 2-1 win in their third game of the OFC Futsal Championships in Fiji.

In a goalless first half in which New Zealand goalkeeper Clayton Chappell was barely required to make a save, the Futsal Whites dominated but could not break down a determined Tahitian rearguard.

The game exploded into life 32 minutes in when Said Soleimanpour finally broke the deadlock with a header after Lucas Da Silva’s shot had bounced off the crossbar and seemingly over the goal line.

Tahiti looked to have sealed a share of the points with three minutes left to play when Teva Durot’s long-range shot took enough of a deflection to squeeze past Chappell, but the cool heads of Miro Major and Micky Malivuk prevailed when they combined to draw the defence and set up Lucas Da Silva for a dramatic winner a minute later.

“We talked at halftime about being patient and waiting for the chances to come,” said New Zealand coach Matt Chandler.

“Tahiti are a good side so we knew it would take time but we thought we had just a little bit more quality than them and had players who could produce that special moment to turn a game.

“As it was, we scored a very good back-post futsal goal to win it.”

New Zealand’s foul count made the finish even nervier, as another foul, New Zealand’s sixth, would have given Tahiti the chance to level with a direct free kick from the 10 metre mark.

New Zealand’s next game is 4.30pm on Thursday against Roy Krishna’s Fiji who were due to play winless New Caledonia later on Wednesday night. Title favourites Solomon Islands and Vanuatu were also due to clash on Wednesday night.

New Zealand lost to defending champions Solomon Islands on Monday before beating Vanuatu on Tuesday.

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

2010 OFC Futsal Championships
Vodafone Arena, Suva, Fiji

New Zealand 2 (Said Soleimanpour 32, Lucas Da Silva 38)
Tahiti 1 (Teva Durot 37)
Halftime 0-0

New Zealand squad: Elias Billeh (GK), Clayton Chapell (GK), Tariq Assad, Marvin Eakins, Miro Major, Dylan Manickum, Lucas Da Silva, Miroslav Malivuk, Said Soleimanpour, Issac O’Hara, Khalid Razouk, Brayden Lissington
Coach: Matt Chandler

Schedule
New Zealand v Fiji – Aug 12, 4.30pm
New Zealand v Tuvalu – Aug 13, 6.30pm
New Zealand v New Caledonia – Aug 14, 8.30pm


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