Courtesy: The Timaru Herald


Timaru misses futsal champs

by Jacob Page

19/03/2011

South Canterbury will not be hosting the New Zealand Futsal Age-Group Championships because of a clash of events at the SBS Centre.

The sport's national body is looking for somewhere else to host the event after Christchurch's QEII Stadium was ruled out as a venue following the February 22 earthquake.

South Canterbury futsal co-ordinator Russell King said the SBS Centre was already booked out on the weekend the tournament had been scheduled to take place in Christchurch.

King said three South Canterbury age-group teams were expected to compete at the event, but now a new date may have to be found.

"They're thinking about holding it in the July school holidays, which is a wee bit later than the April date."

King said the SBS Centre was booked over that period as well, and the likely venues being discussed were either Dunedin or Queenstown.

He said the stronghold of futsal was in the South Island, so the tournament was likely to head south.

King said the teams which were selected for the earlier date would remain, and they would work around any unavailability of players they had in July.

The South Canterbury under-11, under-12 and under-16 sides will will play three teams from the Thunder Futsal Club in Christchurch tomorrow.

King said it was a good opportunity to see how the South Canterbury sides would have gone.

"With the nationals being moved, it's a great opportunity to see the combinations, and to assess just how we would have gone if we were heading away."

He said the Thunder were eager to face some competition."Because of the earthquake, they haven't had any games, so they're itching to play us, which is good.

"They should provide us with a pretty stiff test."

He said there were still plans for Timaru to host the New Zealand Schools' Champion of Champions event during Labour Weekend.


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