Courtesy: Australia Soccer Association and SBS


Futsalroos in crushing form

Australia Soccer Association

Australia begin Futsal World Championship Qualifiers brightly

Australia started its defence of the Oceania championship in emphatic fashion defeating the Solomon Islands 9-0 in the final Day 1 match at the Oceania Futsal World Qualifying tournament in Canberra.

Winners in Port Vila in 1999, the Futsalroos played with a high level of intensity and scored four goals after just 13 minutes.

An unfortunate own goal to Solomon Islander Paul Sau opened the scoring after five minutes before Ben Singleton (2), Scott Manson, Andrew Nolan and Damian Pilat added further goals for a 6-0 half time scoreline.

There were also second half goals for Pilat, Danny Ngaluafe and Lachlan Wright as Australia opened its campaign in impressive fashion.

New Zealand secured the first win of the competition in the early game, coming from behind to win 4-2 against Vanuatu.

The match was an end-to-end affair with both goalkeepers given a thorough workout.

Leading for most of the first half until New Zealand equalised in the last minute of the first, the Pacific island nation would have had high hopes of replicating the success experienced by its outdoor compatriot in the recent World Cup qualifiers in Adelaide.

However three goals in quick succession to the Kiwis through Al Saudi Bakr (2) and Aeoni Vilabourouh put paid to the hopes of their tenacious opponents.

A goal in the dying seconds to the impressive Derek Males – his second of the match - was the least Vanuatu deserved after having laid siege to the New Zealand goal for lengthy periods of the second half.

In the second match of the day, Fiji secured a 4-0 victory over Samoa with two goals in as many minutes late in the game inflating the scoreline in a match that has been in the balance throughout.

Fijians was a deserved winner overall with Shalendra Lal getting a hat-trick to set it on its way to a win against a spirited Samoa, which comprised entirely of outdoor players who featured in the recent World Cup campaign.