John Orobulu has spoken to Oceania Football Center about his absence from the Solomon Islands squad for the 2026 MSG Prime Minister’s Cup, responding calmly after his omission became one of the main talking points among supporters following Ben Cahn’s selection.
The Ba striker was not included in the 20-man squad that travelled to Fiji despite entering the selection period after another highly productive spell in Fijian football. Several Solomon Islands supporters questioned his absence after the squad announcement, with Orobulu’s name appearing repeatedly in discussions over players who had missed out.
Speaking directly to OFCe, however, the 26-year-old made clear that he accepts the decision and intends to respond through his performances.
“I wasn’t selected for the national team this time. I respect the coach’s decision, and I’m just focusing on training and getting better. Hopefully, I’ll get another opportunity in the future. Now I support the team and wish them all the best,” Orobulu told Oceania Football Center.
His omission attracts particular attention because of the numbers he has produced over the past two seasons.
Orobulu finished the 2025 Fiji Premier League as the competition’s leading scorer with 19 goals in 18 matches for Rewa, helping the Delta Tigers win the national championship. After subsequently joining PNG Hekari for the inaugural OFC Professional League, his scoring numbers decreased during a period in which he told OFCe he was frequently used away from his preferred centre-forward position.
His return to Fiji with Ba changed the picture quickly.
Despite joining the Men in Black after the beginning of the 2026 league campaign, Orobulu scored seven Premier League goals and played an important role in Ba reclaiming the national championship. His contribution included a hat-trick in the 6-0 victory over Tailevu Naitasiri that sealed Ba’s record 22nd league title.
His impact extended beyond the league.
During the Fiji FACT, Orobulu produced one of his most impressive individual performances of the season by scoring four times in Ba’s 6-0 victory over Nasinu, a result that sent the Men in Black into the semi-finals. Ba eventually won the competition, and later added the Battle of the Giants to complete a remarkable domestic campaign.
Orobulu also scored Ba’s winner against Nadi in their opening BOG fixture, continuing a season in which he remained regularly involved in decisive moments.
Those performances inevitably brought his name back into the national-team discussion.
It is not a new environment for the striker. Orobulu made his breakthrough with the Bonitos in 2023 and quickly produced one of the most prolific tournaments by a Solomon Islands forward in recent years. He scored eight times during the Pacific Games in Honiara, including five against American Samoa and twice against New Caledonia in the final, finishing as the tournament’s Golden Boot winner as Solomon Islands claimed silver.
His most recent national-team involvement, however, dates back considerably further than his current club form might suggest.
Orobulu was recalled by then-coach Josh Smith for the 2024 MSG Prime Minister’s Cup in Honiara, after previously being left out during part of the World Cup qualifying campaign. Records show him featuring against Vanuatu, Solomon Islands B and Papua New Guinea during that tournament, with his last recorded senior national-team appearance coming against PNG on December 18, 2024.
He did not feature for Solomon Islands during the 2025 MSG Prime Minister’s Cup in Port Moresby and has consequently gone through the subsequent period outside the national side despite continuing to score regularly at club level.
The situation is different now in one important respect: Solomon Islands have a new head coach and a new national-team project.
Cahn has repeatedly stressed that selection will be based on current readiness rather than reputation. Speaking to the Island Sun before announcing his MSG squad, the coach said almost 40 players had been assessed before the group was reduced to 20.
“For the final squad, we go to the MSG Cup, the aim is to win, so we have to take the players that are most ready at the moment,” Cahn said.
He also sent a clear message to those outside the squad.
“We’re watching. No one gets the shirt because of a name, they have to earn that.”
Cahn selected Raphael Lea’i, Fordney Junior, Bobby Leslie, Jayroll Patty, Rooney Riuqaemai and Ali Mekawir among his attacking options for the tournament, leaving Orobulu outside a competitive group despite his recent scoring record.
The coach is entitled to make that choice, and Orobulu himself has not publicly challenged it. His response to OFCe instead places the focus firmly on what comes next.
Yet the questions raised by supporters are understandable.
Few Solomon Islands forwards have matched Orobulu’s club scoring output during the past two years. He was the leading goalscorer in Fiji’s national league in 2025, returned to the country and scored seven league goals for champions Ba in 2026, produced a four-goal performance during their Fiji FACT campaign and already has eight goals for the Solomon Islands senior side.
At 26, he is also at an age where his international career could still have considerable time ahead of it.
Cahn has spoken of building a pool of 50 to 60 players capable of representing Solomon Islands over the next three or four years as part of the country’s ambition to challenge for qualification to the 2030 FIFA World Cup. Orobulu’s record means it would be difficult for his name to disappear from that wider conversation.
For now, though, the striker will watch the MSG Prime Minister’s Cup from outside the squad.
His message contains no confrontation and no complaint — only respect for the decision and the intention to earn another opportunity.
Whether that opportunity arrives will depend on Cahn.
Orobulu’s response can only come on the pitch.
PICTURE: Shane Wenzlick/Phototek
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