The New Caledonia Cup’s Round of 32 was contested in the past weekend when sixteen matches were played in the French territory. Now the sixteen remaining teams are ready for the next battles in the Round of 16 that is scheduled to take place in two weeks.
New Caledonia Cup’s Round of 16 draw was released on this Monday and the most exciting game is surely the clash between current league leaders Tiga Sport and current Cup champions Hienghène Sport.
Hienghène (left) and Tiga Sport (right) will clash in New Caledonia Cup’s Round of 16
Currently in the third position in 2020 Mobil Super Ligue, AS Magenta will face CA Saint-Louis while SC Ne Drehu are going to clash against US Gelima. All matches are going to be contested on September 12 and 13. You can check the full draw of the Round of 16 by clicking here.
Legendary Avinesh Suwamy is having a blessed season in Fiji. The 34-year-old midfielder is Nadi’s best player in the current season and he is showing to football fans that his age is not a problem as he keeps performing in a very good level.
After scoring three goals in the Battle of the Giants earlier this month, Suwamy kept his good moment by scoring one goal in Nadi’s 5-0 win over Navua yesterday in Vodafone Premier League – the top-tier league from Fiji.
Avinesh Suwamy
Suwamy is currently leading Vodafone Premier League’s Golden Boot race with five goals in six matches while Nadi are in the fourth position with twelve points in eight matches. You can check the current league standings, results and top scorers by clicking here.
The 2020-21 football season kicked-off in Netherlands as the first matchweek of Keuken Kampioen Divisie – the second-tier of Dutch football – started on Friday with two matches. One of the last matches of the weekend was the clash between Almere City and MVV Maastricht that marked Michael Woud‘s official debut for Almere.
Woud is on loan from Willem II until the end of the season in order to have more game time in a professional league in Europe. The 21-year-old goalkeeper from New Zealand made his first intervention of the match in the fourth minute when he slid into the grass to stop MVV’s attack. He did not have a lot of job in the first half as Almere City dominated the match. In the 40th minute he saved a shot from the right without many difficulties.
Michael Woud trying to reach the ball after a cross from the right wing – Almere City Media
Almere kept the dominance in the second half and created many goal chances, but they did not manage to push the ball into the net. On the other hand, MVV Maastricht tried to find the net in counter-attack situations and long range shots, but Woud was always there to hold the ball tight. At the final whistle the score was a nil-nil draw which means that the young goalkeeper debuted with a clean sheet. Woud had a 8.1 rating at SofaScore – the highest rating of a player in the match.
Woud is one of the most talented footballers from New Zealand and he played a key role in the U-20 National Team in the last two U-20 World Cups in 2017 and 2019. He has also played two matches for New Zealand National Football Team at senior level. Oceania Football Center congratulate him for the great performance in his debut.
Telekom S-League’s fourth matchweek is reaching its end and it is already possible to point which teams are having a good performance and which ones are disappointing. While Henderson Eels are on top of the table with a perfect campaign, Isabel United are having a terrible start in the season.
After a good debut season in 2019-20, there were lots of expectations on Isabel United before this season as some top players like Alick Maemae, Benjamin Totori and Michael Boso joined the team but the first match of the season against Henderson Eels was a disaster as they lost by 5-1.
After this terrible match, head coach Gideon Omokirio had time to make the necessary adjustments in the squad as they had a bye week in the second matchweek of the season. However, these adjustments were not enough as they were defeated by Laugu United and Central Coast FC after the bye week.
Isabel United starting eleven against Central Coast FC – Telekom S-League Media
These defeats are not an accident as they play a lazy football. The team is poorly organised and they lose the ball possession easily due to lack of organisation and intensity. Moreover, forward Benjamin Totori is not being well involved in the game which weakens Isabel United in the pitch.
Omokirio needs to find a fast solution if he still wants to see his side fighting on top. Isabel United are currently in the tenth position with three losses in three matches. You can check the current Telekom S-League standings by clicking here.
Henderson Eels are having a marvelous start in 2020 Telekom S-League – the major football league from the Solomon Islands. The team coached by Eddie Marahre is in the first position with twelve points in four matches, a perfect campaign so far in the season.
The key for Eels’ success is surely the powerful attack led by Joses Nawo and Raphael Lea’i that scored 23 goals in four matches – including huge wins against Isabel United (5-1), Laugu United (7-0) and Southern United (10-0). Despite the good offensive record, we can not forget to point that the current league leaders have a very strong squad – from goalkeepers to strikers.
While most people praise Lea’i and Nawo for scoring lots of goals, Eels’ defense is doing a very good job as they suffered only one goal in the current Telekom S-League season. It is very important to praise head coach Eddie Marahare who built a good defensive system but goalkeeper Desmond Tutu and defenders Boni Pride and Leon Kofana must be praised as well, while other players like Hudson Felani, Robert Laua, Timothy Bakale and Tutizama Tanito are also playing in a very good level.
Henderson Eels’ starting eleven against Southern United – Telekom S-League Media
With a powerful team performing in a high level, it is difficult to imagine that any other team will be able to level up with them but current Telekom S-League champions Solomon Warriors must not be underestimated as they are in the second position. Anyway, it is known that Warriors are not performing in a very good level despite the recent results.
Henderson Eels are currently five points ahead of Warriors but the title holders played one less game so far. You can check the current Telekom S-League standings, results and top scorers by clicking here.
After a very good campaign in 2020 Battle of the Giants, Nadi received Navua at Prince Charles Park on this Sunday in the eighth matchweek of Vodafone Premier League – the top-tier of Fijian football – and the final score was a huge win by 5-0 for the hosts.
Rusiate Matarerega opened the scoreboard in the 38th minute while Sakaraia Naisua extended the lead three minutes later. Nadi kept the good performance in the second half and Avinesh Suwamy scored the third goal of the game. Despite the easy match, it was a very special match for 17-year-old Eshal Kumar who came from the bench in the 70th minute to make his debut in Vodafone Premier League and he just needed two minutes to score his first goal at senior level to put Nadi ahead by 4-0.
Eshan Kumar made his debut in Vodafone Premier League
Kumar is one of the most talented players from Nadi’s youth system. He represented Fiji internationally in the OFC U-16 Championship two years ago and he scored two goals in four matches during the tournament.
Nadi’s last goal of the match was scored by Ame Votoniu in the stoppage time to seal the 5-0 win. The Jetsetters are in the fourth position in the league with twelve points in eight matches. You can check the current Vodafone Premier League standings by clicking here.
After a very good campaign in 2020 Battle of the Giants, Nadi received Navua at Prince Charles Park on this Sunday in the eighth matchweek of Vodafone Premier League – the top-tier of Fijian football – and the final score was a huge win by 5-0 for the hosts.
While Avinesh Suwamy kept his good moment by scoring a goal to become the league’s top scorer with five goals, his teammate Rusiate Matarerega is finally finding the path of the goal as the 27-year-old forward opened the scoreboard for The Jetsetters in the 38th minute.
Rusiate Matarerega
It was Matarerega’s first goal in Vodafone Premier League since the tournament resumed after COVID-19 pandemics. He has now four goals in the league which means he is in the second position in the Golden Boot race alongside with Christopher Wasasala, Dave Radrigai, Siotame Kubu and Shazil Ali.
Nadi are in the fourth position in the league with twelve points in eight matches. You can check the current Vodafone Premier League standings by clicking here.
After finishing the last Telekom S-League season in the last position with one point in sixteen matches, Real Kakamora’s management tried to build a stronger squad for this season in order to become a competitive side.
The team coached by Sam Wa’aria brought good players like Adrian Mara, Benji Toata, Joachim Rande, Richard Raramo and Zantas Kabini – which improved the squad’s quality considerably. However it is known that having good players and having a good team are not the same thing – and Real Kakamora felt it in the opening match of the season against Laugu United when they were smashed by 5-0.
Real Kakamora players before a Telekom S-League match – Telekom S-League Media
Despite the bad result against Laugu, Wa’aria did not give in and his team kept working hard for upcoming matches and the evolution is notorious as they have not lost in the league since then. Forward Adrian Mara proved that he can be a reliable one after scoring four goals in the last three matches – including a hat-trick against Southern United – while Kabini, Rande, Raramo and Toata are being regular starters in the season which is helping the team to keep the unbeaten run.
It is obvious that Real Kakamora still have a lot to improve, but they finally became a competitive side in the Telekom S-League, and it helps to improve the level of the league. Regardless of what happens until the end of the season, Real Kakamora fans already have a reason to be proud of.
Real Kakamora are currently in the seventh position in the league with five points in four matches. You can check the current Telekom S-League standings, top scorers and results by clicking here.
The New Caledonia Cup’s Round of 32 is over as all sixteen matches were contested this weekend and there were not many surprises despite the elimination of three teams from Mobil Super Ligue – the top-tier of New Caledonian football.
Current Mobil Super Ligue leaders Tiga Sport had to fight to advance to the next round as they have beaten AS Lössi by 3-2 at the extra time while JS Baco had a tough clash against Horizon Patho that was decided in the penalties. The third match between two teams from the first division was contested by SC Ne Drehu and AS Wetr and Ne Drehu won by 2-1.
AS Mont-Dore and AS Magenta did not have any difficult in their matches as both teams smashed their opponents. On the other hand, current cup champions Hienghène Sport had to fight hard against AS Kirikitr and the final score was 1-0 for Hienghène with a goal scored by Yvanoe Bamy.
Hienghène Sport’s starting eleven against AS Kirikitr
Shefa FA won the first ever edition of the VFF National League Championship and one of their forwards was in the spotlight all over the competition and specially in the grand final against Sanma FA. The former Erakor Golden Star striker Tonly Kalotang scored a brace in the decisive clash of the tournament to seal the title and confirm an 1M Vatu prize for his member association.
The current Ifira Black Bird player is being a very important member of his team in the PVFA Premier League so far and he had shown his credentials for Shefa in the National League Championship. The player scored twice in the group stage and recorded more two goals in the grand final against Sanma.
Tonly Kalotang – Vanuatu Sport
The 23-year-old striker is getting attention in Vanuatu at the moment and as the international football is set to return in the early 2021, it will not be a surprise if Kalotang gets his first ever national team call-up for Vanuatu.
Oceania Football Center 