Oceania Football Center

Kaua and Rongosulia confirmed in Laugu United’s squad for 2020 Telekom S-League

The 2020 Telekom S-League is scheduled to kick-off on Saturday and eleven teams will fight for the title of the major football tournament from Solomon Islands.

One of the contesters is Laugu United that returned to the league in the last year and it was confirmed by reliable sources that the club signed with Atkin Kaua and Jared Rongosulia for the upcoming Telekom S-League season.

Kaua and Rongosulia are currently stuck in Solomon Islands due to border restrictions caused by COVID-19 pandemics. Both footballers were playing for Nasinu from Fiji before the pandemics and they must return to Fiji when borders reopen.

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Kaua is a well known player in Oceania. The 24-year-old attacking midfielder travelled to Europe earlier this year for trials with professional clubs. The player was accepted by one of the clubs the midfielder trialed with but he had issues with work permit. It is going to be his second stint in the club.

Laugu United is building a strong squad for the upcoming season and we can expect a very interesting Telekom S-League with many teams with good players. Laugu finished the 2019-20 Telekom S-League in the sixth position with eighteen points in sixteen matches.

Nawatu and Sivoki back to Lautoka for BOG

The 2020 Battle of the Giants kicks-off on Friday and the official squads were released by Fiji Football Association (FFA) on social media and the biggest news comes from Lautoka as Valerio Nawatu and Kolinio Sivoki are back to the team after returning from suspension.

Nawatu is a 36-year-old forward that is back from suspension due to drug use. Sivoki was suspended for five years because he failed to attend a National Team camp last year but his suspension was lifted and now he is ready to play for Lautoka again.

Nawatu (left) and Sivoki (right) are in Lautoka’s squad for 2020 BOG

You can check all squads for Battle of the Giants by clicking here.

Afonja Jibola to miss 2020 Battle of the Giants

Suva’s Afonja Jibola is ruled out of 2020 Battle of the Giants. The 28-year-old forward from Nigeria suffered a calf injury a few weeks ago and he is not in the squad for the upcoming tournament that kicks-off on Friday.

His last match for the Capital City Boys was on July 19 in a 0-0 draw against Rewa. It is not known if he is still injured or if he was ruled out because he would not be fit on time to play Battle of the Giants.

Afonja played three matches in the current Vodafone Premier League but he has not scored his first goal for Suva yet.

Tahiti: OPT Beach Soccer Cup champions’ are known

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The 2020 OPT Beach Soccer Cup reached its end in Tahiti on last Friday. The tournament kicked-off on July 24 and it was contested by ten teams in the men’s cup while eight teams fought for the title in the women’s cup.

According to the local federation, Tiki Tama was crowned as the men’s cup champions after while Green Warriors won the women’s cup in this edition.

Tahiti is the strongest nation in Oceania when it comes to Beach Soccer and the local tournaments are always a good entertainment for fans. Oceania Football Center congratulates all involved players and teams.

Vanuatu: PVFA Premier League’s resumption postponed

Bad news for football fans from Vanuatu: the 2019-20 PVFA Premier League’s resumption was postponed. The major football league from Port Vila – the capital of Vanuatu – is not going to resume on this weekend.

According to reliable sources, there was a meeting with representants from local clubs and there was an agreement to restart the league on August 8. However the Port Vila Football Association (PVFA) board postponed the league’s resumption to August 14.

2019-20 PVFA Premier League season will resume on August 14 – *Vanuatu Sports News*

This postponement was well accepted by local clubs and some representants have expressed their dissatisfaction on social media – “This break is good for all teams,” said Yatel’s president John Stephens Tougon.

Football resumed in Port Vila in July with the 2020 PVFA Independence Cup that finished on last Thursday. Now local clubs will have two weeks to keep training in order to get ready for the league’s resumption.

Tafea and Ifira Black Bird are currently sharing the top of the table with eighteen points each while Galaxy FC is in the third position only one point behind the top two teams. You can check the current league standings by clicking here.

Marco Rojas scores twice in Melbourne Victory’s loss against Mariners

Melbourne Victory faced Central Coast Mariners at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in Sydney. Both teams are the two worst teams in the current A-League season as Victory is in 10th and Mariners are in 11th.

Victory had two New Zealanders in the starting eleven: Storm Roux and Marco Rojas who scored two goals for his side. Rojas opened the scoreboard in the 22nd minute after a defensive mistake by Central Coast Mariners’ defender Kye Rowles and goalkeeper Mark Birighitti while Roux left the pitch in the 36th minute to be replaced by Migjen Basha.

Mariners equalized in the beginning of the second half with a goal scored by Dylan Fox while Rojas has given the lead back to Victory with a nice goal scored in the 65th minute. However Dylan Ruiz-Diaz found the net twice in the final minutes to give a 3-2 win to the Mariners – “It was disappointing [..] I don’t think we really had too much rythym to play,” said Victory’s interim head coach Grant Brebner.

Central Coast remains in the 11th and last position with eighteen points while Melbourne Victory lost for the fifth match in a row to remain in the 10th position with twenty points in 24 matches. You can check the current A-League standings by clicking here.

Players back from suspension in Fiji

Fiji Football Association (FFA) board announced that four players are back from suspension due to drug use. One of these players is Osea Vakatalesau who debuted with a goal for Nadroga in a 4-0 win against Rakiraki on this Sunday.

The other three players who are back from suspension are Amani Makoe, Kini Madigi and Valerio Nawatu. According to reliable sources, all these players mentioned will also be tested regularly now after serving more than 70% of their suspensions.

Makoe is a well-known defender from Rewa who played ten matches for Fiji National Team from 2015 to 2017 while Madigi is a young midfielder who last player for Ba. 37-year-old forward Nawatu is the oldest player of this list and he last played for Lautoka.

Lautoka gives up on signing with Malakai Rakula

Currently stuck in Fiji due to border restrictions, Malakai Rakula spent some time training with Lautoka while the management of the Bluez tried to sign him. However it was reported by reliable sources that Lautoka gave up on trying to sign with Rakula.

The 28-year-old midfielder left Ba to join Manukau United from New Zealand earlier this year but he is not able to leave Fiji to rejoin Manukau so he started to train with Lautoka. However, his International Transfer Certificate (ITC) remains with the football club from New Zealand.

Rakula (left) celebrating a goal with other Manukau United players

It was previously repoted that Rakula could be available to play for Lautoka in the 2020 Battle of the Giants that kicks-off on Friday but he is not going to join the Bluez anymore. Another player that is facing lots of trouble to join Lautoka is attacking midfielder Sitiveni Cavuilagi who last played for Ba.

Lautoka is drawn in Battle of the Giants’ Group B alongside Nadi, Navua and Rewa. You can check the full schedule of the tournament by clicking here.

Osea Vakatalesau debuts with a goal for Nadroga

After two years away from football, legendary forward Osea Vakatalesau is officially back! The 34-year-old striker made his official debut for Nadroga in the 4-0 win against Rakiraki this Sunday in the Vodafone Senior League – the second tier of Fijian football.

Vakatalesau showed that he is still on fire as he opened the scoreboard for Nadroga after a confusion in the box. You can watch his goal by clicking here.

Vakatalesau is back with a goal for Nadroga

Nadroga is currently leading the Viti Levu Zone – one of the two groups of Vodafone Senior League – with seven points in four matches. You can check the current standings by clicking here.

All Whites international Logan Rogerson suffers serious injury

Central United remains in the second position in 2020 Lotto NRFL Premier Men’s League after beating Hamilton Wanderers by 4-0 at Kiwitea Street on last Saturday. Despite the huge win, Central’s staff and management had to deal with bad news as Logan Rogerson suffered a serious injury in the first half of the contest.

Rogerson was replaced by Wade Molony in the 11th minute after suffering from a fractured fibula when Central was winning by 1-0.

Rogerson being carried off the field after suffering an injury – *Phototek NZ*

Rogerson is expected to miss a few months due to this injury. He scored one goal in three matches in the current Lotto NRFL Premier Men’s season. Oceania Football Center wishes him a fast recovery.