Fijian player Malakai Rakula is currently facing an unusual situation. The 28-year old midfielder is set to play 2020 winter football season in New Zealand for Manukau United but he can not enter in the country as the borders are closed there.
While he can not return to New Zealand, Rakula keeps training hard in Fiji. According to the player, his training sessions are being monitored by Manukau United staff that is providing a great support to the Fijian footballer – “I can not wait to go back to New Zealand. I loved playing for Manukau United,” said Rakula.
Rakula (left) celebrating a goal for Manukau United.
Manukau United is set to debut in 2020 Lotto NRFL Premier League – the top-tier of winter football season in Auckland region – on Saturday against Forrest Hill Milford at Mangere Centre Park.
While many countries are already resuming their football leagues, the wait is going to be a little bit longer in Tonga as the 2020 football season is likely to begin in September.
According to Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) the teams from Tonga were cleared to resume training activities in May which means that they are going to have a long preparation for the upcoming season.
Football must resume in September there
Veitongo is the current league champions and represented the country in 2020 OFC Champions League. You can check the standings of the last Tongan Major League season by clicking here.
One of Solomon Islands’ most famous players is still uncertain about the future of his career: Anthony Talo has had many ups and downs in his career, but surely the whole Solomon Islands can not forget his winning goal scored against Guatemala from his defensive end at the 2012 FIFA Futsal World Cup – the Kurukuru’s first ever World Cup victory; Talo was only 16-years old at the time.
Most recently, in 2019, Talo helped Solomon Islands qualify once again for the FIFA Futsal World Cup. The competition was to be held in Lithuania this year, but FIFA decided to postpone the tournament until 2021 following the COVID-19 pandemic. Also in 2019, Talo helped the Solomon Islands’ side Kooline to win the first ever edition of OFC Futsal Champions League in New Zealand. Talo and his teammates had already begun preparations for Solomon Islands’ fourth consecutive FIFA Futsal World Championship, but the outbreak changed from one end to the other forcing it to a stop.
In his time between football and futsal, Talo also played for various clubs in his country such as Marist FC and Kossa. The player even helped Marist reach the semi-finals of the 2018 OFC Champions League, and in early 2020 Hekari United announced the a very important signing of the Solomon Islander to represent the Papua New Guinean side in the 2020 OFC Champions League. Despite the good news, the story ended dramatically as Talo played only two games for Hekari in the PNG National Soccer League and left before the OFC Champions League began.
Recently, Talo also revealed in interview to Oceania Football Center that he is going to take a break from international duties as soon as FIFA Futsal World Cup comes to and end. The recent happenigs of COVID-19 and further postponement of FIFA Futsal World Cup made the future of Talo’s career very uncertain – but he disclosed to Oceania Football Center his intentions: “It seems like I will take a break from S-League. I am only interested to play football abroad currently. If any team wants me to represent them overseas I am ready to go – but If it does not happen I will concentrate in Futsal here in Solomon Islands,” expressed the goalkeeper.
Anthony Talo was chosen the best goalkeeper of OFC Futsal Nations Cup 2019 – OFC Media
The still only 24-year-old goalkeeper has a lot to come in his sporting career; as one of the most talented Futsal players, Talo is still to represent his country internationaly in football pitch: “My goal isto be Solomon Islands’ first choice goalkeeper,” said Talo expressing his aim. To achieve this goal, Talo still has to impress to new staff of Solomon Islands Football National Team – but it is sure the goalkeeper has what it takes to be part of both national teams, as for example his compatriot Micah Lea’alafa already is.
Talo’s ITC (International Transfer Certificate) is still in possession of Hekari United – “Hekari was afamily for me,” said Talo – and as mentioned the player expects an opportunity to return to a foreign club, so his ITC is a crucial part to make this wish come true. Any team interested to sign Talo will need to acquire his services from the Papua New Guinean club.
The goalkeeper has much to look forward to in his already successful career, with Talo already making the Solomon Islanders smile with his performances – something he can continue to do in his sporting career.
Older people say that we only value something when we lose it and this phrase can be applied to different situations: a marriage, a loved one, a material asset, and even a football player when he retires or changes clubs. However it is never too late to recognize the legacy of an idol, specially when he is still in activity.
Avinesh Suwamy is a gentleman inside the pitch; A very smart player with a good technique, he is known in his homeland as The Fijian David Beckham because of his powerful shots and great skills on free kicks.
Suwamy started his path as a Ba’s player at senior level in 2005 when he was just 19 and people could not imagine that he would become a legend. It did not take so long for him to show his quality and be called-up for the National Team in the same year. He made his official debut for Fiji in a 1-0 win against India.
Suwamy (number 2) representing Fiji in 2016 OFC Nations Cup
The years passed and he became a key player in a Ba that dominated Fijian football. Avinesh’s trophy gallery representing the Men in Black is huge and it includes 9 Premier Leagues, 7 Battle of the Giants, 7 Champion vs Champion Series, 4 FIJI Fact and 4 Inter-District Championship. He was also part of Ba’s squad that reached 2007 OFC Champions League final – the second OFC Champions League final contested by a Fijian club.
While he was becoming a legend in the Men in Black, Avinesh was also building his own history in the National Team. He represented the Bula Boys in 2011 Pacifc Games, 2012 OFC Nations Cup and 2016 OFC Nations Cup and scored three goals in seventeen matches representing his country.
However, time is inexorable and everyone gets older year by year. He kept playing in a good level and winning tournaments with Ba, but people started to criticize him saying that he should start thinking about retiring from football. Until one day what everyone (or nobody) expected: Avinesh Suwamy left Ba to play for Nadi in 2020.
Suwamy left Ba to join Nadi in 2020
He debuted for The Jetsetters in a 6-0 loss against Lautoka but his next appearance was like the rebirth of a phoenix. Suwamy scored four goals in Nadi’s 5-0 win against Nasinu just one day after his 34th birthday. And it was his last official match so far as 2020 Vodafone Premier League was stopped due to COVID-19.
Avinesh still has time to build a good story playing for Nadi while nostalgia remains for Ba’s supporters. However it is never to late to remember his legacy when he was in Black.
The football fans from Vanuatu could finally feel the taste of the sport on Saturday when two friendly matches were contested at Port Vila Stadium as part of team’s preparations for 2019-20 Port Vila Premier League resumption.
As it was previously reported in this website, Galaxy FC has beaten Erakor Golden Star by 2-0 while Ifira Black Bird suffered to beat Mauwia by 2-1. Despite being just friendlies, these matches brought relief to players and fans that were missing football – “Football break was very sad for us. We all missed football while we stayed at home with our families,” said Ifira Black Bird’s player Jonathan Spokeyjack.
Most teams resumed training recently as the local leagues were cleared to resume in Vanuatu from July 1st on and there is a long way to get ready for official matches – “We are expecting to keep a very tight training schedule. All players need to attend every single training in order to be ready,” explained Spokeyjack.
Spokeyjack representing Vanuatu U23 in the 2019 OFC Olympic Qualifiers
This season is being very special for Ifira Black Bird. Currently sharing the 2019-20 PVFA Premier League lead with Tafea, Spokeyjack and his team mates know the importance to keep themselves commited to their objective: win the league.
While Ifira and Tafea fight for the first position, another contender is pursuing both teams. Strong side Galaxy FC is currently in the third place only one point behind the leaders. With a very talented squad, the team owned by Andrew Leong is also focused on 2020 OFC Champions League as they qualified to the knockout stage of the continental tournament.
However it is important not to take Galaxy for granted and Spokeyjack knows it – “We will need to use our experience to win games […] We know how they play. We can not let their players free,” he pointed.
This season was being breathtaking beore COVID-19 pandemics and it is going to be very exciting until the end with three teams fighting for the title – “It is going to be a good challenge. Football has improved here in the past years […] All teams are training hard,” said Spokeyjack.
Port Vila Football Association – the association responsible for PVFA Premier League – has not released a resumption date yet. Oceania Football Center will keep up with the situation in order to bring accurate information for our readers.
Football is developing faster than it used to do in the Pacific. There are dozens of Oceanian footballers playing outside OFC region in countries like Australia, England, Netherlands, South Africa and United States. We have been recently talking about some good players born in Oceania or with Oceanian heritage that are not very known in the Pacific Islands.
Jonathon Mueller is surely one of these players. Born in Port Moresby, the 18-year-old attacking midfielder from Papua New Guinea is currently playing for Redlands United from Australia. He was one of the best players in 2019 U-20 National Premier League Queensland – one of the youth leagues related to NPL league system by scoring ten goals in 22 matches.
Mueller in Redlands United colours. Source: Redlands United Media
The last year was something special for him. While he was ruling the U-20 league he was also having lots of opportunities in the senior team as he played 15 matches in 2019 NPL Queensland – one of the leagues that compose the NPL league system in Australia.
Redlands United is based at Brisbane metropolitan area in South East Queensland. The club also holds a partnership with Celtic FC from Scotland. The Celtic Academy is recognised as one of the top academies in the United Kingdom and in the last five years, Celtic have seen 19 players from the Youth Academy have come out of the program and play in the UEFA Champions League. The partnership brings coaches from Celtic over to Redlands to run a camp where, each season, players are selected to attend a professional trial with Celtic.
With an open path to professional football, Mueller has the chance to be the next breakthrough from Papua New Guinea and play in Europe just like David Browne who is currently playing in Finland. PNG Football Association should pay attention on him.
One of New Zealand’s most important regional winter leagues has kicked-off – finally football is back in action in New Zealand, after a long absence due to a COVID 19 pandemic. With quality football, five matches were played this weekend to open a season that promises to be very entertaining for fans. TheCentral League is on!
Stop Out received Wairarapa at Hutt Park to kick-off the season. Counting on the likes of Justin Gulley and Nathanael Hailemariam Stop Out edged past Wairarapa by 3-2. A brace scored by Jared Cunniff and another goal by Cameron Mackenzie help Stop Out to kick-off the season in style; both goals of Wairarapa were scored by Joshua Rudland.
At Petone Memorial Park, the hosts Petone took on the powerful Miramar Rangers of Jorge Akers and Ollie Whyte. Despite the best efforts of the hosts, the most experienced side took advantage through Jorge Akers in the early stages of the game; in the 40th minute of play Whyte scored the final goal of the clash to give Rangers a 2-0 win over Petone.
The young side of Lower Hutt could not start the season with a win, as they draw against Waterside Karori at Fraser Park. Riley Bidois scored a late equalizer for the home side as Karori took an early advantage through the effort of Harry Fautley.
One of the most entertaining matches of the first round of Central League took place in Wakefield Park, as Wellington Olympic played against the current champions of Chatham Cup Napier City Rovers. The experienced Wellington Olympic player Scott Basalaj and the high prospect Jack-Henry Sinclair could not start well the season as they lost by to 2-1 to Napier, the team coached by the experieced Bill Robertson. Kenny Willox and Karan Mandair scored the goals of Napier, while Gianni Bouzoukis scored the sole goal of the home side.
Western Suburbs started the season in style
Despite counting on the very good attacker Jesse Randall, North Wellington could not hold their early lead taken at Endeavour Park against Western Suburbs. The penalty scored by Nathan Simes was not enough to an away win, as Xavier Green equalized and the talented Marko Stamenic sealed the win for Western Suburbs.
The competition is set to continue in the next weekend; despite only one matchweek played, we can already see Miramar Rangers at the top of the table. Much football still to be played in Wellington during the new season that just started!
After another statement from the Fijian Football Association a big turmoil was set around the Following another statement by the Fijian Football Federation, there was a great uproar over the organisation of Fiji FACT. The competition is scheduled to take place in November at Subrail Park in Labasa. The statement that caused all the polemic among fans is that only six clubs will be competing in Fiji FACT – not quite normal when you count all eight teams in the Vodafone Premier League.
Fiji FACT final in 2019 between Nadi and Suva – FFA Media
Many football fans in social media were angry about the decision of the Fijian Football Federation and loudly expressed their dissatisfaction. Doubts were also raised about which six teams would play Fiji FACT – according to the tournament organisers, the top five teams from the Vodafone Premier League, the national league, as well as the hosts, will participate in the tournament. It is expected that the national league will be finished as early as November and the six clubs are already known to be participating in the competition.
According to reliable sources, the decision has been made to accommodate Subrail Park as the sole host for the entire tournament. If there were eight clubs participating in the tournament, the Fiji FACT would have to be played on two weekends and the knockout system would have to be reintroduced in Subrail Park. This would have been very expensive for both the Fijian Football Association and the club districts. It is also known that if Labasa City Council does not meet the relevant stadium certification, the competition could move to either Rewa or Nadi.
The most recent club to win the Fiji FACT was Nadi in the previous season as they beat Suva by 2-1 in the grand final.
Former Ba defender Kishan Sami seems ready for the start of the new season in New Zealand; the 20-year-old full-back recently signed with Manukau United, an Auckland-based team that plays in the Lotto NRFL Premier League.
Sami played this weekend in Manukau’s final friendly match against Auckland United on the way to the start of the league on 20 June. The Fijian international played an important role in the friendly, although Manukau suffered a 1-0 defeat. In addition to Sami, Samoan international George Konusi and Cook Islands’ Maro Bonsu-Maro represented Manukau.
Kishan Sami recently played for Fiji’s U-23 side in the OFC Olympic Qualifiers. He has also played 13 matches for his country at senior level. This is his first experience playing in a foreign club.
Football activities are slowly resuming in Oceania and it is not going to be different in American Samoa. According to Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) team trainings are allowed to resume in the country from June 15 on.
While football clubs can resume their activities in the upcoming week, the U-19 National Team must be called-up for trainings later this month as part of their preparation for OFC U-19 Championship that must be scheduled soon and the National Youth League is planned to begin in July.
Pago Youth players in 2019 OFC Champions League. Source: OFC Media
The 2020 edition of FFAS Senior League – the top league from American Samoa – is likely to begin in August. Pago Youth is the currently local champions as they won the league last year but they withdrew from playing 2020 OFC Champions League. It is important to remember that American Samoa was affected by the measles outbreak that forced the 2019 FFAS Senior League to be called off.
Oceania Football Center 