Oceania Football Center

Seveci Rokotakala: Navua is set to upset some big teams

The bottom ranked side of the current edition of Vodafone Premier League is certainly coming as underdogs in the Group B of the 2020 Battle of Giants alongside the hosts Lautoka, Rewa and Nadi. That is what exactly the experienced defender Seveci Rokotakala told to Oceania Football Center in interview heading to the traditional tournament: “we are going as underdogs. But we also going as our build up for national league due we are ranked in the bottom of the table in the Vodafone Premier League,” said the central defender.

“We have been preparing well as we work on our fitness which was our down fall,” observed the experienced Navua player. Rokotakala, a 42-year-old player, is not the only very experienced played in Navua’s squad; some players such as Vineet Chand and Apisai Smith are already in their late 30’s, so working in fitness in the preparation for the tournament – three games in three days – seems something crucial for Navua side in the competition.

Even coming as underdogs in their pool, Seveci and his teammates have an optimistic view of what they can in the very traditional tournament that is going to be held in Lautoka this weekend: “As said we will look to improve our game for the national league, but not just that – we will try to upset some big teams in the tournament and try to win games,” explained the experienced player.

Navua’s first challenge in the 2020 Battle of Giants will be against Nadi this Friday (07th August) – then so they will have to face Lautoka and Rewa in the pool expecting to give fight to all big teams draw alongside the brave Seveci’s side.

Phoenix ready for vital clash against Brisbane Roar

In the match that is certainly one of the most important of Phoenix in the season so far, the team coached by Ufuk Talay will need a much better performance than in their 1-0 defeat against Western Sydney Wanderers – result that costed to the New Zealand team the 2nd place in A-League standings – against Brisbane Roar.

A defeat for the Nix must be a disaster for the team as they will drop 4th in the process – Roar is just two points away from the New Zealand and can take their spot in the ladder. Phoenix is also just three points away the 5th placed side Perth Glory, so a defeat in this clash might be really terrible for the aspirations of the club in A-League postseason.

Luke DeVere will not be available for this clash as he was red carded in the previous match against Wanderers. Despite the suspensions of Oliver Sail and Tim Payne are over, both players were not listed in the matchday squad.

Phoenix is in need of a win agianst Roar – *Phoenix Media*

A win can almost guarantee the third spot for Phoenix as they will keep their hopes alive to reach Melbourne City for the second place. Talay and New Zealand fans will be hoping the key man Ulises Davila gets back to his usual quality performances while Gary Hooper needs to be inform to combine well with David Ball – to give a performance the supporters were used to during the season.

The defense will miss DeVere – Te Atawhai Hudson-Wihongi or Liam McGing might be taking his place in the starting eleven -, something that they will need to be careful as the veteran striker Scott McDonald netted once in most recent Roar’s clash and is eager to keep his form against the Nix.

The match will kick-off at McDonald Jones Stadium at 8pm NZT and it will be live on FoxSports and in MyFootball app and YouTube channel.

PNG National Soccer League: FC Kutubu adds talented Emmanuel Simongi and Dinniget Luaine

After losing important players in the Papua New Guinea transfer window, FC Kutubu can be satisfied with the quality of the replacements for the restart of PNG National Soccer League this weekend. The Goroka-based side signed three players from Morobe United: Oberth Simon, Dinniget Luaine and Emmanuel Simongi.

Usual starters for the Lae-based team when players of Morobe United, especially Luaine and Simongi boosts the quality of the current bottom ranked team of the competition: the defender Luaine was called up for the provisional squad of 2019 Pacific Games in Samoa, but could not make it to the final squad. Simongi, that already trialed in Australia when younger, played the U23 Olympic Qualifiers in 2019 in Fiji.

The team from Goroka will be restarting their campaign this Saturday (08th Aug) against Tusbab Stallions at Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium in Lae. Kutubu will be looking for a very important win in order to improve their rankings in the league as they are just ranked at the bottom of the standings.

Lautoka: Malakai Rakula is finally cleared to play Battle of Giants

Finally, Lautoka fans can celebrate the signing of Fijian international Malakai Rakula after a lot of difficulties faced by the Blues to complete his registration alongside Fiji FA. The player even told Oceania Football Center that he felt Lautoka gave up on proceed on his release from Manukau United in New Zealand, but in the last minutes in the period of registration for 2020 Battle of Giants, Rakula was introduced in the final list of the team coached by Ravinesh Kumar.

According to reliable sources, as stated previously, the player was released from Manukau United from New Zealand – where his International Transfer Certificate was – more than three weeks ago. Then, the issue was between Fiji FA and Lautoka to negotiate the registration of the player in time to represent Lautoka in the Vodafone Premier League and Battle of Giants. The player did not feature in any of the recent matches of the team in the national league, but finally was granted a spot in the BOG squad to represent the Blues at home at Churchill Park.

The fact is that Rakula should have been released much before than that – allowing him to take place in Vodafone Premier League games – as he was released in enough time to make his registration to Fiji FA. Unknown issues made the proceedings so hard to finish, but at the of the day Rakula is cleared to play, finally, for his district.

Malakai Rakula should have been cleared before by Fiji FA for Lautoka’s BOG campaign

The Fijian international Malakai Rakula would be one if the biggest missing stars of the next Battle of Giants to be played this weekend in Lautoka. The former Ba man was recently approached by Lautoka and his application was almost done in order to greenlight his participation in both Vodafone Premier League. But, as Rakula mentioned in interview with Oceania Football Center, the Blues could not count on his services as they faced difficulties to register the player in the tournament due his ITC (Internatinal Transfer Certificate) – but they could add him in their final list in the late stages of the registration period for the tournament.

Malakai Rakula when Ba player – *FFA Media*

According to reliable sources, Manukau United – club where supposed Rakula’s ITC belonged to, stated that they released the player three weeks ago alongside another former Manukau’s player Mohammed Alam that signed for Labasa and already feature in matchday squads, unlike Rakula.

The release of Rakula would be the solution for Lautoka to count on the player for the next Battle of Giants and Vodafone Premier League. If Malakai Rakula’s ITC was free to be granted by Lautoka – as both Lautoka and Manukau agreed in negotiations – the only issue on the player’s paperwork might be in Fiji FA.

According to sources, Manukau wanted to Rakula to continue playing in Fiji during his wait to return New Zealand due the current situation borders closed for foreigners to enter New Zealand as a measure to protect the entrance of COVID-19 back in the country. Fortunately for all parties involved, a final solution could be granted and the player will feature in the traditional tournament.

Anthony Talo to play S-League for newly raised Honiara City

The Solomon Islands football and futsal star Anthony Talo has a new club: Honiara City FC. The goalkeeper that already defended teams such as Western United, Kossa, Henderson Eels and most recently the Papua New Guinean powerhouse Hekari United is the most important signing so far for the based in Solomon Islands’ capital city.

The goalkeeper was the named Telekom S-League Best goalkeeper in the last season and will certainly add a lot of quality for the newly raised team to take part in the upcoming season of the Solomon Islands top-tier league. Honiara City acquired the ITC of Talo that was in possesion of Hekari United.

The goalkeeper – that stated months ago that did not want to play the national league this season – changed his mind most probrably due COVID-19 situation. The player said he wanted to move abroad for this season, but as it is impossible due borders restrictions he decided to take up a deal with the new club in the national league.

Solomon Islands: Benjamin Mana to play Telekom S-League for Kossa FC

One of the most promising futsal players from Solomon Islands is going to have his first experience in the major football league from his homeland: Benjamin Mana. The 18-year-old player is part of Kossa FC squad for 2020 Telekom S-League.

Benjamin was the top scorer of 2019 OFC Futsal Champions League and 2020 SIPA Futsal Champions League when he was 17. He was also named for Solomon Islands National Futsal Team’s provisional squad for the upcoming FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Benjamin’s older brother Elis is also confirmed in Kossa FC squad for 2020 Telekom S-League. Elis Mana is 20-year-old and played for Solomon Islands U-17 National Team in 2017. He also represented his homeland in the OFC Futsal Nations Cup last year.

Eleven teams are going to fight for the national title this season, including three new franchises. It was confirmed by the local federation that the upcoming Telekom S-League kicks-off this weekend, however the schedule was not released yet.

Seven new players join Star Mountain for PNG National Soccer League

After losing Bernard Purari and Steven Inia who left the team to join FC Bougainville, the management of Star Mountain FC confirmed that six new players joined the team for the remainder of 2019-20 PNG National Soccer League season.

It was confirmed Star Mountain’s team manager Joseph Ame that George Gerega, July Elijah, Kapret Tingut, Lance Vincent, Luke Kaprangi Junior, Moses Arisib and Ryan Gerega are now part of the team and they are already cleared to play for their new team.

Moses Arisib is Star Mountain’s main arrival for the rest of the season

The biggest name of this list is surely Moses Arisib who was playing for FC Bougainville. The 31-year-old full back is ready to add more possibilities to Star Mountain’s squad with his versatility.

Currently in the eight position the National Soccer League, Star Mountain will will have a tough clash against current league leaders Vitiaz United at PNG Football Stadium in Port Moresby on this Saturday. You can check the schedule of all remaining league matches by clicking here.

Basil Jofari ready to guide FC Bougainville as PNG National Soccer League resumes

The 2019-20 Papua New Guinea National Soccer League resumes this weekend and all ten participating teams are getting ready for the league’s resumption. It is not being different for FC Bougainville that is surely doing a very good preparation over the past few weeks.

Currently in the sixth position in the table with eleven points in ten matches, FC Bougainville added some talent to its squad by signing with forward Bernard Purari and former Star Mountain’s assistant coach Percy Mataio.

FC Bougainville’s latest match was a 5-0 win over Star Mountain with two goals scored by Basil Jofari: “The team’s preparation is being great. We have beaten Star Mountain twice and Gulf Komara once during this period but there is still room for improvement. We are working hard and doing our best as a team for league’s resumption,” said Jofari. The 26-year-old midfielder also talked about the positive impact caused by the arrival of Percy Mataio: “His arrival brings a lot of energy to the team. We are excited to work with him,” he stated.

Jofari (left) playing for FC Bougainville – *PNGFA Media*

Basil and his teammates are going to have a very difficult match this weekend against a strengthened Hekari United that will count on Nigel Dabinyaba and Raymond Gunemba who recently joined the team: “Dabinyaba and Gunemba are already used to Hekari United. Anyway we are focused on our preparation for the match,” pointed the midfielder.

With eight matchweeks remaining for the end of the National Soccer League’s regular season, Jofari has a clear goal in his mind which is to help his team to win matches to reach the league’s semi-finals. “I know it is not going to be easy and we have to work hard to get there. We have to take one game at a time and it starts this weekend against Hekari United,” he stated.

The clash between FC Bougainville and Hekari United is set to kick-off on Saturday at 3pm at PNG Football Stadium in Port Moresby. You can check the complete schedule of the remaining matches by clicking here.

Gagame Feni joins Laugu United

Solomon Islands international and former Suva attacker Gagame Feni is the new player of Laugu United in the Telekom S-League. The star player was released by his former team Galaxy in Vanuatu to join Laugu for the new season in his home nation. The player was unable to return to Vanuatu due border restrictions and decided to switch to Laugu to continue playing.

Laugu comes with a very strong squad for this season as Jared Rongosulia and Atkin Kaua just recently signed for the club for the new season in Solomon Islands top-tier league. The club will also count on players such as Allen Peter and Matson Feni.

The Telekom S-League is set to start this Saturday (08th Aug) in Honiara.