Sometimes we hear about some cases of father and son playing for the same team and even scoring in the same match. There are some famous cases like the Gudjohnsen’s, the Iceland’s most famous footballing dynasty. While Arnor and Eidur Gudjohnsen never played together as team-mates, son Eidur replaced Arnor as a second-half substitute in an international friendly against Estonia in 1996, symbolising one career coming to a close, while another was just starting.
Other famous case happened some years ago when brazilian legend Rivaldo and his son Rivaldinho scored in the same match for Mogi Mirim against Macaé in Brazilian second tier. But one of the most impressive cases happened this year in Oceania.
Rivaldo (left) celebrating a goal with his son Rivaldinho (right) in 2015
It was January 27 and Lotoha’apai United was ready to debut in 2019 OFC Champions League against Pago Youth from American Samoa. Halapua Falepapalangi (father) and Tuia Falepapalangi (son) were playing together and they did not know they would put their names in football’s history that day.
After losing by 1-0 in the first half, Lotoha’apai came back to pitch ready to react and win the game. At 53 minutes, young midfielder Tuia Falepapalangi scored after a magnificent pass by Hemaloto Polovili. It was Tuia’s first goal ever in Oceania Champions League. He scored two more goals at 66′ and 69′ to complete a hat-trick.
Lotoha’apai squad. Tuia (above) and Pua Falepapalangi (below) are circled in the picture
At the final minutes Lotoha’apai was winning by 4-1 and it was the perfect time for history to happen. In the 83rd minute Halapua Falepapalangi scored an amazing goal in a tremendous right-footed long shot to seal the 5-1 win.
And that was exactly what should happen to turn it into something historical. It was the first time ever that father and son scored in the same match in a club continental competition. Falepapalangi family put Tonga in football history, something very special when it comes to a country placed in 203 of 211 National Teams in FIFA Ranking.
Their goals and Oceania Football Confederation’s interview with them are available in the video below:
It was the only Lotoha’apai United win in the competition. They lost the two other matches to Kiwi FC from Samoa and Tupapa Maraerenga from Cook Islands.
History is not always made by the greatest teams or the greatest players. Many incredible things happen all over the world and one of these things happened right here in Oceania Champions League!
The Solomon Islands Beach Soccer National Team participation in 2019 World Games is over. Bilikiki lost all three matches and finished as fourth place in Group B.
World Beach Games is organized by the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and it was the first edition of the games, held in Doha (Qatar). Oceania had one berth in Beach Soccer, given to the OFC top ranked in BSWW World Ranking. Tahiti is the top ranked in Oceania but they were ineligible to enter since French Polynesia is not a member of ANOC. Therefore, the berth has been given to Solomon Islands because they are OFC’s next highest ranked team that is an ANOC member.
Solomon Islands was in group B with Spain, Italy and Mexico. Despite losing all three matches, Bilikiki had a good performance in the tournament by playing at a good level against european sides.
Bilikiki’s debut was against Italy. The first goal was scored by Italian Gabriele Gori but Solomon Islands drew the match immediately with Roy Mafane. The first period ended 3-1 for the europeans while the second ended 6-4 for them. At the final whistle the sheet was 8-5 for Italy. Roy Mafane and Robert Laua scored two goals each while Max Fa’ari netted once.
Robert Laua disputing the ball against Italian players
The second match against Spain was crucial for Solomon Islands because a loss would eliminate them with one match remaining. Despite playing well and making a tough game, Bilikiki lost to Spanish side by 8-5. Fa’ari was SI’s top scorer with two goals while Roy Mafane, Robert Laua and Allen Farobo netted one goal each.
Max Fa’ari against Spanish goalkeeper
Already eliminated, SI faced Mexico that was also already eliminated and it was an easy win for the Latin Americans that won by 8-2. The goals were scored by Fa’ari and Mafane. These two players were the topscorers of their nation with four goals scored each.
It was a good opportunity to push players at a high international level. The last time Bilikiki played a world competition in Beach Soccer was in 2013 when they played FIFA World Cup in Tahiti. Solomonic Team is growing and has a good future. They almost qualified for 2019 World Cup but they lost to world power Tahiti in OFC Nations Cup final.
Fiji Inter-District Championship is over and we already talked about it in Oceania Football Center. This article’s purpose is to talk about an important thing that seems to be neglected by those who rule football in some places in Oceania: physioltogy.
Physiology is the branch of biology that aims to understand the mechanisms of living things, from the basis of cell function at the ionic and molecular level to the integrated behaviour of the whole body and the influence of the external environment. Research in physiology helps us to understand how the body works in health and how it responds and adapts to the challenges of everyday life.
Multiple-sprint sports, such as soccer, are characterized by periods of high-intensity activity (sprinting, running, kicking, jumping, and tackling), interspersed with lower intensity actions (jogging and walking) and/or active or passive recovery. All these stimuli generate physiological reactions in human body and it is very important to understand their effects football performance and outcomes.
The Inter-District Championship of this year was held between 8 and 13 October, just six days. And here is the most astonishing data: Some teams played FIVE 90 MINUTES MATCHES IN SIX DAYS. It is really ridiculous when it comes to professional or semi-professional football. It does not matter if it is traditional, it needs to be changed.
2019 IDC group A schedule. Winner Labasa played three matches in three days in group stage
We really do not see it in high level football. As a rule, UEFA determinates that each team will have at least two rest days between matches in 2019/20 season. In Brazil, players need to rest 66 hours between matches as a CBF rule too.
In Premier Division final there were three injured players: Suva goalkeeper Simione Tamanisau and forwards Siotame Kubu (Labasa) and Sairusi Nalaubu (Suva). Of course that bad conditions of the ground are risk-increasing factors, but would these injuries happen if they were rested and without high levels of fatigue?
“It would be better if we had more time to rest” a player that featured 2019 IDC said to Oceania Football Center. “I really can’t agree with this schedule. It puts players on risk” said another player.
A study made by Ispirlids et al in 2008 demonstrated that it took 96 to 120 hours of rest to our body achieve pre-match values for sprint performance as well as normalize blood markers of muscle damage (creatine kinase). So a football player needs four or five days to be full recoverd after a 90 minutes match.
The level of creatine kinase (CK) within the blood is measured in Units of enzyme activity (U) per Liter of blood (L), or U/L. A typical range is between 20 and 200 U/L. However, certain conditions can elevate these levels like a football match for example. Peak CK activity usually occurs at 48 hours after the game and its levels are around 950U/L by this time. It takes 120 hours (five full days) to CK level in blood come back to normal after a football match.
Performance deterioration lasts 24 to 72 hours after the match. Players’ speed decline is maintained for 72 hours while jumping height stays below pre-game values for 24 hours. Sprint time values reaches its lowest values 48h post-game and returns to pre-game levels after 120 hours. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) returns to baseline after 96 hours.
Other study indicated that players that play two football matches within 96 hours are expected to injure (25 injuries per 1000 hours) more than players that play one match a week (4 injuries per 1000 hours).
Even FIFA medical department studies suggest that playing matches with a relatively short turn around (less than five days) is associated with an increased risk of injury around 20% compared to playing matches with more than five days of rest.
Lack of rest decreases game’s quality
According to these findings, soccer players may not be able to perform at maximal level intense anaerobic activities such as those seen during a game (sprinting or jumping) for at least 3 days after their most recent match.
So… Why playing five matches in six days? The players get so tired, the quality of the matches plummet and it is not players or coaches fault. It is impossible to keep a good level with exhausted players. Why not giving them more time to rest? The matches surely would be better once players are rested. Having injured players are not so interesting, that’s why UEFA have a research programme with the aim of increasing the safety of players in its competitions and contributing to the wider understanding of injury in sport by evaluating the injury risk and circumstances of injury, considering exposure during training sessions and matches.
A better quality match attracts more people and more people attracts more money. Just by being a little more intelligent and thinking less about their own pockets people can make football more profitable and interesting. Everbody would be benefited by it: fans, players, coaches, referees and even the Football Associations.
Solomon Islands U17 defender Charlton Totori recently said that Brian Kaltak is his favourite defender – He has great vision in the game and he is also a melanesian like me – said Totori to Raw Sports Newspaper. Totori is one of the called-up players for FIFA U17 World Cup that will be held in Brazil.
Surely Kaltak is a reference for a lot of people from Pacific. The Ni-Van defender is one of the most successful players from Pacific Islands nowadays being an important player for Auckland City in New Zealand. He is the current Vanuatu National Team captain and the biggest reference when it comes to football in Vanuatu.
“It feels awesome to be honest. Being captain of the the team is something different, only few people deserves to wear the captain’s armbrand and I am happy to be one of them” said Kaltak to Oceania Football Center.
Kaltak playing for Vanuatu National Football Team
He is not an inspiration just inside the pitch. He is a great man that remembers his roots and is always willing to help other people. He has a great connection with Erakor Golden Star, a club from Vanuatu where he played some years ago. He went to Vanuatu on August for a two-week holiday and took part of Erakor Golden Star FC Youth Program sharing his experiences to local children.
Brian Kaltak in Erakor Golden Star Youth Program
The success does not come from one day to another, but Kaltak followed the right path and he knows that hardworking is crucial to achieve goals and being successful in football world. He started his career as a serious footballer at Teouma Academy, a football academy in Vanuatu ran by the local Federation where he had the opportunity to work with some of the best coaches and people from Ni-Van football like Moise Poida, Etienne Mermer and Richard Iwai.
“To go far you have to be strong and learn how to cope on your own, while having good people that let you follow your dreams, let you do what your heart desires.” – “I believe in myself. In life we all have ups and downs, we all go off the path sometimes. But at the back of your mind, especially in football, you know you have to be responsible for bringing yourself up because no-one’s going to do it for you.” said Kaltak to Oceania Football Confederation Media in 2018.
Currently playing in Auckland City, the biggest football club in Oceania, he stands at the top of OFC. The 26 years old defender enjoys it and he is having a great time playing in New Zealand.
Brian Kaltak playing for Auckland City
He also left an advice for young players from the islands: “Work hard and never stop believing in yourself… the reward takes time, even years to be successful”.
With the end of the Inter-District Championship, there’s only Champion vs. Champion remaining to finish the Fiji football season, with Labasa and Ba deciding the last title of 2019. Even with these two matches not scheduled yet, it’s not too early to talk about the season’s top scorers.
When we think about good forwards in Fijian football, we think about some players like Rusiate Matarerega (Nadi), Benjamin Totori and Samuela Drudru (both from Lautoka). But this year we had a Senior League’s player that scored more goals than these players and was the Fijian 2019 season Golden Boot: Taniela Rakariva.
It’s not the first season that Rakariva’s scored a good amount of goals: in 2018 he was the Senior League’s top scorer with 13 goals. But this year he came more hungry and lethal, scoring 18 goals in thirteen matches for Lami in the Vodafone Senior League, being named the league topscorer for the second straight season, helping Lami to end the season as runner-up right after Navua.
Rakariva receiving Senior League topscorer award
He has also scored three goals in four matches in 2019 Inter-District Championship. Despite not being the tournament’s top scorer, he ended the season with 21 goals in 18 matches, averaging 1.16 goals per game.
At 23 years old, it’s clear that Rakariva is ready for the next level. He’ll probably leave Lami in time for next season and many Premier League teams may show interest in signing him. A young forward ready to shine!
This year will be historic for Tonga and American Samoa. That’s the first time they will play OFC Futsal Championship (now OFC Futsal Nations Cup) that will be held in Nouméa. The championship is scheduled to happen between 27 October and 2 November.
Tongan delegation will stay in Auckland for a week before going to New Caledonia. Suliasi Vivili is the Team Manager while Manu Tualau will be the head coach. There’s no reliable information about American Samoa squad so far.
Tongan delegation
American Samoa is in Group A with New Zealand, New Caledonia and Vanuatu while Tonga is in Group B with Tahiti, Fiji and Solomon Islands.
Plans to expand the Papua New Guinea National Soccer League to a two-tier competition were confirmed by the Papua New Guinea Football Association (PNGFA) this week, with the potential for a record-breaking 32 teams taking part across two divisions.
This was confirmed this week after Expression of Interest (EOI) forms were distributed to clubs around the country, with full details of how the league will be structured:
The Men’s Premier Competition is an open category competition for franchise clubs who meet all the prescribed requirements. The competition will be played across the country and there are only eight (8) spots to be filled for the season.
The Men’s Conference Competition is a closed competition geared towards the Member Associations of PNGFA. Member Associations are encouraged to fill a team comprising of players who are registered within their association to participate within their Conference, then qualify to play against other Conference winners.
Member Associations who are not willing and/or prepared to submit an E.O.I. will not be penalised but the offer to participate with be given to another interested stakeholder to take up the spot. There are only six (6) spots per Conference.
There is a fair amount of notable information to be assessed here:
The ‘top level’ of PNG football – the ‘Premier Competition’ – will essentially return to the format it has seen for the majority of the time since its inauguration in 2006; that is, there will be a nationwide league of roughly eight teams, the winners of which will probably (although this is unconfirmed) represent PNG at continental level. It’s likely that we will see the likes of Toti City and Hekari United apply to be one of the eight teams in this division.
As yet there is no confirmation that the eight teams will consist of two from each region (Southern, Northern, Highlands and Islands) or a less balanced, arbitrary allocation, nor how the slots will be allocated if more than eight teams apply.
Interestingly, the rules also state that franchise clubs must have their own stadium, or demonstrate that they will have their own stadium within three years. This is a tough ask, but excellent news for football across the country, as this will further develop the building blocks required to move to the next level – to have professional clubs in a professional league, something which is a target by 2021.
The ‘second level’ of PNG football – the ‘Conference Competition’ – will work similarly to the 2019 edition of the NSL: four conferences in the four regions, with the conference winners playing each other for the championship.
The ‘closed competition’ rules governing the Conference Competition essentially limits applications to ‘one club per Member Association’, which could mean several of the teams that took part last year may be unable to do so again, especially if they came from the same Member Association as another club that applies. We’re not sure exactly what this will mean for currently existing franchises, so watch this space for more information.
It’s as yet unclear whether the two-tier system will include direct promotion and relegation between the divisions.
With potentially eight teams in the Premier Competition and 24 in the Conference Competition totalling 32, we should see the NSL break last year’s record of 27 participating teams in a season.
Toti City are the reigning National Soccer League champions. Photo: Toti City FC
For the first time ever, there will be a Women’s Competition taking place in the Northern and Southern regions too.
With the tentative start date of November 16th just over a month away, it’s likely we’ll see rapid progress in terms of how the league shapes up, and no doubt the return of some familiar clubs with a long history domestically.
We congratulate the PNGFA and John Kapi Natto for yet more encouraging progress in Papua New Guinean football, and look forward to seeing how the season will unfold.
After lifting the Inter-District Championship trophy this weekend, Navua is looking ahead making plans for 2020 season after a unforgettable 2019.
Navua was promoted to 2020 Vodafone Premier League after being champions of 2019 Vodafone Senior League with an incredible campaign winning all their 16 matches. Taking Inter-District Championship into consideration, they won 21 of 22 official games in this year.
Navua won 2019 IDC Championship and was awarded with 7500 Fijian Dollars
Navua players also won some awards in this season, speacially in Inter-District Championship. Seveci Rokotakala received the IDC best player award while Alfred Ali was named the Final MVP. Thomas Dunn was also awarded with the “Best Newcomer” award. Some other players had great performance this season scoring many goals between IDC and Senior League like Vineet Chand (14) and Sharad Kumar (12).
Navua players in the IDC final against Nadroga
Even receiving these money prizes Navua still struggles financially and team management is quite worried about it. Melvin Nath, Navua’s official, said the team is looking for sponsorship so they can make a good 2020 season.
The sponsorships can be in cash, boots or training equipments. Interested people or companies can mail Melvin Nath through the e-mail melvinnath10@gmail.com or their Facebook page.
Batram Suri had a great career as a footballer, playing in Oceanian countries like New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu for over twenty years. He has almost 50 caps for National Team and scored ten goals.
He was one of the most proeminent Pacific Islands’ players during the 90s, being indicated for Oceanian Player of the Year award many times through this decade.
Batram Suri was one of the best players of his generation in Pacific
Some years after his retirement as a player in 2011, he started to work as a Head Coach. At his 48, he’s the current manager of Solomon Islands U23 squad, taking his nation to a silver medal in 2019 OFC Olympic Qualifier held in Fiji.
He’s not the only Suri currently involved with national team. Batram is father of Alden Suri. The young midfielder currently plays for Saint Nicholas High School and will have one of the greatest opportunities a football player can have once he’s one of the selected players to represent Solomon Islands in FIFA U17 World Cup in Brazil.
Alden Suri is one of the called-up players for U17 World Cup
“My father is the motivational figure for me. Everyone knows who Batram Suri is. I love to make my own legacy as well. Internationally, Lingard is my model. His pace and his attacking runs are spot on. I try to be the best of myself everytime I play using these two models as motivation.” said Alden Suri for Raw Sports Newspaper.
Solomon Islands’ debut in World Cup will be on 29th October (28th October at Brazilian timezone) against Italy.
Despite having numerous South Americans in the ISPS Handa Premiership, it’s not every day we see a Brazilian player in New Zealand’s top league. The last known Brazilian to play in the league was Luiz Del Monte, who played for Auckland City and Waitakere United – his last appearance was in 2013.
This season, we have a new incoming defender from Brazil named Rodrigo Morais, and he will play for Hamilton Wanderers in the 2019-20 ISPS Handa Premiership. We interviewed him about his career an expectations in New Zealand, and you can check it below!
First of all, thanks for accepting our invitation for this interview with Oceania Football Center, Rodrigo! May you introduce yourself and your career to our followers? I’m 23 years old and I started my career in 2007 playing for Nacional AC, in São Paulo state league. It’s been three years since my debut as professional. I play as centre back and my biggest characteristics are heading, strength, positioning and vision.
What was your last club before signing for Hamilton Wanderers? My last club before moving to New Zealand was AA Itararé, a professional club in São Paulo State League.
Rodrigo (number 3 in blue) playing in Brazil
How did you get informed about football in New Zealand? How did you keep in touch with Hamilton Wanderers and why you decided to play in Oceania? Actually I’ve been researching about New Zealander football for over a year. I also was in touch with Wanderers for over a year. We talked a lot until we signed. I came to NZ because I’m looking for new challenges in my career playing in a higher level.
Rodrigo came from Brazil to strenght Wanderers’ squad
What are your first impressions about your teammates inside the pitch? And what about Ricki Herbert, a very important person in New Zealand’s football? My teammates received me very well and are helping me a lot outside and inside the pitch. Ricki is a formidable coach with a huge experience and knowledge. I have a huge respect for him and for his history in New Zealand. He is an excellent coach.
This ISPS Handa Premiership is expected to be one of the most difficult seasons of all time. Auckland City and Team Wellington are always strong and Eastern Suburbs is the current champion, while other teams – including Wanderers – are doing great moves in the market. What are your expectations for this season? Yes these teams (Auckland City, Team Wellington and Eastern Suburbs) are considered as favourites but we have a strong side and we want the title. All players are focused on it and training a lot to improve every day and win games. The expectations are pretty good.
Would you like to leave a message for Wanderers’ supporters and New Zealand football fans that are anxious for this upcoming season? Yes. They can expect a lot of determination from me. I’ll do my best to please Blues’ supporters.
We thank Rodrigo for conceding this interview and wish him good luck during his time in Hamilton Wanderers.
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