Oceania Football Center

Auckland City faces Team Wellington in ISPS Handa Premiership

Already in the second round of ISPS Handa Premiership in New Zealand we are going to have the biggest rivalry currently in play at Kiwitea Street: Auckland City vs. Team Wellington. The both sides are turned into the two biggest forces of football in New Zealand competing for the national title for several years – having their dominance broken in the last season with the title won by Eastern Suburbs then coached by current All Whites coach Danny Hay.

Both sides won in their first match in the competition: Team Wellington at home shown all of their quality when beating 5-1 the good team of Hamilton Wanderers. Hamish Watson scored a double to help TeeDubs to start the season in fashion. The Navy Blues played away from Auckland and travelled to Napier to play against Hawke’s Bay United. The seven-time New Zealand champions had some difficulties but could win away from home by 3-2, the debut of Myer Bevan was a success since the former Vancouver Whitecaps striker netted a hattrick.

A imagem pode conter: 1 pessoa, sorrindo, texto — Bevan was the Player of the Week 1 – *NZF Media*

The clash of the two current most important teams will be certainly the most entertaining match of the round; who wins will create a three point-advantage from their opponent what can mean a lot in the table at the end of the season. This match will be telecasted by SkySport.

In the other four matches of the day, Wellington Phoenix Reserves and Hawke’s Bay United will be looking to bounce back from their first round loses. Canterbury United will be looking to have their first win in the season after being defeated away from home to Eastern Suburbs – Southern United recorded a very impressive win by 4-0 in Otago against Tasman United.

In the Porrit Stadium, Hamilton Wanderers will hope for a good performance of Tommy Semmy and Derek Tieku to surpass the current champions Eastern Suburbs. The Lilywhites had a very hard win against Canterbury United with a goal coming from the youngster Jake Mechell while Wanderers suffered a dissapointing defeat against Team Wellington at David Farrington Park by 5-1.

The young talents of Waitakere United displayed a good performance against Wellington Phoenix Reserves winning them by 3-1; they will be facing Tasman United in Nelson in the both sides second match in the league. Tasman United will be looking to have a better performance in front of their fans after suffering a heavy defeat in Otago against Southern United.

Tafea draws and shares first position with Ifira Black Bird

The PVFA Premier League’s Week 5 is over. Four matches were played in Port Vila top division and Oceania Football Center brings a review of each match for you! The biggest news come from the top because Ifira Black Bird is now tied with Tafea in the first position.

SIA RAGA 1-1 YATEL

Sia-Raga and Yatel drew in a controversy match on Friday. The goals were netted by Mansen Jacob (Yatel) and Sine Jesino (Sia-Raga). Sia had two goals disallowed by referees but according to local sources one of the goals was wrongly disallowed. “Yatel FC has a totally new team compare to the past 4 games it played. We played our game for 90mins and converted two other goals that were disallowed. We leave that aside and will train harder for next game” said Sia-Raga assistant coach Vaagahu Harper. Yatel is still looking for their first win in the Premier League while Sia remains in the fifth position with seven points.

IFIRA BLACK BIRD 4-0 TUPUJI IMERE

Ifira Black Bird won to remain unbeaten in the league. They are the new league leaders with eleven points alongside Tafea. This match marked the debut of Mahit Ollie and John Welwel that came on loan from Vaum United. The goals were scored by Sam Kalter, Maso Tasso, Aron Spokey and Talipo Taiwia. “Despite the result, the match was challenging and tough” said Jonathan Spokeyjack. Tupuji Imere still struggles to win games and they are losing important points that are letting them far from the top teams – “We are still trying to shape our team, eight of our players went for RSE in Australia and New Zealand […] New players arrived but we need to play more games together” said Tupuji player Elkington Molivakarua.

Ifira Black Bird squad against Tupuji Imere

ERAKOR GOLDEN STAR 2-0 MAUWIA

Mauwia lost again and they remain on the bottom of the table with zero points. This result helped Erakor to overcome Galaxy and they are now in the third position with nine points. Despite the win it was expected that Erakor could score more goals “We missed many changes” said Jackson Tasso, Erakor Golden Star’s captain. It was a harsh game for Tasso once he left the game with a injury in his right foot after a tough foul committed by a Mauwia’s player. The referee pointed the foul but he did not show yellow card to the fouler. Kaltfer Kaltack scored a beautiful free kick for Erakor while Ellie Thomas netted the other goal to seal the 2-0 win.

Jackson Tasso (first player in yellow) got injured against Mauwia

TAFEA 0-0 GALAXY

The most awaited clash of the weekend ended with a 0-0 draw. Tafea lost Waiwo Kalmet who was sent off in the beginning of the second half so Tafea had to play with 10 men for a long time “After Waiwo Kalmet’s red card Tafea had to defend almost the whole second half and had few attempts on counter attack with Jordy Tasip giving some scares to Galaxy defense” said Tafea’s manager Robert Calvo. Even with one more player in the pitch, Galaxy did not manage to score “Galaxy had many opportunities but we missed them. There was a penalty for Galaxy that was not awarded by the referees after a Tafea player’s handball inside the box” said Gabriel. Tafea did a good job by holding Galaxy to a 0-0 draw “The match was not easy for both teams, Galaxy had few attempts saved by Tafea’s goalkeeper James Iamar” pointed Calvo. It is also important to note that Galaxy had a disallowed goal, according to the referee the player who sent the ball to the nets was in offside position.

It was the last match of a rainy gameweek. Port Vila Stadium already has a bad grass and the rain made everything worse “The pitch was terrible” said Calvo.

Galaxy is currently in the fourth position while Tafea is sharing the lead with Ifira Black Bird.

You can check the league standings and top goalscorers by clicking here

Benjamin Totori and Dennis Ifunaoa debut for Solomon Warriors

Solomon Warriors is the current leader of 2019 Telekom S-League. After an unbeaten second round they came even stronger for the second half of the season with some big additions in the teamsquad. Benjamin Totori and Dennis Ifunaoa came from Fijian football to strengthen the Warriors’ roster.

Totori was playing for Lautoka while Dennis Ifunaoa was in Labasa, both from Fiji. Both players made their debuts today against Marist coming from the bench.

Totori (left) and Ifunaoa (right) came from Fiji to strengthen Warriors squad

Solomon Warriors won by 3-1 with a brace scored by Totori and a goal netted by Ifunaoa. Warriors remains on the top of the league with 25 points in nine matches.

Maritzburg United draws in the return of Micah Lea’alafa

Maritzburg United drew by 2-2 against Bloemfontein Celtic in the tenth round of South African Premier League. This match marked the return of Micah Lea’alafa who has been injured for a month missing four matches.

Micah was in the starting eleven and played the first half before being replaced by Bandile Shandu in the halftime. He is not completely fit so he could not play the 90 minutes. New Zealanders Jeremy Brockie and Daniel Morgan also featured for Maritzburg in this match.

Maritzburg United was losing by 2-0 until the 87th minute when Daylon Claasen scored a penalty kick. The draw came with Judas Moseamedi who scored a heroic goal in the 92nd minute. Maritzburg is in the eighth position in the South African Premier League.

Laugu United signs important players for S-League second round

One of the most traditional football clubs in Solomon Islands are promising a good fight in the second round of the Telekom S-League, the top tier of football in the country. Laugu is a club created in 1987 but they did not take part in the most important league of Solomon Islands for several years, making their comeback in the 2019 season.

The first round for Laugu was not so good what their fans could be expecting: the team could just earn 10 points and is currently sitting 6th in the table eleven points away Henderson Eels that is 2nd and inside OFC Champions League qualifying zone.

A imagem pode conter: 1 pessoa, praticando um esporte, em pÃ© e atividades ao ar livre — Atkin Kaua scored eight goals in the first round for Laugu United – *Futbol Guy*

The Solomon Islands international Atkin Kaua was by far the most important players for Laugu United. The attacking midfielder scored eight goals for his side in the competition and is currently contesting for the golden boot of the tournament.

For the second round, the traditional black team will be adding very important players and will promisse a good fight against the teams currently topping the table of S-League.

One of them is goalkeeper Davidson Malam that recently played for Solomon Islands in the U17 World Cup held in Brazil. Another very promising sign that can combine very well with Atkin Kaua is the former Ba FC in Fiji Darold Kakasi, that also recently played with Solomon Islands colours but for OFC Olympic Qualifiers.

Another very interesting signing is the former Suva FC and Hekari United Matthias Iani that will be reinforcing Laugu United in this second round the Telekom S-League.

Davidson Malam and Darold Kakasi can be key players for Laugu Untied

Check all the new players for Laugu United for the rest of the Telekom S-League season:

🇸🇧 Darold Kakasi – 🇫🇯 Ba FC
🇸🇧 Matthias Iani – 🇫🇯 Suva FC
🇸🇧 Davidson Malam – 🇸🇧 Laugu United Youth
🇸🇧 Leslie Kivolyn – 🇳🇿 Melville United
🇸🇧 Dustan Quanafia – 🇻🇺 Ifira Black Bird
🇸🇧 Benji Junior – 🇫🇯 Nasinu FC
🇸🇧 Jared Rongosulia – 🇸🇧 Sunbeam FC
🇸🇧 Leslie Ramo – 🇸🇧 Marist FC
🇸🇧 Clayton Menapa – 🇸🇧 Kossa FC
🇸🇧 Junior Ashley – 🇸🇧 Henderson Eels FC

Hienghène Sport conqueers national glory and completes the treble

🇫🇷 Lire en français ici

After two matches that the club from north of New Caledonia could not confirm their lead in Mobil Super Ligue and seal their third in the season, the final round could see finally the current champions of OFC Champions League and Coupe de Calédonie to conqueer the national glory after beating Horizon Patho in Maré by 4-1 margin.

The club created in 1997 is enjoying their best moments ever turning into the first New Caledonian club to win OFC Champions League, Mobil Super Ligue and Coupe de Calédonie in the same season. Hienghène still will compete at Coupe de France and FIFA Clubs World Cup this year.

This is the second time the club based in Hienghène lifts the trophy of Mobil Super Ligue – in 2017 was their first national championship won. The coach Felix Tagawa is certainly one of the most important figures for the team, one of the biggest responsibles for the fantastic season Hienghène Sport is having.

Image result for HienghÃ¨ne Sport — Hienghène Sport celebrating OFC Champions League title – *OFC Media*

Now with the trophy in the hands of Hienghène Sport, the most exciting clashes of Mobil Super Ligue in its final matchweek will be the battle against the direct relegation with ES Wacaele and Trio Kedeigne.

Leon Kofana joins Henderson Eels for Telekom S-League

As we reported earlier, Kofana could join Henderson Eels for Telekom S-League second round.

The 17 years old defender is confirmed in the Eels squad. Head coach Eddie Marahare has just released the team list for round two with 25 players and Leon Kofana is in the list as you can check below:

Just like Raphael Lea’i, Kofana is on a scholar break. He has a scholarship at Scots College in New Zealand.

James Egeta: putting a smile in Solomon Islanders face

James Egeta is an important players of Solomon Islands National Futsal Team. The 29 years old player already played three Futsal World Cups (2008, 2012 and 2016) and will probably play his fourth in 2020. He started his career more than ten years ago and he played his first Futsal World Cup with just 18 years old in 2008.

Currently living in Brisbane, Egeta plays futsal in Australia, a country that has a good futsal culture. Kurukuru also made its preparation for 2019 OFC Futsal Nations Cup in Australia where they played against local teams and faced Futsalroos (Australia National Futsal Team) twice. The difference of level between Australia and the best OFC countries in futsal are not that big but it can be felt not only in the players’ quality but also in the infrastructure – “Futsal in Australia got high quality in terms of good facilities, international court size and players training under good coaches […] in Solomon Islands there is no proper court to train in and there is no good facilities to support the training” said Egeta.

James Egeta playing for Solomon Islands National Futsal Team in 2016

He took part of the Kurukuru squad that won OFC Futsal Nations Cup for the sixth time ever after beating New Zealad in penalties to qualify for 2020 World Cup. Egeta scored two goals in the competition, one against Fiji in the group stage and the another one in the final match against New Zealand. “I felt excited because it is going to be my fourth time in World Cup. I made my country proud and we put a smile on people’s face and we really need it. Our nation is being through a lot of things and this title is something that brings joy to every single person in the country and it makes me happy. I am not talking that people is suffering, what I mean is that our federation has been through hard times in terms of national football teams. We lost Pacific Games, beach soccer lost in World Cup qualifying and U17 National Team lost all three matches in FIFA U17 World Cup. So our victory brought a smile and hopes to people” he stated.

Egeta (left holding the trophy) celebrating 2019 OFC Futsal Nations Cup title

Egeta has an unique opportunity to play his fourth Futsal World Cup and he is very excited because of it but he also pointed that the journey has not been easy “New Zealand improved a lot and we need to work the extra mile to remain as Futsal Kings in Oceania. The final match against them was a great challenge. We missed lots of goal chances during the regular time so we had to end up with penalties”.

With all this experience and titles, Egeta is surely one of the greatest futsal players of Solomon Islands like George Stevenson and Elliot Ragomo. A true legend!

The decisive weekend for Mobil Super Ligue

🇫🇷 Lire en français ici

After seventeen rounds the Mobil Super Ligue will have its decisive matches this Saturday (09/11) and Sunday (10/11) to decide which club will lift the trophy of the top-tier of football in New Caledonia and which ones will be relegated to the second tier.

The current champions AS Magenta has real chances to defend their honour this season and end the season in fashion after failling to beat their rivals Hienghène Sport in the OFC Champions League grand final and in the Coupe de Calédonie quarter-finals. Hienghène Sport looks to complete their seaon of dream with a treble, after lifting their most important title ever – OFC Champions League – and the Coupe de Calédonie for the third time in the club history.

Unfortunately for Hienghène, they lost two opportunities to seal the title in the previous two matches they had in Mobil Super Ligue: they lost their first and unique match in the competition for rivals Magenta and draw against Tiga Sport in the last weekened to maintain a chance for Magenta to reach them in the table.

The current standings and 18th round matches for Mobil Super Ligue – *MSL Media*

FCF – the Football Federation of New Caledonia – decided to not test the hearts of the fans in this decisive round: we will already know whether Magenta will have a chance to lift the trophy or not at Saturday noon after Horizon Patho faces Hienghène Sport in Maré. If the the locals can beat Hyehen in the Stade de la Roche, Magenta will need to win also away from home, but in Stade de Hnasse in Lifou on Sunday, Trio Kedeigne. If the current Oceania champions can avoid a defeat, they will be celebrating their third title in the season.

Despite managing to keep to alive in the title run, the historical club from Nouméa still have a very hard to task to complete if they want to have the national glory once again. All odds are against Magenta: Horizon Patho, the opponent of their rivals Hienghène Sport, has nothing to battle for – they can not reach the 3rd place and they are already guaranteed in the top tier next season since they can not be reached by any club in the relegation playoff or direct zone. Differently, Trio Kedeigne will have their last shot to avoid direct relegation against AS Magenta in front of their fans and they will be desperately seeking for a win, hoping their top scorer Jordan Wetria can put some magic for the Lifou based team.

Hienghène will have their full force against Horizon Patho – *MSL Media*

Tiga Sport and AS Wetr will be both trying to reach the 3rd placed club SC Ne Drehu – hoping to finish the season as the best club in New Caledonia if we agree AS Magenta and Hienghène Sport are at a very higher level than any other side in the country. The same battle will be in contest when SC Ne Drehu plays at home AS Mont-Dore, the Mont-Doreans could finally grab all points in their last match and are hoping to finish the season in fashion. The white-orange club from Lifou, SC Ne Drehu, is doing a very good season by their expectations and their chance to guarantee their third place in the league will be this last match against Mont-Dore counting with the support of their fans.

AS Lössi also expects that the mathematics help them to finish at 3rd, but they will be having a desperate ES Wacaele playing in Stade Numa Daly as their opponents. Wacaele knows the match Trio Kedeigne vs AS Mont-Dore is still in dispute in the FCF Referee Council and their rivals in the battle against relegation can have more points in the table than they have actually despite they can not grab a positive result against AS Magenta this round. A win would be instrumental for ES Wacaele in their fight, putting all pressure in Trio Kedeigne for their last match against a still possible title contender AS Magenta. The 9th placed side will play the relegation play-off against a club to be determined from the 2nd tier in New Caledonia, while the bottom ranked club will be directly relegated to the second tier.

A very exciting football weekend is about to start in New Caledonia, the last moments of the football season are coming and surely all fans are looking for their stars to bring the best possible income they can for their home grounds. The matches of AS Lössi – ES Wacaele and Tiga Sport – AS Wetr will be streamed by the local TV station TV Caledonia – you can watch these matches at their channel in YouTube.

Tupuji Imere adds two former Vaum midfielders

Tupuji Imere, one of the most traditional teams from Port Vila, is not having a good start of season in the PVFA Premier League. Despite winning the Port Vila edition of Independence Cup before the start of the league, the team just won one of their four matches in the top tier of football in Vanuatu capital and it is certainly not what their fans are expecting. The quality of Tupuji Imere really can put them as one of the contenders for the title, but this is not what is happening: players as Michel Coulon, Elkington Molivakurua and Rodney Serveux – all with international experience, could surely help his side to do better.

The team Mele village decided to look for reinforcements for their squad and they found in Luganville: with the end of Luganville Premier League that had current Vanuatu National Soccer League winners Malampa Revivors as champions, many important players could make a move in the transfer window to Port Vila. Two important midfielders from Vaum United FC – one of the most important teams of LFA Premier League – are now joining Tupuji Imere: they are Mahit Ollie and John Welwel Dick.

A imagem pode conter: 2 pessoas, pessoas em pÃ© — Ollie and Welwel Dick presenting at Tupuji Imere – *Vanuatu Sport*

Mahit recently played for Malampa Revivors in their campaign at OFC Champions League in loan from his Vaum United. The 25-year old offensive midfielder can surely bring a lot of firepower to the team coached by Vanuatu football legend David Chilia – he was the captain of Vaum United before his departure. John Welwel Dick also plays at midfield position and also played an important role at Vaum in their recent participation at LFA Premier League in the second biggest city of Vanuatu, Luganville in Espiritu Santo island. The midfielder is 22 years old.

Both players come on loan from Vaum to the PVFA Premier League club and might return to the Luganville club after the end of the season in Port Vila. The transfer was accepted by VFF on 7th November according to source Vanuatu Sport. The players will already debut for Tupuji Imere in their next match in the league.