Pupi is set to make his regional debut at the OFC Champions League Preliminary in American Samoa this week – a prospect the 20-year-old is very excited about.
“One of my favourite things to do when watching a football match is observe the referees and now I will be one of them,” the assistant referee says.
Pupi’s passion for football was initially ignited when he joined his youth group side CCS Vaitele in the Federation Football Samoa National League in 2011.
From there his interest in refereeing was piqued until eventually he signed up to take part in a FIFA Refereeing Course in October 2012.
“Assisting a match wasn’t an easy task for me,” Pupi reveals. “The experience I had was slightly different from the others.
“But I managed to overcome the difficulties of the job and focus on what I needed to do to improve and be a better referee.”
He may be relatively new to the role but Pupi will be surrounded by some experienced officials in American Samoa who will be able to give him plenty of feedback on how to continue to improve in the role.
He is also fortunate to have the full support of the FFS behind him with president Savae Togia Toetu Petana encouraging Pupi to use the opportunity wisely.
“Not all referees in Samoa get this opportunity,” Petana says.
“Becoming a referee is an on and off-the-field job. We’ve seen Henry work really hard supporting our federation’s activities and this is an excellent reward for that hard work.
“To inspire means to fill someone with the urge or ability to do or feel something and we want Henry to inspire himself by attending the tournament.
“It is something other referees should look at, not necessarily because it will enable him to be a highly qualified referee but because it will encourage him to continue working hard to achieve his goals – and potentially others too.”
The OFC Champions League Preliminary gets underway in Pago Pago, American Samoa on Tuesday, 15 October and will conclude on 19 October.
Four teams are taking part – the club champions from Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands and American Samoa – with the winner earning direct entry to the OFC Champions League group stage scheduled to take place in Fiji in April 2014.
For more on Samoan football go to www.footballsamoa.ws