“Are we going to win?” challenged FFAS CEO Tavita Taumua.
“YES!” thundered back the team.
“My challenge to you is to better what the U-17 team did against Papua New Guinea in 2011 where they lost 2-1,” Taumua pointed out.
Sinisa Tua gave the team a glimpse of a win when he beat the defence by rounding the right back defender and cutting in to score during the third minute of stoppage time in the first half.
But a defensive lapse in the 58th had Frederick Simongi weave his way towards a shot that found the corner of the near post for what would end up being the tying score.
“We came for the win,” said coach Rupeni Luvu to much laughter from the supportive Solomon Islands crowd.
“We fell short so we’re going to have assess our players from this game and the first one in our preparation for Vanuatu.”
‘Fish’ Rafael Rocha was red carded in the 85th minute, leaving American Samoa with only 10 players in the last five minutes of the match plus the six in stoppage time.
“We made a mistake in putting in most of our subs to start the game,” said PNG’s coach Wynton Rufer.
Captain Ryan Paaga went through on goal seven minutes into the match but was taken out by goalie Vagi Koniel in a collision that saw the latter carted out with a knee injury.
Paaga and Tua created trouble for Papua New Guinea’s back four when it came to a race while the territory’s back four provided some stellar defense.
The coaching staff made a big change by going back to what worked during the OFC U-17 Preliminary tournament in 2013, going with defenders Johnny Sione, Rueben Luvu, Paul Collins and Ne’emia Kaleopa.
Sione was in beast mode all game, winning many of his defensive battles and letting not a single ball drop. All players rose to the occasion after being singled out by Taumua for their lackluster play against Fiji.
“Our defenders came through today for us and hats off to all the players for playing their hearts out today,” Luvu said.

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