The course ran from November 28 to December 2 and was conducted by FIFA referee instructor Neil Poloso of the Solomon Islands, who was assisted by local futsal instructor Iofi Lalogafu’afu’a and FFAS staff members Ruben Luvu, Uinifareti Aliva and Lemusa Alatasi.
FFAS executive committee member and head of referees Silasila Samuelu officially opened the course on behalf of President Iuli Alex Godinet and urged the participants to get the most out of the five-day programme.
He added that FFAS would be relying heavily on the course participants to properly facilitate the games of the upcoming futsal competition, which has been tentatively scheduled to begin in January 2012.
“We are looking forward to kicking off our futsal league again and we now have a good number of referees,” Samuelu said.
The participants were put through their paces in a series of practical sessions at the Samoana High School gymnasium while the theoretical aspects of the course took place at the FFAS headquarters at Pago Park.
The practical sessions covered all aspects of futsal refereeing while Poloso took the participants meticulously through the futsal laws of the game in the theory classes, before the course culminated with a fitness test on the final day.
The futsal course in American Samoa is the latest activity in OFC’s FIFA-funded Refereeing Assistance Programme (RAP), which aims to develop world-class referees.
Under the supervision of referee development officer Massimo Raveino, referee instructor Poloso and fitness trainer Kader Touati, the programme is helping to create a more organised, professional approach to refereeing in the Pacific.
For more on American Samoa football go to www.ffas.as

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