AS Exchange sit top of Tahiti’s Division Federale following a 3-1 opening day victory over TAC to help mark FIFA Fairplay Day in French-Polynesia. In other results, last season’s O-League
representatives AS Temanava got off to a solid start with a 1-0 win over newly promoted Aorai. Temanava – coached by the colourful figure of Bernard Vaihirua were too good for the team from Maatea.
Division Federale title favourites AS Tefana and AS Dragon fought out a controversial 1-1 draw at the Stade de Pater with both sides reduced to ten men. AS Dragon’s Steven Bennett was sent off for
a reckless late tackle and he was joined by AS Tefana’s Jean Petillon in the stands after Petillon stopped a goal bound shots with an arm.
Defending champions AS Manu Ura needed a late goal by Tahiti international Billy Mataitai to save their blushes against JT. JT had earlier taken the lead through Stanley Taata in the first-half
with Mataitai’s equaliser arriving in the 75th minute.
AS Pirae completed a miserable end to their 2007 Coupe Des DOM-TOM campaign with a crushing 7-2 loss at the hands of Club Franciscain (Martinique) in the match for third place. It was a sad
end to the AS Pirae career of talismanic New Caledonia midfielder Jose Hmae who has been an ever present in the club’s domestic success over the past three seasons.
Hmae – who helped guide New Caledonia to a South Pacific Games men’s football gold medal in Samoa earlier this month – has signed a new contract with AS Mont Dore of New
Caledonia and managed to end his stint with Les Oranges with a goal. Jeremy Dubois was also on target for Gerard Kutai’s team, Kutai suffering a difficult month in football with the
Tahiti national team’s stunning underachievement at the South Pacific Games in which Tahiti could only draw 1-1 with non-FIFA members Tuvalu under Kutai’s leadership.
In the Coupe Des DOM-TOM Final Reunionais USST defeated USS Tamponnaise 3-0 to lift the trophy. From 2008, the Coupe Des DOM-TOM will be played out by League selections rather than club teams from
Reuinion, Guyana, Guadeloupe, Martinque, Tahiti and New Caledonia.