School teacher Logaivau represented Fiji for four years from 1993 and played club football in New Zealand, as well as starring locally with the likes of Navua, Rewa and Labasa.
He moved into coaching after hanging up his boots and his career on the sidelines began with spells in charge of various youth sides. Earlier this year, he was included in the Fiji Football Association (Fiji FA) senior men’s and women’s coaching panel.
Logaivau also assisted the Navua district team in the 2011 Champions League and obtained an English FA coaching licence in 2009.
Fiji FA President Dr. MS Sahu Khan says Logaivau’s impressive playing and coaching record made him a perfect candidate for the post.
“This appointment shows how determined Fiji FA is to do its utmost for the development of women’s football in this country,” Dr. Sahu Khan says.
“He will be in charge of the various women’s football programmes throughout the country, including taking charge of the national side for the 2011 Pacific Games in New Caledonia.”
Fiji FA technical director Saiyad Ali says he has already sat down with Logaivau and highlighted the areas of the women’s game in Fiji that need to be worked on.
“Firstly, he will have to establish competitions for the women,” Ali says.
“We have organised women’s leagues in the past and recently but Usenio will need to look at ways to develop women’s age-group competitions. He will need to talk to schools and clubs to see how he can implement his programmes.
“At the same time he will be conducting the national women’s team training camps in preparation for the 2011 Pacific Games.”
The appointment of Logaivau arrives during an exciting period for the female game in Fiji.
A national league, known as the Women’s Zonal League, kicked off just last weekend as part of Fiji FA’s committment to developing the women’s game and identfying talent for the Pacific Games, set to take place in Noumea, New Caledonia during August and September.
The national team has some ground to make up after putting in a disappointing showing in its last outing, the 2010 OFC Women’s Nations Cup in New Zealand.
Fiji earned just one point from three games in Auckland and finished at the bottom of Group B, which also included Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tonga.
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