The champions are already back on the court as they prepare to defend their crown at next year’s event and qualify for the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012.
The number of players in the squad has been increased to include those dropped from the 2010 Championship training group, bringing the total membership to 22.
Nearly all the players are training together at the moment in the Solomons capital of Honiara, the only exceptions being stars Jack Wetney and Elliot Ragomo, who are both playing for overseas clubs.
Wetney is finding the back of the net on a regular basis for Amicale in Vanuatu while Ragomo is in Fiji with Navua.
Wetney will appear in the 2011 O-League, which kicks off this weekend with Amicale facing a daunting trip to Papua New Guinea to face champions Hekari United.
But Ragomo, who won both the golden boot and player of the tournament at the OFC Futsal Championship, will not take part in the competition as Lautoka are Fiji’s O-League representatives.
Both players are however expected to join up with the futsal training squad when they return to the country.
Coach Dickson Kadau says the Kurukuru are not only looking at the OFC World Cup qualifiers but also have their sights set on attending the Australian National Futsal Championship in January.
“Taking part in the Australian championship is seen as a big part of our preparations for the World Cup qualifiers,” Kadau says.
But he admits that the biggest focus is the OFC event as the Kurukuru need to defend their title if they are to book themselves a spot in Thailand.
The Solomons attended the last World Cup in Brazil two years ago and Kadau says the team is working hard to return to futsal’s biggest stage.
“The players have gained more experience from the OFC Championship in August and training now is tougher than ever before,” Kadau says.
“I have worked with these players before but their commitment to training now is at a whole new level.”
The squad has now entered its third week of training and the management team will name a final line-up of 14 players following the fourth week of the programme. The announcement is expected to be made at the end of November.
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