Tahiti were unlucky not to finish fifth following their 2-1 loss against Guyane, a team deemed more than beatable by assistant coach Ludovic Graugnard.
“Without the public, without the ball boys, it was a little bit of a football parody and it’s difficult to play in this context,” he says.
“We didn’t have the technical qualities necessary to dominate Guyane, who remain in my opinion a relatively weak team. From any point-of-view it wasn’t a great football match.”
Tahiti went behind in the 33rd minute and were down by two an hour into the match. But they finally awoke as the final whistle drew near and some increased pressure paid off in the 78th minute with captain Nicolas Vallar putting one away from the penalty spot.
The Toa Aito came close to equalising in the final moments but were unable to capitalise on their chance.
For their Pacific cousins and long-time rivals New Caledonia, the final match of the tournament was a very different affair.
Facing the team with the poorest record in the tournament, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, who had conceded 34 goals in three pool matches, Les Cagous went on to the pitch looking for success following three straight losses of their own.
They took the advantage just seven minutes in thanks to a Saint-Pierre and Miquelon own goal but they were hardly in need of the help, finishing out the first half 8-0 up with goalkeeper Rocky Nyikeine needed only once.
The second half was more of the same from Les Cagous who added another eight goals to the score line, though their opponents were able to save a little of their honour with a goal early in the second half.
While his charges may have notched up the most severe defeat of the tournament, coach Alain Moizan does not believe the win will be helpful in the long run.
“There is nothing to be learnt from this match. What counted were the pool matches,” he says.
“For a placement match, against the weakest team in the competition, it was like entertainment for my players. We wanted to score a lot and we did but there is nothing else to retain.”
Jacques Haeko, winner of the Golden Boot at the 2012 OFC Nations Cup, struck a hat-trick for New Caledonia while Luther Whanyamalla, Roy Kayara and Bertrand Kai all helped themselves to doubles. The other scorers were Iamel Kabeu, Dick Kauma, Yohann Mercier, Emile Bearune, Georges Bearune and Cedric Moagou with one each.
The two teams will now return to Oceania to prepare for their Stage 3 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches on October 12, when Tahiti will face New Zealand and New Caledonia will play Solomon Islands.
For highlights of the match between Tahiti and Guyane click here
For highlights of the match between New Caledonia and Saint-Pierre and Miquelon click here

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