The fans that packed into Suva’s Vodafone Arena had plenty to cheer about across the four games but it was the vital clash between Fiji and New Zealand, who each took a point after a dramatic 4-4 tie, that will linger longest in their memories.
Earlier in the day, Tahiti got their campaign off to the perfect start with a 6-0 win over Tuvalu while Vanuatu also posted a comprehensive victory, 9-2 over Kiribati. The Solomon Islands then swept aside New Caledonia 13-5 to confirm their position as favourites for the title.
Fiji coach Intiaz Khan saw his side bounce back from 4-1 down to earn their point and was delighted with the resolve shown.
“I should thank the players for their committment and the hard work they put in today,” he says. “We called a time-out when we were three goals behind with nine minutes to go because I felt that would give us enough time to get back into the game and the boys were able to do it.”
New Zealand opposite Matt Chandler was not so upbeat and admitted the draw felt like a loss.
“I thought we should have put the result beyond Fiji but, in credit to them, they kept going,” he says. “It will be a character-building experience for us – it’s now about what we do next and how we react to that. I think we’ll react positively because we have a lot of quality.”
The hosts, who have finished runners-up for the past two years, did not take long to hit the lead, earning the advantage in just the third minute through Sandeep Nair.
But the Futsal Whites were not knocked off their stride by the goal and appeared content to let Fiji have the bulk of the possession. Coach Chandler had clearly devised a tactic based around soaking up the Fiji pressure and hitting back on the break and it worked well for the most part, bringing a reward in the 15th minute when captain Marvin Eakins fired a low shot home to equalise.
The skipper repeated the trick just after the halftime break to give his side the advantage for the first time and two more goals, to Lucas Silva and Dylan Manickum, then put them well in control. But Fiji were in no mood to surrender meekly and strikes from Uraia Loki and Ajesh Narayan meant they were just 4-3 behind with only one minute remaining.
The worst fears of Chandler and his players were then realised when Hussein Sahib scored with almost the last kick of the match to make it 4-4.
The other games were not as tightly-fought but still produced a raft of goals and impressive attacking play. The most notable performance was that of the Solomon Islands, who justified their favouritism in emphatic manner against New Caledonia.
Inspirational captain Elliot Ragomo led the way with five goals while Micah Lea’alafea and Jack Wetney both helped themselves to a brace. The other Solomon goalscorers were James Egeta, Moffat Sikwa’ae, Jeffery Bule and Lenson Bisili while New Caledonia replied through a first-half Cedrick Humuni hat-trick and a lone Romain Guitton strike. Solomon defender Bisili even gave them a helping hand with an own goal but it wasn’t enough to unduly worry coach Dickson Kadau and his charges.
“We played well but we will face harder games at this tournament. We are favourites to win the title so the players feel under pressure to do well but they are good at handling that,” Kadau says.
New Caledonia coach Eric Michalak might have wished for an easier start to the tournament but felt his players did not make things any easier for themselves.
“It was always going to be difficult but I felt we made too many individuals errors,” he says. “If you make a lot of mistakes against a side like the Solomon Islands then you are likely to be punished and that’s what happened.”
Vanuatu and Tahiti also made impressive starts to the tournament but would have expected nothing less against underdogs Kiribati and Tuvalu. A Ben Hungai hat-trick and braces from both Louis Dominique and Fenedy Masauvakalo helped secure the 9-2 win for Vanuatu, for whom Ricky Tuigalo and Don Mansale also netted. Tournament newcomers Kiribati scored their historic first goals through Kireata Sosene and Baunteraoi Kaiorake.
Tahiti’s 6-0 triumph over Tuvalu came courtesy of strikes to Tahiarii Tutavae, who scored twice, Manu Faarahia, Capo Turinoho, Chocalat Maperi and Michel Maihuri.
Tahiti – Tuvalu Match Summary click here
Vanuatu – Kiribati Match Summary click here
Solomon Islands – New Caledonia Match Summary click here
Fiji – New Zealand Match Summary click here
Competition Summary click here
Upcoming matches
Kiribati vs New Zealand
Tuesday 17 May, 1pm local time
Tuvalu vs New Caledonia
Tuesday 17 May, 3pm local time
Fiji vs Vanuatu
Tuesday 17 May, 5.30pm
Solomon Islands vs Tahiti
Tuesday 17 May, 7.30pm