Goalkeepers across Oceania are being shaped by coaches committed to learning, growing and inspiring the next generation, as participants from across the region took their first steps on the goalkeeping coaching pathway at the OFC Goalkeeping C Licence course in Rarotonga, Cook Islands, in early October.

Hosted at the Cook Islands Football Association, the course brought together coaches representing their respective Member Associations to strengthen their knowledge, develop their coaching skills and build the foundations for a new generation of goalkeeping development across the Pacific.

Through a combination of practical training sessions, classroom learning and group discussions, participants explored match analysis, training session planning, coaching interventions and ways to create positive learning environments. Just as importantly, they were encouraged to reflect on their own coaching philosophies and understand how their approach can influence a goalkeeper’s confidence, development and future in the game.

OFC coach educator Chris Marsh said investing in goalkeeper-specific education was vital to raising standards across the region and ensuring players receive the support they need to reach their potential.

“Goalkeepers play a unique and increasingly influential role in the modern game, so investing in goalkeeper-specific coach education is essential to raising the overall standard of football across Oceania,” Marsh said.

“Modern goalkeeper coaching is built around realistic, game related practice involving both goalkeepers and outfield players, meaning the impact of these courses is felt across the whole team, not just in the goalkeeping position.”

For the participating coaches, the course was an opportunity to take new knowledge back to their communities, inspire young players to embrace the goalkeeper position and help create stronger development pathways within their own countries.

Fédération Tahitienne de Football representative Turana Poroni knows first-hand the impact a coach can have on a player’s journey, crediting her own coach, Laurent Ennis, with helping her develop the confidence that now shapes her approach to coaching.

“My coach, Laurent Ennis, really strengthened me mentally and taught me to have confidence in myself,” Poroni said.

Now, she hopes to pass those lessons on to the next generation, using her experience to help young goalkeepers grow both on and off the pitch. Her ambitions include becoming a goalkeeper coach for a women’s national team.

For Papua New Guinea Football Association representative Jerry Seriba, coaching became his way of staying connected to football after injuries interrupted his playing career. Now in his second year of coaching, the course has given him practical tools to develop his sessions and continue progressing towards his long-term goal of coaching an OFC Pro League team.

Meanwhile, Tonga Football Association representative Madison Tenifa hopes to become the kind of role model who inspires more young people in her country to take up goalkeeping.

“I want to lead with great examples,” Tenifa said. “If I’m able to share my experience with them, even though it’s small, I would love to do that with them.”

Inspired by her own coach, Tangi Mausiapatolo, one of Tonga’s few female goalkeeper coaches, Tenifa wants to follow in her footsteps and show the next generation what is possible.

Her ambition reflects the wider opportunity the course creates by developing coaches who can open doors for others, particularly in communities where access to specialist goalkeeping coaching remains limited.

Marsh said the OFC Goalkeeping C Licence provides coaches with the knowledge and confidence to support goalkeepers from junior through to senior football, creating a foundation for continuous improvement.

“Through realistic, game-related training and guided reflection, coaches leave with greater confidence in their approach and a clear framework for continuous improvement,” he said.

Watch video interviews here:

Attendees: Maiu’u Taula (American Samoa), Luke Vidovi (Cook Islands), Kimberly Uini (Cook Islands), Kimbery Philip (Cook Islands), Joji Vuakaca (Fiji), Melvin Prakash (Fiji), Jon Stanhope (New Zealand), Thea Keith-Matchitt (New Zealand), Malcolm Luku (Papua New Guinea), Jerry Seriba (Papua New Guinea), Michelle Pilau (Solomon Islands), Léonce ROOMETUA (Tahiti), Poroni TURANA VOIRIN (Tahiti), Semisi ‘Otukolo (Tonga), Rhonda Fotu (Tonga), Madison Grace Latu Tenifa (Tonga), Wilson Marango (Vanuatu), Christopher Marsh (Coaching Staff), Tyler Logan (Coaching Staff), Trent Hirst (Coaching Staff), Tracy Cunnington (Coaching Staff), Benoit Milin (Translator), Noramsyar Kamaruddin (OFC Staff).