Cook Islands Football Association president Lee Harmon welcomed the players, coaches and fans to the regional youth championships in his speech and also made mention that this event will mark a celebrated achievement as this is the first time for the Cook Islands to host any U-19 OFC competition
“We are privileged and honoured to host this event, it’s the first time we’ve hosted the U-19 event in both women’s and men’s.”
The efforts which CIFA has put into ensuring that the tournament runs successfully were praised by the OFC Competitions Director Chris Kemp.
“It’s very obvious to see that CIFA has put in a lot of hard work to get the tournament to where it is now. There’s a lot of arrangements that go on behind the scenes and we really appreciate all the work that they’ve done towards that. All the teams seem relaxed, they seem happy and raring to go for the matches tomorrow.”
The OFC U-19 Championship Qualifier luncheon peaked with excitement as the teams celebrated the opening through song and dance.
ENDS.