In the spotlight: Scott Gilligan

The former Australian futsal international had a chat to oceaniafootball.com about the current state of the sport in the region and his vision for the future.How important is the OFC Championship to the development of futsal across Oceania?It is very important at the elite level and I am very glad it has become an annual…

Dauniseka gave Fiji the lead after 2 minutes when he was given space and time just outside the area. Tahiti regrouped to deny Fiji on numerous occasions for the remainder of the first period.They almost had an equaliser just before the break as Judicael Mai and Heifara Mau swarmed the Fiji goal but eventually the…

But it wasn’t easy going in the first period with Ben Hungai the only player to get on the scoresheet while underdogs Tuvalu managed an equaliser through Easter Tekafa.Tuvalu came out fighting in the second 20-minute period and almost went ahead through Jerome Funafuti who couldn’t capitalise on a 1v1 against goalkeeper Daniel Sale.Vanuatu made…

The hosts had to grind out a 2-0 win over Tahiti while the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu enjoyed comfortable victories over New Caledonia (9-2) and Tuvalu (7-1) respectively. New Zealand meanwhile had a bye. The opening match looked like it would be a close encounter with underdogs Tuvalu holding Vanuatu to 1-1 at the break….

The first day of action sees Tuvalu meet Vanuatu in the opening match at 5pm local time before Solomon Islands face off with New Caledonia at 6:30pm and hosts Fiji clash with Tahiti at 8pm.New Zealand have a bye and will not be in action until Monday night when they meet defending champions Solomon Islands…

Suva’s Vodafone Arena came alive on Saturday evening as the young Kurukuru wowed fans with a dominant performance including a hat-trick from star player Elliot Ragomo.It was 2009 Golden Boot winner Micah Lea’alafa who got the scoring underway in just the third minute with a powerful shot from a tight angle. A few minutes later,…

That’s according to coach Marcellino Barthelemy, who says the team is still haunted by the disappointing results in 2009 when they managed just one win from four matches.“Last year was catastrophic and we need to set the record straight,” says Barthelemy, who has been involved with the team for the previous two OFC tournaments. “I…

Oceaniafootball.com checks out how the teams are looking ahead of their first matches:Tuvalu vs VanuatuThis will be a stern test of Tuvalu’s talent. Coach Toakai Puapua’s side has only appeared at the OFC championship once before in 2008 and found the going tough, posting some heavy defeats and finishing seventh. They will be aware the…

The game kicks off at 8pm local time at Vodafone Arena in Suva and manager Krishneil Sharma says the onus is on the Fiji side to impress the home fans and make a good start.“The team has wrapped up their preparations and is out for a strong start,” he says. “It is very important to…

The tournament starts on Sunday at the Vodafone Arena in Suva, Fiji, and the Kurukuru face New Caledonia in their first game at 6.30pm local time.Coach Dickson Kadau says his players are aware of their status as favourites but will not be underestimating any team in the competition.“We will treat each game as the grand…