Fiji up first
U-17 competition fixtures revealed.
National U-17 assistant coach Jerry Alan and Marhlon Houkarawa talks to the players during half time against TSL champions Marist. The U-17 squad first game will be up against Fiji on February 12 2017… Photo by Taromane Martin
THE Solomon Islands U-17 squad will play Fiji in their opening match of the 2017 Oceania Football Confederation U-17 World Cup Qualifiers which kicks off next month.
OFC confirmed the draws, venues and dates for the matches this week. A total of four nations will gather in Tahiti for a ticket for the U-17 World Cup in India.
Teams are grouped in two pools. In Pool A are New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Tahiti and Vanuatu while Group B contains Samoa, New Zealand, Fiji and Solomon Islands.
Group A will kick off the competition on February 11 with New Caledonia up against Papua New Guinea followed by Tahiti taking on Vanuatu at the Stade Mahina.
Group B actions kicks off Sunday February 12 at the Stade Pater as Samoa takes on mighty New Zealand while Fiji meets the Solomon Islands.
Head Coach for the Solomon’s Marhlon Houkarawa says they only need to beat Fiji, Samoa and get a win or draw against New Zealand to qualify for the knock-out stage.
He adds at the moment he is happy with the teams’ progress despite admitting finishing and confidence as “areas they need to improve on”.
“The good thing is they showed consistency in our two friendly matches against Marist FC. I’m still very happy with the performance.
“They scored a goal and created good chances, which is the most important thing. A win and draw against the TSL champs, Marist FC for us is a huge boost in morale which is great for the players,” Coach Houkarawa said after their draw with Marist FC on Wednesday.
The national U-17s will take on Western United FC tomorrow who are also preparing to represent the country with Marist FC at the OFC Champions League which kicks off later in March.
“At the moment I still have 25 players but come Saturday I will be focusing on only 18 players. My management will confirm the starting eleven this weekend,” the coach adds
After Fiji, Solomon Islands will then play New Zealand on February 15 and then Samoa on February 18.
The national U-17s according to Houkarawa are expected to travel to Australia to play three more friendly matches at the end of this month.