Football fans should expect an action- packed evening for round two of the Oceania World Cup qualifiers at the HFC stadium in Suva today. Round one was played in Samoa, last month.
This Fiji Day, Fiji head coach Rob Sherman is hopeful a strong local crowd will support their team. “It is obviously an advantage for us. We hope a good crowd will turn up and get behind the lads. That’s our hope and our mission will be our work on the day”, said Sherman.
New Caledonia head coach, Johann Sidaner said they are happy to be here. “We are ready to begin this tournament. We had a good preparation. We see this tournament as a benediction for us because our nation is in a difficult situation. We began our preparations two months ago. It was not easy but we are here”.
Solomon Islands head coach Josh Smith says they will field a strong team today. “It is always going to be a close encounter. We just need to put it together and execute. There’s always chances at both ends, and like the last game whoever takes their chances will come away with the results. It was good to be able to come here and play in Fiji. We’ll be ready to put on a perfomance.”
And Papua New Guinea’s head coach, Felipe Vega-Arango says they have to be ready, and be humble. “This is a new starting point. We need to be strong. The fans need to understand that is the process we are in. But most importantly, I think all the coaches will agree that the team that competes the best is the team that’s got the most chances. Now it’s up to the players to be ready for the challenge.”
New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea will kick off the first game at 4pm while the second game will be at 7pm between Solomon Islands and Fiji.
Group B includes New Zealand, Samoa, Tahiti and Vanuatu. They will play in Vanuatu later this week and again in New Zealand in November.