Sunday, May 20, 2012

Preview: OFC Second Round

Earlier this year, the 2012 OFC Nations Cup was taken away from Fiji due to an ongoing legal dispute between the OFC General Secretary and Fijian authorities and awarded to the Solomon Islands. The group stage of the OFC Nations Cup is doubling as the OFC Second Round, so homefield in the match between Fiji and Solomon Islands has shifted to the Bonitos, who will be playing every match before a packed house in the Lawson Tama Stadium in the country's capital, Honiara.  The 2012 OFC Nations Cup is the biggest sporting event ever staged in the Solomon Islands, and the Bonitos are under pressure to perform.

The pressure is greater in Oceania in June 2012 than in any other confederation with regards to 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying.  The only four eliminations this month will take place in Oceania as the Oceania field is cut from eight to four over a period of six days from 1 June to 6 June.

Group A
At the 2011 Pacific Games held in New Caledonia, the hosts defeated Vanuatu 5-0 on the opening day, and the two teams meet again in Group A play.  Georges Gope-Menefej (AS Magenta) netted a hat trick on that day in August 2011, and he is featured on the roster for the 2012 OFC Nations Cup.  New Caledonia will not be as confident when they face Tahiti, however.  In a semifinal on home soil, New Caledonia needed a last minute equalizer to send the match into extra time, where New Caledonia defeated Tahiti 3-1.  There will be no such home field advantage this time around, so New Caledonia will be wary.  Gope-Menefej scored twice in that match as well.  New Caledonia went on to win the final of the 2011 Pacific Games paced by the scoring exploits of ten-goal scorer Bertrand Kai (Hienghene Sport), so they are resounding favorites to advance as one of the top two finishers from Group A.  Samoa provided great thrills during their first-place finish in the OFC First Round, but expectations are low for round two.  Kiwi FC of their domestic league will provide Samoa with midfielder Silao Malo and forward Luki Gosche, but Samoa are likely to finish fourth in the group.

The crucial matchup will be between Tahiti and Vanuatu for the second spot in Group A.  Vanuatu are going with a youth movement, which they hope will pay dividends quickly.  The stars are keeping it inside the family for Vanuatu.  Midfielder Michel Kaltak plays for regional powerhouse Hekari United (Papua New Guinea), and young cousins defender Brian Kaltak and forward Jean Kaltak both play for Teouma Academy in the domestic league.  Jean already has nine goals for the national team at age 17.  Tahiti by contrast is overflowing with experience, especially after the recent appearance of 2010 and 2011 domestic champion AS Tefana in the final of the 2012 O-League.  Goalkeeper Xavier Samin plays for Tefana, as does defender Angelo Tchen.  Forward and captain Naea Bennett lines up for AS Pirae.  Expect the experience of Tahiti to win out over the youth of Vanuatu to nip the second spot in the group.  Both teams should be thanking their luck that they avoided the more difficult Group B.

Group B
Fiji and Papua New Guinea met at the 2011 Pacific Games in a September 2011 matchup.   Fiji won on that day 2-0 to advance to the semifinals, but there they met up with Solomon Islands on a neutral pitch.  The Bonitos defeated Fiji 2-1 in extra time, a bad sign for Fiji who are tasked with playing the Bonitos on the road during Group B action.  Based on these results, Solomon Islands are expected to take the second spot in the group, with Fiji eliminated in third and Papua New Guinea eliminated in fourth.  Papua New Guinea boast domestic league hero Kema Jack of the 2010 O-League champion Hekari United at forward, but his presence will not be enough to advance.  Hosts Solomon Islands boast lots of talent, highlighted by attacking midfielder Henry Fa'arodo (Team Wellington, New Zealand) and forwards Benjamin Totori and James Naka (Koloale).  Koloale play in the Lawson Tama Stadium, so Totori and Naka will be used to finding the back of the net in this facility.  Naka is no stranger to the big stage, having featured in four FIFA Beach Soccer World Cups.

In first place will be found New Zealand.  The All Whites are the dominant team in the region and boost star power that no other Oceanian team can claim.  The list of players plying their trade in England is increasing every season, and the current crop includes defenders Ryan Nelsen (Tottenham, pictured #6) and Winston Reid (West Ham, #4) and forward Chris Wood (West Bromwich Albion, #20).  Young forward Kosta Barbarouses plays in Russia for Alania Vladikavkaz.  2010 FIFA World Cup hero goalkeeper Mark Paston (#1) plays in the A-League for Wellington Phoenix.  His club teammates featured on this OFC Second Round roster include defenders Tony Lochhead (#3) and Ben Sigmund and midfielders Leo Bertos (#11) and Jeremy Brockie.  Fellow A-Leaguer Shane Smeltz (#9) of Perth Glory is the all-time leading goalscorer in the history of the A-League.  Rory Fallon (Aberdeen, Scotland, #14) scored the header that sent the All Whites to South Africa 2010 over Bahrain.  However, New Zealand did suffer their only loss of the 2010 FIFA World Cup to Fiji 2-0 in November 2008 behind two goals from Roy Krishna (Waitakere United, New Zealand), widely known as the jewel of the Fijian strikeforce.  Fiji's midfield will be controlled by Pita Baleitoga of Hekari United.

Expect New Caledonia, Tahiti, New Zealand, and Solomon Islands to come through.

Match Previews:
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/2e8d6f54-0613-40b3-824d-ccf52bc4b856/language/en-US/Default.aspx
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/2c57d74a-3054-4e0d-bbf1-0435e705a0d1/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Squad Lists
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/Competitions/TeamList/tabid/1014/Competition/5bfee792-10b4-4af8-889d-4a0b088859c6/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Fiji
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/82e08a91-350d-4fbd-b22b-200b4e4eff25/language/en-US/Default.aspx
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/3c0e05fe-4da2-426e-bb3c-c8c37424c683/language/en-US/Default.aspx
New Caledonia
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/6f6261ca-fec8-47c5-8c2f-19ac21b65bc7/language/en-US/Default.aspx
New Zealand
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/preliminaries/news/newsid=1631664/index.html
Papua New Guinea
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/e10ae2f3-0b9c-4cec-8dfe-6c30255ec9c0/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Solomon Islands
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/b20575c0-4eb6-4e35-9483-465ed6fdb826/language/en-US/Default.aspx
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/fee0b728-711d-4853-9b2c-0c44e14f85cd/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Tahiti
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/185a1fe6-ca38-445c-a69c-774737677a57/language/en-US/Default.aspx
Vanuatu
http://www.oceaniafootball.com/ofc/News/ViewArticle/tabid/125/Article/c66e83ad-0fa7-4843-a7a6-9551497e2a9b/language/en-US/Default.aspx

Friday, May 18, 2012

Turmoil in Africa

With the political upheaval in Africa the past two years, it is of little surprise that football is feeling the effects.  Egypt have been forced to host their first qualifier behind closed doors in Alexandria on 1 June 2012 against Mozambique.  Libya have been forced to play their home opener in Sfax, Tunisia on 10 June 2012 against Cameroon.  The recent overthrow of the Malian government has left Mali's home fixture against Algeria on Matchday Two to remain unscheduled.  Additional security personnel will be on hand for Nigeria and Kenya's home openers as well.  Nigeria moved its match originally scheduled for the national stadium in Abuja to Calabar.

In sad news, Rwanda will have to deal with the untimely death of their captain Patrick Mafisango as they begin play in the CAF Second Round.  Mafisango was killed in a car wreck in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.  His club team Simba is based in that city.  Mafisango made 32 appearances for Rwanda.

Press Releases:
http://espn.go.com/sports/soccer/story/_/id/7936770/2014-world-cup-egypt-libya-qualifiers-played-minus-fans
http://espn.go.com/sports/soccer/story/_/id/7941927/ex-rwanda-captain-patrick-mafisango-dies-car-crash
http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/7927929/otl-former-us-soccer-coach-bob-bradley-bonds-egyptian-star-aboutrika-espn-magazine Article on Bob Bradley, coach of Egypt

Match Previews:
Namibia
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/preliminaries/news/newsid=1634638/index.html

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Match Schedule: June 2012


June 2012 marks the 2014 FIFA World Cup debuts of 2010 FIFA World Cup finalists Algeria, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Honduras, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria, South Africa, and United States of America. The top twenty-eight seeds in Africa begin their journey to Brasil 2014, as do the top six in CONCACAF and the top seven in Oceania.

In South America, CONMEBOL Matchdays Five and Six will signal that the qualification journey to Brasil 2014 is one-third of the way done. In North America, CONCACAF opens its Third Round with Matchdays One and Two of six spread over the next five months. In Oceania, the group stage of the 2012 Cup of Nations in Solomon Islands will whittle the remaning field of competitors for Oceania's intercontinental playoff berth from eight to four. In Africa, forty teams begin their CAF Second Round campaigns with Matchdays One and Two out of six spread over a sixteen-month period. In Asia, the AFC Fourth Round begins with Matchdays One and Two out of ten spread over thirteen months.

Match times are given in Central Time (GMT-5).

1 June 2012
Samoa vs. Tahiti 20:00 (31 May) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Vanuatu vs. New Caledonia 23:00 (31 May) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Lesotho at Ghana 12:00 Kumasi
Mozambique at Egypt 13:00 Alexandria

2 June 2012
Fiji vs. New Zealand 20:00 (1 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Papua New Guinea at Solomon Islands 23:00 (1 June) Honiara
Malawi at Kenya 8:00 Nairobi
Botswana at Central African Republic 9:00 Bangui
DR Congo at Cameroon 9:30 Yaounde
Morocco at Gambia 11:30 Bakau
Cape Verde at Sierra Leone 11:30 Freetown
Zambia at Sudan 12:00 Khartoum
Tanzania at Cote d'Ivoire 12:00 Abidjan
Equatorial Guinea at Tunisia 12:00 Monastir
Congo at Burkina Faso 13:00 Ouagadougou
Liberia at Senegal 13:00 Dakar
Venezuela at Uruguay 13:00 Montevideo
Rwanda at Algeria 14:30 Blida
Chile at Bolivia 15:10 La Paz
Ecuador at Argentina 17:30 Buenos Aires

3 June 2012
Vanuatu vs. Samoa 20:00 (2 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Tahiti vs. New Caledonia 23:00 (2 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Oman at Japan 5:30 Saitama
Iran at Uzbekistan 8:00 Tashkent
Ethiopia at South Africa 8:00 Rustenburg
Guinea at Zimbabwe 8:00 Harare
Uganda at Angola 10:00 Luanda
Libya at Togo 10:30 Lome
Iraq at Jordan 11:00 Amman
Namibia at Nigeria 11:00 Calabar
Gabon at Niger 12:00 Niamey
Mali at Benin 12:00 Cotonou
Qatar at Lebanon 12:30 Beirut
Colombia at Peru 17:00 Lima

4 June 2012
Papua New Guinea vs. New Zealand 20:00 (3 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Fiji at Solomon Islands 23:00 (3 June) Honiara

5 June 2012
New Caledonia vs. Samoa 20:00 (4 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
Tahiti vs. Vanuatu 23:00 (4 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands

6 June 2012
Papua New Guinea vs. Fiji 20:00 (5 June) Honiara, Solomon Islands
New Zealand at Solomon Islands 23:00 (5 June) Honiara


8 June 2012
Jordan at Japan 5:30 Saitama
Uzbekistan at Lebanon 8:00 Beirut
Australia at Oman 8:00 Muscat
South Korea at Qatar 11:15 Doha
Canada at Cuba 13:00 Havana
Antigua and Barbuda at United States of America 18:00 Tampa
El Salvador at Costa Rica 20:00 San Jose
Guyana at Mexico 20:00 Mexico City
Guatemala at Jamaica 20:30 Kingston
Panama at Honduras 20:30 San Pedro Sula

9 June 2012
Nigeria at Malawi 7:30 Blantyre
South Africa at Botswana 8:00 Gaborone
Senegal at Uganda 8:00 Kampala
Ghana at Zambia 8:00 Ndola
Niger at Congo 9:00 Pointe-Noire
Burkina Faso at Gabon 9:30 Libreville
Sierra Leone at Equatorial Guinea 12:00 Bata
Kenya at Namibia 12:00 Windhoek
Tunisia at Cape Verde 12:30 Praia
Cote d'Ivoire at Morocco 15:00 Marrakech
Paraguay at Bolivia 15:00 La Paz
Chile at Venezuela 17:35 Puerto La Cruz

10 June 2012
Central African Republic at Ethiopia 8:00 Addis Ababa
Gambia at Tanzania 8:00 Dar Es Salaam
Sudan at Lesotho 8:00 Maseru
Zimbabwe at Mozambique 8:00 Maputo
Benin at Rwanda 8:30 Kigali
Togo at DR Congo 9:30 Kinshasa
Cameroon at Libya 10:00 Sfax, Tunisia
Angola at Liberia 11:00 Monrovia
Egypt at Guinea 12:00 Conakry
Peru at Uruguay 13:30 Montevideo
Algeria at Mali 14:00 Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Colombia at Ecuador 16:00 Quito

12 June 2012
Japan at Australia 5:00 Brisbane
Lebanon at South Korea 6:00 Goyang
Oman at Iraq 9:45 Doha, Qatar
Qatar at Iran 10:30 Tehran
Jamaica at Antigua and Barbuda 18:00 North Sound
Honduras at Canada 18:30 Toronto
Costa Rica at Guyana 19:00 Providence
Cuba at Panama 20:05 Panama City
Mexico at El Salvador 20:30 San Salvador
United States of America at Guatemala 21:00 Guatemala City