Chief executive officer Bob Kumar says about $80,000 has already been spent on the team, who started their build up to the Nations Cup in January.
Kumar says Fiji’s participation in the event is part of a longer-term plans to develop the women’s squad for future international competitions like the 2011 Pacific Games in New Caledonia.
“Fiji FA is committed to developing women’s football,” Kumar says.
“We have set aside a budget for the senior squad which will be participating in the OFC Women’s Nations Cup in New Zealand because we believe it will provide good exposure to the players. Fiji FA will do everything within our powers to see football develop in the country.
“The preparation and the Nations Cup is also part of Fiji FA’s plan to build up the national team for the 2011 Pacific Games.”
The squad has been in camp since August and the tournament will be held from September 29 to October 8 at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland.
The winner will earn the right to represent the Oceania region at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Germany next year.
Fiji FA technical director Saiyad Ali says the players to putting in a good showing at North Harbour but are under no illusions about the difficulty of the task at hand.
Fiji have been drawn in Group B and will meet Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tonga.
Group A contains New Zealand, Cook Islands, Tahiti and Vanuatu.
“It will be a major challenge for us,” Ali says.
“We need to be realistic that New Zealand will be a class act at the tournament and very difficult to topple. But at the end of day nothing is impossible.
“We will give our best and see how far we go but the ultimate aim is to build up to the 2011 Pacific Games.”
Story and photo courtesy of Fiji Media.