The winner of the tournament will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which is set to take place in Turkey from June 21 to July 13.
Here’s a look at the action that’s in store across the two matches on the opening day of the OFC U-20 Championship.
Fiji vs. Vanuatu – 2pm Thursday 21 March
Revenge will be on the minds of the hosts in this encounter as the sides met on two occasions at the last OFC U-20 Championship in 2011 with Fiji falling to a 2-0 defeat each time. Both teams were losing semi-finalists in the previous tournament – that second clash was the third-place play-off – and will therefore have their sights set on another crack at the title this time. As there is no knockout stage and the winner will be determined via a round-robin system, it is important to start with a positive result and Fiji coach Ravinesh Kumar will be particularly keen for his charges to stamp their authority on the event early on as hosts. He does not have a wealth of international experience to call upon in that quest though as key striker Jone Salauneune is the only player to have returned from the 2011 campaign. In contrast, Vanuatu counterpart Moise Poida has three players – goalkeeper Seloni Iaruel, a triallist at English Premier League club Stoke City last year, prolific striker Jean Kaltack and defender Kevin Shem – who all played for the senior national team at the 2012 OFC Nations Cup. Poida was disappointed not to be able to include hugely promising centre back Brian Kaltack and midfielder Nemani Roqara – who will both remain in the Solomon Islands to prepare for the upcoming OFC Champions League with Solomon Warriors – but still has enough talent in the line-up to launch a serious challenge for the title.
In their own words
“There has been a bit of a hindrance to our training sessions due to the bad weather but we have prepared well. We are ready for the tournament and I am eager to see how we will do in the first game. We played Vanuatu two years ago and they defeated us. They are a good side and we respect them.” – Fiji coach Ravinesh Kumar
“We beat the Fiji team twice in 2011 during the previous tournament in New Zealand but this time I cannot be certain that we can beat them. We know they will be very tough to beat on their own turf. We respect our Melanesian brothers but anything can happen during the game and we will stick to our own unique style of football.” – Vanuatu coach Moise Poida
Papua New Guinea vs. New Zealand – 4pm Thursday 21 March
As Papua New Guinea are the underdogs of the tournament and New Zealand are the defending champions, this clash is shaping up as a case of David vs. Goliath. On paper at least, the dark horses should be no match for a Junior All Whites squad packed full of talent, including a handful of young stars with professional experience. Wellington Phoenix pair Louis Fenton and Tyler Boyd have seen plenty of A-League action this season while England-based Cameron Howieson and Max Crocombe have also tasted first-team professional football, with Burnley and Oxford United respectively. Others plying their trade overseas include Derby County’s Luke Adams and Perth Glory’s Storm Roux while the balance of the squad is made up of youngsters from the New Zealand national league. Papua New Guinea coach Wesley Waiwai does not have players with such illustrious credentials at his disposal and the previous side did not make much impact in 2011, recording only one win. Mounting a title challenge is again likely to be a tough task but Papua New Guinea are likely to have a big say on who does lift the trophy if they can spring a couple of upsets. Waiwai’s men can take confidence from the performance of the nation’s U-23 side against their New Zealand counterparts in Oceania qualifying for the London Olympic Games last year, during which Papua New Guinea restricted the Oly Whites to a 1-0 win.
In their own words
“”The players are performing well in training and I am so far satisfied with their performance. We have been conducting training sessions three times a week and the players are doing well.” – Papua New Guinea coach Wesley Waiwai
“Every team has to be treated with respect and there needs to be absolute dedication and professionalism from us to make sure we approach the games properly. I think that if we were to take any game lightly or think it was going to be an easy game we could find ourselves getting a result that we don’t want. So we are treating every side exactly the same – as very dangerous opposition.” – New Zealand coach Chris Milicich
OFC U-20 Championship – Match Day 1 Preview
Fiji vs. Vanuatu
2pm local time, Thursday 21 March
Churchill Park
Lautoka, Fiji
Referee: Norbert HAUATA [TAH]
Assistant Referee 1: Tevita MAKASINI [TGA]
Assistant Referee 2: Mark RULE [NZL]
4th Official: Bertrand BILLON [NCL]
Fiji: 1. Tevita KOROI [GK], 2. Antonio TUIVUNA, 3. Praneel NAIDU, 4. Jale DRELOA, 5. Rusiate MATAREREGA, 6. Kolinio SIVOKI, 7. Vineel NAIDU, 8. Setareki HUGHES, 9. Manasa NAWAKULA, 10. Junior RAO, 11. Jope MASIBALAVU, 12. Ratu NAKALEVU, 13. Jone SALAUNEUNE, 14. Josaia MASIWINI, 15. Napolioni QASEVAKATINI, 16. Sakaraia NAISUA, 17. Ravinesh DASS, 18. Tomasi TUICAKAU, 19. Kasim KHAN, 20. Senirusi BOKINI [GK]
Coach: Ravinesh KUMAR [FIJ]
Vanuatu: 1. Seloni IARUEL [GK], 2. Raoul COULON, 3. Chanel OBED, 4. Jason BOTLENG, 5. Kevin SHEM, 6. Jais MALSARANI, 7. Barry MANSALE, 8. Jackson TASSO, 9. Jean KALTACK, 10. Bill NICHOLLS, 11. Ratu HUNGAI, 12. Santino MERMER, 13. Dalong DAMALIP, 14. Michel COULON, 15. Eric JOHNSAM, 16. Zica MANUHI, 17. Nicol TARI, 18. Philippe TABILIP, 19. Edwin BAI, 20. Kalo FIRIAM [GK]
Coach: Moise POIDA [VAN]
Papua New Guinea vs. New Zealand
4pm local time, Thursday 21 March
Churchill Park
Lautoka, Fiji
Referee: Gerald OIAKA [SOL]
Assistant Referee 1: Ravinesh KUMAR [FIJ]
Assistant Referee 2: Jackson NAMO [SOL]
4th Official: Kader ZITOUNI [TAH]
Papua New Guinea: 1. Charles LEPANI [GK], 2. John RAY, 3. Otto KUSUNAN, 4. Ayrton YAGAS, 5. Daniel TAYLOR, 6. Emmanuel AIREM, 7. Raynard YOHANG, 8. Darren STEVEN, 9. Patrick AISA, 10. Charkstan AOPI, 11. Sana YATU, 12. Philadelphia VELA, 13. Tommy SEMMY, 14. Alwin KOMOLONG, 15. Philip STEVEN, 16. Papalau AWELE, 17. Jacob SABUA, 18. Francis PATRICK, 19. Pettyshen ELIJAH, 20. Ishmael POLE [GK]
Coach: Wesley WAIWAI [PNG]
New Zealand: 1. Scott BASALAJ [GK], 2. Storm ROUX, 3. Bill TUILOMA, 4. Simon ARMS, 5. Luke ADAMS, 6. Tom BISS, 7. Cameron HOWIESON , 8. Jesse EDGE, 9. Hamish WATSON, 10. Tyler BOYD, 11. Louis FENTON, 12. Rory TURNER, 13. Liam HIGGINS, 14. Kade SCHRIJVERS, 15. Justin GULLEY, 16. Van ELIA, 17. Ryan THOMAS, 18. Joel STEVENS, 19. Dale HIGHAM, 20. Max CROCOMBE [GK]
Coach: Chris MILICICH [NZL]