The OFC U-17 Championship New Zealand 2009 kicks off next Monday at Auckland’s North Harbour Stadium from 20-24 April and will determine who represents Oceania at the FIFA U-17 World Cup Nigeria 2009.
New Caledonia, New Zealand, Tahiti and Vanuatu are all hoping they will be the team to qualify, but who will come out on top?
Here is how the four particpting teams shape up:
New Caledonia
New Caledonia has enjoyed strong showings in recent OFC competitions including a second place finish behind Tahiti at the OFC U-20 Championship late last year. In that instance, they were just a goal away from finishing top of the table and qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009.
Meanwhile the senior team also finished runners-up in the OFC Nations Cup/2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa qualifying campaign — it’s highest ever finish in OFC’s pinnacle event. Now attention turns to the U-17 team coached by Nicolas Bach.
Speed is one of the strengths of this New Caledonian side but otherwise little is known about their tactics and they could be a surprise package at this year’s OFC U-17 Championship.
New Zealand
The Young All Whites head into the OFC U-17 Championship buoyed by strong showings at the 2009 Sanix Cup in Japan where they earned two wins and two draws in their six matches against Asian high schools and academies.
They finished their tour with a pulsating 4-3 win over Japan in a friendly, reversing a 1-2 loss from 4 days earlier. With Cameron Lindsay (Blackburn Rovers) adding steel to the defense, players like Zane Sole (Waitakere United) and Andrew Milne (formerly Glasgow Rangers) may find the space to fl ourish.
New Zealand are the current champions in this age group after they won the OFC U-17 Championship Tahiti 2007 and advanced to the FIFA U-17 World Cup Korea 2007.
Tahiti
Tahiti finished second behind New Zealand in the OFC U-17 Championship two years ago and will be a team to watch out for in this year’s tournament.
The U-17 side will be hoping to emulate the Tahiti U-20 team who made history in December 2008 by winning the OFC U-20 Championship and becoming the first Island nation to qualify for a FIFA field football event — the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009.
With the U-20 title in the bag, Tahiti could make it a clean sweep at OFC youth tournaments for men. The Head Coach of Tahiti’s U-17s and U-20s is former French international Lionel Charbonnier.
Vanuatu
Vanuatu’s U-17 team will this year feature academy players who are participating in a groundbreaking development project.
The ‘FIFA Goal Football’ program has involved the implementation a new elite academy with 36 players at the U-17 level selected to live together in Teouma and train on a daily basis with Vanuatu Football Federation Technical Advisor Yvon Avry and other specialist coaches.
The players also attend school or receive education through apprenticeship courses. With the academy launching in 2009, it may be too early to measure the impact of the academy at the OFC U-17 Championship, but the program will no doubt benefit Vanuatu football significantly in the long term.
For full squad lists and more team information please go to the tournament homepage