Where oh where are we headed as a soccer loving nation? The governing Fiji Football Association needs to come out and explain where it wants us to be.
That 0-9 thrashing at the hands of the All Whites Under 23 side at the OFC Men’s Olympic Qualifier final at North Harbour Stadium in Auckland was embarrassing.
But before we point a finger at our players, we ask the Fiji FA what it has to say.
This is not what the fans want. And don’t go blaming the players. What are our development plans like? So the next question is where to from here?
If that’s the best we have on display, then we surely have so much work to do moving forward. Our defence was in disarray. We were caught wanting against a better co-ordinated All Whites outfit that was polished, strategic, and far superior.
They were clinical and their players were fitter, assertive, confident, and more skilled than us. They played better soccer while we were basically all over the place. This raises the question of what the Fiji FA is doing about soccer development in Fiji.
The fans want to see our youngsters doing well at this stage and giving us hope of a strong future for the Bula Boys. This is supposed to be the feeder for the national team. This is where we should be looking to for exposure and experience.
This is where we nurture our youngsters. It is unfortunate that our youngsters came off with such an effort. We must get right down to grassroot development, and the Fiji FA must be held accountable for the development of the game around the country.
This certainly isn’t the way we want to see our national side fall. Fingers will be asked of them, and fans have a right to do that because the game belongs to the people. It is the people, the fans around the world who ensure sponsors back the sport.
That’s where they get their mileage. That’s where they are rewarded for their sponsorship of the sport. So, fans have a right to demand answers of the governing body. Fiji has an abundance of talented players.
We were so good that at one stage we were defeating teams like New Zealand and Australia. We were so good that two of our players Roy Krishna and Esala Masi played in top overseas competitions.
There must be a relook at our development programs, and we say bring back local club games, raise the level of competition there, and have a process and systems in place that sees players going through to district level competitions and eventually onto the national side.
Create interest in primary and secondary school level soccer, and onto the age group competitions. Organise more international matches for our Bula Boys annually and have players focused and motivated to fight for positions in the national side.
We don’t want to be comparing soccer to the riches of rugby union but look at development in the game. Consider the Deans Trophy competition, the age group at Skipper Cup level, the Fijian Drua and the Flying Fijians.
We must use this 0-9 drubbing to motivate us to get out of the rut we are in and onto a better platform. Fiji soccer can certainly do better! We acknowledge the players for their effort and say thank you. Go Fiji, go.
