FIJI Kulas captain Sofi Diyalowai remains optimistic about her team’s future despite a heavy 0-5 defeat to New Zealand in the semifinal of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027 Oceania Qualifiers in Hamilton on Saturday night.
Up against a dominant New Zealand side, the Kulas displayed moments of promise, but struggled to convert opportunities with shortcomings in attack proving costly.
Despite the result, Diyalowai emphasised that the experience will serve as a valuable learning curve for the squad.
The captain pointed to the team’s youthful composition as a positive sign for the future, highlighting the presence of several talented young players who are still developing at the international level.
“I know we’ll go back home and work on our attacking, some of the weaknesses we made,” she said.
Diyalowai acknowledged that inexperience played a role, but believes it will ultimately strengthen the team moving forward.
“There are a lot of young players, very talented young players,” she added.
With lessons learned from the semi-final loss, the Kulas are now focused on regrouping and refining their game. The team plans to address key weaknesses while continuing to nurture its emerging talent pool.
“We’ll go back home, work on some of our weaknesses with the young ones and come back harder in the next tournament.”
