Solomon Islander Jerry Sam is the newest addition to the list of expatriate coaching staff at the Fiji Football Association and will lead the national futsal team.
Fiji FA chief executive officer Mohammed Yusuf said Sam would take charge of the Digicel national futsal team.
He is expected to not only spearhead the development of the sport in the country but also assemble a powerful national futsal team for future international assignments.
“Jerry is passionate about the sport and played a huge role in the Solomon Islands meteoric rise in futsal,” he said.
“He has seen a lot of futsal.
“Fiji FA is taking a serious approach to develop more quality futsal players in the country, hence our desire to have a full-time futsal coach.
“We want to create the interest to really push futsal forward in the country and believe Jerry is the best person for the job.
“He will be the first expatriate to work as a fulltime national futsal coach and has agreed to take on a new challenge in his flourishing role as a futsal coach.”
Yusuf added that Fiji FA was in the process of sorting out logistics, including Sam’s work permit.
“We’re confronted with the ever-present COVID-19 challenges that has hindered our progress a wee bit, but we’re adamant of having Sam in the country as soon as possible.
“We have our fingers crossed.”
Sam was the technical advisor for the national futsal team in 2019.
Meanwhile, the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) had introduced the OFC Futsal Champions League in 2019 to provide increased opportunities for the region’s futsal specialists to experience international competitions.
It is envisaged that the competition might be held in Auckland, New Zealand in October pending any changes to COVID-19 measures.
The 2020 and last year’s editions were cancelled due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
