The 2011 OFC Beach Soccer Championship took place from 23 February to 26 February 2011,[1] in Papeete, Tahiti, It acted as a qualifier for the 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. This was the third time the island had hosted the competition, following the 2006 and 2009 tournaments in Moorea. Only the winners of the tournament, Tahiti, qualified to play in the 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. The Solomon Islands were the favorites, having won the last 3 other qualifying championships in 2006, 2007 and 2009,[2] but surprisingly lost in the final to Tahiti, despite beating them in the group stage. This means for the first time since 2005, the Solomon Islands will not be representing Oceania at the world cup.
| 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup qualification (OFC) | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Tahiti |
| Dates | 23–26 February 2011 |
| Teams | 3 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Tahiti (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Solomon Islands |
| Third place |  Fiji |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 4 |
| Goals scored | 36 (9 per match) |
| Attendance | 5,125 (1,281 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | James Naka Robert Laua Jo Dugucagi (4 goals each) |
| Best player(s) | James Naka |
| Best goalkeeper | Jonathan Torohia |
| Fair play award | Fiji |
All matches were held at the new Jardin de Paofai complex in Papeete, which was opened on 15 February 2011.
Participating teams edit
Four teams decided to enter into the tournament to compete for the one spot in the 2011 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. These were the same nations who competed in the 2009 OFC Beach Soccer Championship.[3]
Unfortunately, due to a cyclone recently passing through the region,[4] the Vanuatu national team was stranded at their airport as they were about to leave for Tahiti to attend the tournament. As a result, they were forced to withdraw from the tournament.[5]
|
Participating: |
Withdrawing:
|
Group stage edit
The group stage was going to begin on 22 February but due to the cyclone which forced Vanuatu to withdraw, it commenced on 23 February with no rest day and consisted of each nation playing each other once in a single round-robin format.
All kickoff times are listed as Tahitian local time, (UTC-10).
| Team | Pld | W | W+ | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solomon Islands
|
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 | +8 | 6 |
| Tahiti
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 3 |
| Fiji
|
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 15 | −6 | 0 |
| Solomon Islands | 9 – 4 | Fiji |
|---|---|---|
Naka  4', 26' Ne'e 6', 19', 32' Laua 15', 22', 34' Aisa 18' |
Report | Dugucagi 10', 29' Ratan 30' Watkins 33' |
| Tahiti | 6 – 5 | Fiji |
|---|---|---|
| Lehartel 20' Bennett 27' Izal 28', 35' Zaveroni 29' Dunadamu (O.G) 33' |
Report | Nair 14' Raju 20' Dugucagi 22', 34' Dunadamu 36' |
| Tahiti | 1 – 4 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Tepa 34' |
Report | Aisa 12' Muri 12', 20' Laua 32' |
Tournament final edit
| Solomon Islands | 3 – 4 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
| Muri 1' Naka 28', 32' |
Report | Tepa 5' Izal 8' Bennett 9' Amau 24' |
Winners edit
| (2011) FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Qualification (OFC) Winners: |
|---|
 Tahiti First title |
Awards edit
| Best Player (MVP) | ||
|---|---|---|
| James Naka
| ||
| Top Scorer(s) | ||
| James Naka
|
Robert Laua
|
Jo Dugucagi
|
| 4 goals | ||
| Best Goalkeeper | ||
| Jonathan Torohia
| ||
| FIFA Fair Play Award | ||
| Fiji
| ||
Team qualifying edit
| Team | |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | Tahiti
|
Top scorers edit
|
|
Final standings edit
| Rank | Team |
|---|---|
| 1 | Tahiti
|
| 2 | Solomon Islands
|
| 3 | Fiji
|
References edit
- ^ "OFC Calendar". oceaniafootball.com. Archived from the original on 2010-05-14. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
- ^ "Oceania's Qualifier has been confirmed: Tahití 2011". beachsoccer.com. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
- ^ "Teams eye up beach glory". oceaniafootball.com. Archived from the original on 2011-01-27. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
- ^ "Beach soccer kick off delayed". oceaniafootball.com. Archived from the original on 2011-02-23. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
- ^ "Cyclone Atu strands Vanuatu team". oceaniafootball.com. Archived from the original on 2011-02-23. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
- ^ "Tahiti stun favourites to qualify for FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup". beachsoccer.com. Retrieved 2011-02-27.