The Solomon Islands Women’s U15 team is looking forward to that perfect opportunity to showcase their talents and gain vital experience at the OFC U15 Development Tournament in Lautoka, Fiji.
SIFF Women’s Development Officer (WDO) Antoinette Miniti has been allocated the task of leading the 16-member team who will be leaving next week May 4th for the competition which kicks off from May 6th to May 14th, 2024.
The tournament is a crucial pathway for the player’s development to the national level, where it will facilitate the process of player development through experiencing international football competition including roles in media, communications, and competition management.
“It’s an opportunity for the girls to go and participate – in a development tournament, so the focus is mainly on development it’s not about winning and it’s a chance for the girls to go and experience what competition is like at the regional level,” Ms. Miniti shared.
She said that during competition, the team will also be involved in football educational workshops – not only for the players but also for the coaches and team officials to learn from.
A team of 16 young aspiring female footballers was selected – 3 players have already been experienced at the OFC Competition level and everyone else are beginner.
“They are very excited about these.
“Most of them have been playing basic football at a very young age – in the past through the SIFF Solomon Power Iumi Plei U15 Championships where we selected quite a few players for the team.
“Technique-wise, most of them are capable the reason we selected them, although there are many others out there we work with those players we have at the moment – it’s a mixed team but it’s a chance to develop them – it’s not really about winning but developing what we have and go forward from here.
3 players in the team are from the provinces, Guadalcanal and Renbell province while most of them are Honiara-based.
The format would aim to replicate an OFC Under 16 Championship and have the welfare of players at the centre. The schedule is below and there will be some adaptations to traditional formats based on the principles of Player Welfare and Player Development:
The team will play 3 group-stage matches against Papua New Guinea (PNG), Cook Islands and New Caledonia.
A finish top of the group will see them advance to the semi-final playoffs.
SI WOMEN’S U15 MATCH SCHEDULE:
Match 1- PNG v SOL
Date- Tuesday 7th May 2024 – Churchill Park Stadium.
Kick-Off – 15:00
Match 2 – SOL v COK
Date – Thursday 9th May 2024 – Churchill Park Stadium
Kick-Off – 15:00
Match 3 – SOL v NCL
Date – Saturday 11th May 2024 – Nadi College
Kick-Off – 15:00
