It all comes down to the wire as the final day of the 2016 OFC U-17 Championship Preliminary gets set to determine who will become the eighth nation to attend Tahiti 2017.
Following their week in Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga will return home wondering what might have been following two matches which could have potentially ended quite differently.
For the side coached by former American Samoa U-20 international Fred Maiava there are a lot of positives to take from this competition, and improving over the course of the three games is one of them.
Having already shown significant development in their approach and execution to the game between matches one and two, American Samoa have an opportunity to go one step further and claim three points on the final day of action.
Maiava says the side need to once again consider their options when they take on Tonga, with the physical nature of their opponent’s game certain to cause them trouble.
However with the presence of Steven Filo. Takai Pouli and Gabriel Taumua American Samoa have some weapons of their own. Add to that skill-set the talents of Hawaii-based Joe Purcell and American Samoa could throw a spanner in Tonga’s plans to claim the win for themselves.
Tonga showed guts and determination against Samoa in their second match of the competition, continuing to play their game even after conceding in just the third minute.
High pressing and some outstanding defending led by captain Ofa Kite helped the Tongans keep themselves within grasp of Samoa and they were rewarded for that effort with the equaliser.
Still, coach Timote Moleni wasn’t particularly pleased with the result believing his charges can do much better and certainly had the ability to win that encounter. Now out of the running for that final berth in Tonga, the side will be out to prove themselves a player on the international scene.
Tonga have looked organised and have taken great strides to develop a passing game that isn’t reliant on kick and chase. They create chances for themselves and where they are lacking at present is that final finishing touch.
Moleni says American Samoa are a strong side.
“I think against Cook Islands something went wrong for them because they are a very strong team.”
The final match of the day, and the tournament, has current leaders Cook Islands taking on the hosts in what will be a high stakes encounter.
With two wins so far, Cook Islands are keen to make it a clean three from three when they take on Samoa. While at times they have looked a well-organised unit, coach Richard Anderson says the side are still not at their best.
There’s also a sense of history repeating itself for Anderson with the Cook Islands’ senior team having been beaten out by Samoa at a similar stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - when he was assistant coach.
“My immediate thoughts are this is a little bit of déjà vu because I’ve been here before with the men’s team. We didn’t deal with the pressure in the last game there very well.
“Going into this last game we believe we have seen enough of Samoa to put in a coherent game plan. They will be very tough, they showed against American Samoa if you give them chances they will put them away.”
They have one last chance to prove themselves today and they will need to be at the top of their game to defeat a determined Samoa.
The hosts know what was within their grasp against Tonga and will be unwilling to make the same mistakes against Cook Islands. To have their opponent draw even after leading for such a large portion of the match was hugely disappointing for coach Desmond Faaiuaso and he will expect much more from his side come their final match.
“We will think about what happened against Tonga and we’ll be looking at the way to win against Cook Islands.
“They’re a really good team but we are trying our best in this last game because we have a good chance of winning this tournament.”