Australia Begin Futsal World Championship Qualifie

Australia started their defence of the Oceania championship in emphatic fashion defeating the Solomon Islands 9-0 in the final Day 1 match played at the Oceania Futsal World Qualifying tournament in Canberra.

Australia started their defence of the Oceania championship in emphatic fashion defeating the Solomon Islands 9-0 in the final Day 1 match played at the Oceania Futsal World Qualifying tournament in Canberra. Winners in Port Vila in 1999 the Qantas Futsalroos playing with a high level of intensity scoring four goals after just 13 minutes. An unfortunate own goal to Solomon Islander Paul Sau opened the scoring after five minutes before Ben Singleton (2), Scott Manson, Andrew Nolan and Damian Pilat added further goals for a 6-0 half time scoreline. There were also second half goals for Pilat, Danny Ngaluafe and Lachlan Wright as Australia opened their campaign in impressive fashion.

New Zealand secured the first win of the competition in the early game coming from behind to win 4-2 over Vanuatu. The match was an end-to-end affair with both goalkeepers given a thorough workout. Leading for most of the first half until the New Zealanders equalised in the last minute of the first, the Pacific islanders would have had high hopes of replicating the success experienced by their outdoor compatriots in the recent World Cup qualifiers in Adelaide. However three goals in quick succession to the Kiwis through Al Saudi Bakr (2) and Aeoni Vilabourouth put paid to the hopes of their tenacious opponents. A goal in the dying seconds to the impressive Derek Males - his second of the match - was the least Vanuatu deserved after having laid siege to the New Zealand goal for lengthy periods of the second half.

In the second match Fiji secured a 4-0 victory over Samoa with two goals in as many minutes late in the game inflating the scoreline in a match that had been in the balance throughout. The Fijians were deserved winners overall with a Shalendra Lal hat-trick setting them on the way to a win against a spirited Samoan side which comprised entirely of outdoor players who featured in the recent World Cup campaign.