The Solomon Islands Katukatu’s hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Men’s World Cup came to a heartbreaking end after defending champions New Zealand stormed into the semi-finals of the OFC U-16 Men’s Championship with a commanding 8-0 win at the National Stadium on Sunday.
The result secured the Junior All Whites top spot in Group B, with a ruthless first half display that produced five unanswered goals
John Woldegiorgis opened the scoring with a powerful strike in the 25th minute and was shortly followed by goals from captain Ethan Dyer, Matias Nunez, and Cruz Pietersen.
The second half was no different, with Woldegiorgis, Ben Perez Baldoni, and Willem Des Tombe adding more goals to seal the win.
The Solomon Islands, who needed a win to keep their World Cup dreams alive, were left disappointed despite the backing of hundreds of home fans who had hoped for a repeat of the nation’s historic 2018 campaign.
Coach Henry Fa’arodo Jnr after the match admitted the result was tough to accept but said, his young side will learn from the experience.
“We planned to come out and play, not sit back, and I thought our system worked. But individual errors cost us, especially in the first half,” Fa’arodo said.
“At this level, against a team like New Zealand, you cannot lose concentration for even a minute. They know their system well, and that’s an area where our boys still struggle in terms of roles and responsibilities.”
The Katukatu will now turn their focus to the 5th-place playoff against Tahiti on Thursday with Fa’arodo urging his side to finish their home tournament strongly.
“We don’t want a repeat of today’s result. We want to make sure we finish on a high, and that’s the message we’ll be giving the boys,” he added.
With only the top three teams qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar, Solomon Islands’ campaign ends while New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and New Caledonia head to the semi-finals.
By TIMOTHY INIFIRI JNR
Solomon Star, Honiara
