Super

Solomons

By Shailendra Singh

THE Solomon Islands upset the South Pacific soccer applecart when it beat Fiji in last month’s Melanesian Cup Tourna ment. Its 1-0 victory over the pre tournament favourite on July 7 was as

shocking as Fiji’s Three Nations Rugby

win over Western Samoa a week earlier.

The win over Fiji all but assured the Solomons the cup over the four other nations, even though it still had to beat New Caledonia in its last match. In the end, the French territory was no match for the fired-up Solomons and crashed to a 3-1 loss, which rendered Fiji’s 4-2 win over Vanuatu useless.

Buoyed by 10,000 cheering fans at

Lawson Tama Stadium in Honiara, the Solomons dominated much of the game against Fiji. The win was its first over Fiji in 21 years and 15 internationals. The last time Fiji lost was at the Fifth South Pacific Games in Guam in 1975 where it was pipped 2-3 in the bronze medal playoff. Prior to the Melanesian Cup, their last meeting was at South Pacific Mini Games last December where Fiji won 1-0 in pool play before losing 0-3 to French Polynesia in the final. Perhaps the most heart-breaking loss for the Solomons was during the 1991 South Pacific Games gold medal playoff where Fiji won 5-4 on penalty kicks. Many players shed tears after that encounter in

Lae, Papua New Guinea.

The recent win is significant in more ways than one. It was the Solomon Islands’ first Melanesian Cup victory and coincided with the country’s 16th inde-

Eendence day celebrations. Having

eaten Fiji after so long is also a psychological boost for the side.

Who could blame the Solomons if they thought Fiji was invincible after all those years of draws and defeats. That Fiji dethroned reigning South Pacific soccer king French Polynesia just before the Melanesian Cup gives further credence to the Solomons’ achievement.

Delirious fans celebrated wildly after the game, hugging and kissing players while local officials, sporting wide grins, shook hands and congratulated each

other, knowing fully well with Fiji

beaten, the tournament was won.

Cars and trucks with blaring horns and carrying shouting fans drove around town several several times. The merry making was evidence that soccer is “the” sport in the Solomons. The home team

should now be in the right frame of mind for the 1995 South Pacific Games, where

beating Fiji or French Polynesia won’t

seem like such a far-fetched idea after all.

Solomon Islands coach Wilson Maelaua said the win showed that they are the new soccer force. Maelaua is well known to the Fijians. He played in Fiji while a student at the University of the South Pacific in the Seventies, represent ing Suva in the district competition.

Fijian coach Anand Sami said Fiji, Solomon Islands and French Polynesia would fight it out at the Games. Until it met the Solomons, things looked good for Fiji with 3-1 and 2-0 wins over New Caledonia and Papua New Guinea respectively. The Solomons also had a good start, opening its account with a 2-0 victory over Papua New Guinea before thrashing Vanuatu 4-0. Following this, the two teams clashed. Midfielder Batram Suri, who had been in brilliant form and replacement striker George Kiriau, nicknamed the “Snake Man”, caused Fiji’s demise in the 70th minute.

In typical fashion, Suri, who scored twice against PNG, split the Fiji defence and aimed for goal with the “Snake Man” heading in the rebounder.

The Solomons defence, which had put

on a sterling performance throughout the

tournament, withstood the Fiji pressure following this goal. The Solomons con ceded only one goal in the entire tournament while scoring the highest number of goals.

Another star of the Solomon team was Robert Mark, who played in Fiji in the

early Eighties. Mark helped Suva win

Fiji’s most prestigious domestic tourna ment, the Inter-District, in 1983. Help ing his country win over Fiji clearly beat any other soccer experience for the veteran player. Ironically, the tourna ment had a shaky start with fears that the cash-strapped Solomon Islands FA would not be able to afford it.

The tournament was patronised by record crowds and clearly boosted the local association’s coffers. The next tournament, in 1996, has been given to Papua New Guinea. French Polynesia could also be playing in the tournament in future if some countries have their way. It’s the only soccer power in the South Pacific missing from the tourna ment. □