By TERRY MADDAFORD in Adelaide
Just two goals, both from set play, were all 270 minutes of football produced in the three games on Saturday's opening day of the Oceania Nations Cup.
Scintillating? Hardly, but definitely absorbing and further proof that the gap between the haves (New Zealand and Australia) and the
have-nots (the Island nations) appears to be closing.
By how much will become clearer today when the All Whites play co-leaders Solomon Islands in the early game at the Marden Sports Complex and the Socceroos meet Tahiti later at Hindmarsh Stadium.
The Solomons kick-started their cup campaign with a 1-0 win over Vanuatu in the tournament opener at Marden.
The long-time rivals were separated by a 51st minute penalty from captain and former Football Kingz player Batram Suri after former Melbourne Knights striker Henry Fa'arodo had been brought down by Wilkins Lauru.
Vanuatu's best chance came two minutes into stoppage time when striker Etienne Mermer snapped a shot which goalkeeper Severino Aefi did well to grab and hold.
Both teams displayed nice individual touches but struggled at times to retain possession and showed little desire to get the ball wide which gave central defenders in both teams an armchair ride.
New Zealand and Australia will, surely, be more expansive.
In getting the ball wide, the Oceania heavyweights will stretch the Islanders' defences and look to turn that into goals.
The early game at the impressive Hindmarsh Stadium on Saturday night was an arm wrestle, with Tahiti and Fiji failing to score despite a handful of chances.
Both teams enjoyed periods of ascendancy but without really threatening to break the 0-0 deadlock.
Fiji, affected by the sudden death late last week of former, and long time, coach Billy Singh, finished the stronger of the two teams but wayward shooting cost them any chance.
This led to frustration for coach Tony Buesnel, who lamented the lost opportunity to join the Solomons and Australia as the early pacesetters.
While a long-simmering row with the strong Ba club has been resolved - and allowed five players who missed the qualifying tournament in Samoa to join the team - Buesnel is still frustrated by residency wrangles which have cost him the chance to play a couple of key players, including Auckland-based Stu Bola.
His Tahitian opposite Gerard Kautai was also rueing the missed chances which cost his team the extra two points.
He, too, does not have his best in Adelaide, blaming the time needed to prepare for and play the qualifying tournament, in his case in Honiara, and the Nations Cup.
"Our players all have to work," said Kautai.
"There are about five who have not been able to play."
He did admit, however, there was more emphasis in his country on the South Pacific Games than the Nations Cup. But that does not stop the best Tahitian players in their ongoing endeavours to impress French scouts.
In the late game tonight Fiji meet Vanuatu in what promises to be another close affair, with Island bragging rights again at stake.
By TERRY MADDAFORD in Adelaide
Just two goals, both from set play, were all 270 minutes of football produced in the three games on Saturday's opening day of the Oceania Nations Cup.
Scintillating? Hardly, but definitely absorbing and further proof that the gap between the haves (New Zealand and Australia) and the
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