Tomorrow, 18 September 2024, is a significant day in Oceania football when, for the first time in history, two teams will qualify for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2025, to be played in Morocco.

The qualifiers will be the winners of the OFC U-16 Women’s Championship semi-finals - first Samoa vs New Caledonia, second New Zealand vs Tonga. Both games will be played at HFC Bank Stadium in Suva, and can be watched live and free on FIFA+.

Semi Final 1: Samoa v New Caledonia, 12:00pm (Fiji time)

Semi Final 2: New Zealand v Tonga, 3:00pm (Fiji time)

Soane Mailangi, Tonga head coach, said, “Our team is feeling excited and focused as we prepare for the semifinal against the mighty New Zealand. We know it’s going to be a tough match, but the players are determined and ready to give their best. There’s a sense of pride and belief among the team, knowing we’ve worked hard to reach this stage.

Soane said the team had focused on the key areas of tactical discipline, transition play, and mental toughness as well as fitness and recovery and team unity.

“We are emphasizing our defensive structure and organization to ensure we remain compact against a strong New Zealand team. Staying disciplined in our shape and minimizing mistakes will be crucial,” he said.

“We’re working on quick transitions from defense to attack, looking to capitalize on any opportunities we get to counterattack effectively.”

Set pieces are important. “Given the physicality and experience of New Zealand, we are dedicating time to both defending and attacking set pieces, which could be decisive moments in the game.”

He also underscores mental toughness. “Preparing the team mentally is just as important as the physical and tactical aspects. We are instilling belief in the players and ensuring they remain composed under pressure.”

“We’re reinforcing the importance of playing as a unit, supporting each other, and staying positive regardless of the challenges we might face. These elements will help us compete at our best and give us the best chance of success in the semifinal.

“Qualifying for the World Cup would be a monumental achievement for our team. It would mean that all the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices made by the players, coaches, and staff have paid off. For our nation, it would bring immense pride and recognition, especially as a smaller country competing on the global stage. It would inspire future generations of young athletes and show them that anything is possible with commitment and passion. Additionally, it would provide invaluable experience for the team, raising the profile of women’s football in our country and opening doors for further growth and opportunities,” he said.

Kenjy Vendegou, New Caledonia head coach, said. “Before playing this semi-final, the team feels good, the team is very happy to have been able to get this far, to have qualified for this semi-final and the state of mind is good.

“What are we going to focus on to prepare the team for the semi-final? First of all, we are going to work on the notions of combativeness, effort and to fight for our country, to give everything and then to work on certain tactical points that we can improve compared to what we had in the first matches.

“Qualifying for a World Cup means a lot of things. First of all, a lot of pride. It would be the first time that a female New Caledonian team qualifies for a World Cup. It would be a huge reward for all the work that has been done by the New Caledonian Federation, and by the technical department. It would be a reward for all the work that has been done and it would also reward the girls, of course,” Kenjy said.

Juan Chang, Samoa head coach, said “The team is focusing one day at a time. ...We're just thinking about what we can do today in order to get better for tomorrow.  Tomorrow we'll worry or focus on what tomorrow brings.”

Alana Gunn, New Zealand head coach, said “the team's feeling really excited looking at the semi-final. We have had two really good days of rest, which has actually been quite a challenge for some of them to stay off their feet and recover from the pool play. So they are itching to go, and really, really excited to have the opportunity to play Tonga and to represent the fern again.

“Our focus on the semi-final over the past two days has really been a reflection of how far we've progressed so far in this tournament and how far we can continue to grow and develop as a team on and off the field.

“Off the field, we've been really focusing on nutrition, hydration, and rest. And some of the principles we've been looking at on the field is just how we continue to develop our playing style, how that looks like when we are trying to play forward and move into really good areas of the pitch. And then the girls all have their own individual goals that they want to achieve on game day.

“Qualifying for the World Cup with this group would be immense. It's not something we take for granted, even though the history of this tournament potentially would suggest we could. We definitely are heading into the semi-final to try to qualify for the World Cup and give this group of players the opportunity to be able to further develop next year leading into a World Cup. The opportunity to travel and represent the country on the world stage is something that they're all gunning for,” she said.