Manuarii Shan impresses as Tahiti reach the final four of OFC qualification while New Zealand top the section after comfortable Samoa win.
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Goals in either half steer Tahiti to win that secured final round berth
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New Zealand power past Samoa to top the section
The line-up for the third and final round of Oceania qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 26™ is now set, with Tahiti downing Vanuatu 2-0 to secure the final slot.
With New Zealand easing past already eliminated Samoa in the final second round fixture, they topped the section to set up a meeting with Group A runners-up Fiji in the semi-finals.
Tahiti will face New Caledonia in the other semi, with those matches to be played in New Zealand next March.
Group B
Goals: Johnathan Spokeyjack OG (8), Benoit Mathon (67)
Prior to kick-off, Tahiti, locked on points with Vanuatu but with a superior goal difference, knew that a win would secure them a final round berth.
When an eighth-minute corner from the impressive Manuarii Shan was turned past his own keeper by Vanuatu’s Jonathan Spokeyjack, Tahiti were in an even stronger position.
Vanuatu looked to raise the tempo and had their moments, with a Mitch Cooper header rippling the side netting and a set-piece opportunity being pushed wide by Brian Kaltak, but they were made to pay for those misses midway through the second stanza.
Keeper Dick Sablan mistimed a clearance and clipped winger Eddy Kaspard; Benoit Mathon made no mistake from the spot as he scored for the second straight match.
That was the final blow to any hopes of a Vanuatu comeback, with Tahiti winning successive qualifiers for the first time since 2012 and booking a spot in the final round for the fourth straight edition.
What they said….
“It was a great game, the boys played very well, they succeeded in scoring in situations that the whole group was working on with free-kicks and penalties, so really happy and proud of the mindset of the whole group. We’ll be back in New Zealand in March and we were joking that we might need to stay and live here! We have deep and huge respect for New Caledonia, my wife is also from there, some of their players play in our league in Tahiti, they have a really high level and we always have good games against them so we’re excited to meet them next March.” Samuel Garcia, Tahiti coach
“I’m disappointed for the result but happy for the performance in terms of fighting until the end. I feel sad for the players and for the nation but they need to be proud too because we have a good squad and senior group and I hope we don’t stop and keep developing more and more because this is what they need.” Juliano Schmeling, Vanuatu coach
Goals: Callum McCowatt (24), Chris Wood (28, 34, 60), Marko Stamenic (62), Francis de Vries (75), Elijah Just (87), Ben Waine (90+2)
New Zealand entered their first senior clash with Samoa in 37 years knowing they needed only a point to formally secure top spot in the group, and from midway through the opening stanza that was never in much doubt.
Callum McCowatt grabbed the first as he swept home a rebound from a Matthew Garbett shot before he turned provider, teeing up Chris Wood to fire home a second off the inside of the post.
The All Whites headed to the break three to the good after Wood tucked home a tidy cross from the impressive Garbett before he completed his hat-trick on the hour with a classy volley after being teed up by Ben Waine.
Marko Stamenic got his second international goal barely 60 second later with Garbett providing his third assist of the evening, before Francis de Vries, on the ground where he plays his club football for Auckland FC, smashed home a sixth from adjacent to the penalty spot.
Elijah Just produced a fine, solo, seventh as he danced through a tiring defence to grab his fifth international goal this year and Waine made it eight from the spot late on. That rounded out a dominant win and confirmed New Zealand’s standing as the team to beat in the race for Oceania’s lone, direct, qualification spot.
What they said….
“We had so much of the ball, they made it difficult, dropped off and slowed the game down. It became a little frustrating, we won fairly comfortably, we scored some goals but we left a lot out there.” Darren Bazeley, New Zealand coach
“I’m immensely proud, it was absolutely incredible for our players to take the field against professional players like this with a massive gulf [between the teams], so I thought every player was absolutely outstanding.” Jess Ibrom, Samoa coach
How qualifying works
Samoa emerged victorious from the first round to join Oceania’s seven highest-ranked nations in the second round. That phase featured two, four-nation, groups where it has now been confirmed that Fiji, New Caledonia, New Zealand and Tahiti will progress to the third and final round. There, Fiji will clash with New Zealand while New Caledonia and Tahiti square off in the semi-finals. The two winners then meet in the final, with the winner of that clash securing the OFC’s direct qualification slot. The runner-up qualifies for the FIFA Play-off Tournament.
