PNGFA assembling U19 squad for c’ship

By PATRICIA KEAMO
THE Papua New Guinea Football Association (PNGFA) has started scouting players for a 40-man national side to prepare for the Oceania Football Confederation Under-19 Championship in Tahiti from Sept 7-24.
The two finalists from the tournament — which includes 11 countries in the region — will qualify for the Fifa U20 Men’s World Cup in Indonesia next year.
Association technical director Paul Isorua confirmed with The National yesterday that coaches and technical staff had already visited Wewak, Madang and Bougainville while a circular had been sent to other member associations in the country to identify potential talents.
“A regional tournament was suitable to conduct trials and select players, but considering the general election and the late notice by the confederation, the association opted for this arrangement,” Isorua said.
“Circulars have been sent to member associations to host in-house tournaments where potential players can be scouted to trial for further assessments.
“Some associations responded positively while others had to cancel the youth matches due to election-related issues especially in the Highlands.” Isorua said while some associations were unable to host in-house tournaments for talent identification, PNGFA was working with others to ensure a fair and inclusive selection.
“Technical officials are liaising with the associations to recommend potential players who fit the selection criteria to attend trials at the Education Centre at 11-mile outside Lae,” he said.
“Although the preparation time is limited, we will do our best to ensure wider participation.
“The criteria comprise the technical, tactical and physical attributes of a footballer.
“Association technical officials from Koupa (soccer association in Central), Mt Hagen and Kimbe are in touch with PNGFA to recommend players for trials.
“Since time is crucial, we aim to get the trials done soon and get the selected players into training.”
Meanwhile, the team will be headed by national U19 head coach Anthony Pakakota with Troy Gunemba (Lae) and Peter Kauma (Bougainville) as his assistants.
“The coaching and management staff had been selected from applications lodged in 2020,” Isorua said.
“But due to the Coronavirus pandemic, their engagement had been delayed due to the deferral of the tournament in 2020 and 2021.”