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090702
All Whites Hit Solomons For Six
by Jeremy Ruane
The All Whites completed a clean sweep of Group B at the Oceania Nations Cup tournament in Auckland on July 9, as they swept aside the Solomon Islands 6-1 on a North Harbour Stadium playing surface which had more in common with a morass than a football pitch of international standard.
The treacherous conditions invited incidents where late tackles would need to be well policed by the match officials. Sadly, Vanuatu referee Harry Atisson and his assistants simply wasn’t up to the task, and let go a number of incidents throughout this encounter which, quite literally, left their mark on a number of the home nation’s stars.
It is frightening to think of who might be appointed to referee the final, should the anticipated clash between New Zealand and Australia come to pass, because the standard of refereeing at this tournament - the outstanding Derek Rugg (NZ) and his nearest challenger, Matthew Breeze (Australia), excepted - has been, to be perfectly blunt, appalling.
None of the officials from the island nations even begin to compare with the trans-Tasman twosome, full stop. Which raises an important issue at tournaments such as this one - if the final of the event features its best teams, given referees are required to be impartial at all times in their role, shouldn’t the tournament’s best-performed official be rewarded for his efforts by being selected to oversee the on-field activities, regardless of his nationality?
To their credit, the All Whites got on with the job in their final group game, with Paul Urlovic, Jeff Campbell and Mark Burton all going close inside the first ten minutes. Kris Bouckenooghe came desperately close to opening the scoring in the seventeenth minute, when he just failed to make contact with Campbell’s measured cross from the left.
The Belgium-based striker was denied a clear-cut free-kick five minutes later, referee Atisson ruling Bouckenooghe had dived, despite the fact that 3000-odd witnesses in the stand could swear blind he had clearly been taken out of play by Solomons’ goalkeeper, Severino Aefi.
The host nation weren’t to be denied, however, and opened the scoring in the 28th minute, thanks to a fine piece of individual play by the inspirational Ryan Nelsen. His surge out of defence saw him evade a couple of challenges before slipping the ball through to Ivan Vicelich, who swept the ball beyond Aefi and in by the base of the left-hand upright.
The Solomons responded with their best attack of the half, a slick move featuring Commins Menapi, substitute Timothy Paoka and Henry Faarodo, whose rasping drive on the run forced a save out of Jason Batty, for whom this was his fiftieth All Whites’ appearance.
Back came the All Whites, Chris Jackson busting through a tackle before feeding the outstanding Burton, who slipped the ball through to Urlovic. Aefi saved from him on this occasion, and again in the fortieth minute, after Nelsen and Campbell had combined to present the striker with a chance on a plate. Unfortunately for the lively striker, his first touch let him down dreadfully.
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But Urlovic wasn’t to be denied, and in the 43rd minute, rewarded a fine run and cross from the right by Burton with a near post header which arrowed into the top corner - 2-0.
Which quickly became 3-0, as Vicelich rose high to head home a Nelsen cross from close range, after the defender had joined the attack to good effect once more right on half-time.
Urlovic’s last act of the match was a rasping shot in stoppage time, which Aefi saved in splendid fashion. The All White’s replacement was Raf de Gregorio, who quickly got into the groove with a surging run and close-range shot which Aefi blocked at his feet just three minutes into the second half.
Sadly for de Gregorio, he was to see just fifteen minutes of action, before he fell victim to a scything challenge which went unpunished. But by the time he left the field, the All Whites had gone 4-0 ahead, Jeff Campbell guiding home a header on receipt of Burton’s 49th minute cross from the right.
Producing his best performance for some considerable time, Burton was involved again just after the hour mark, supplying a pass to the overlapping Gerard Davis which the full-back swept invitingly across the penalty area. Bouckenooghe was on the end of it, and was unfortunate to see his header flash narrowly past Aefi’s left-hand upright.
Batty had hoped to mark his fiftieth appearance with a clean sheet, but seventeen minutes from time, he was denied that pleasure when the surging right-wing run of Menapi culminated in a teasing cross which the back-pedalling goalkeeper could only tip onto the crossbar. Faarodo was homing in on the rebound, and gleefully bundled the ball home - 4-1.
That was akin to waving a red rag at a bull, and the All Whites’ response was to perform their own version of the annual festival in Pamplona. They charged downfield, Solomon Island players quaking like terrified bull runners as their nemesis moved menacingly goalwards.
Davis led the charge, and promptly fed Jackson, who got to the byline before clipping over a most delicate cross to the far post. Hanging there waiting for it, or so it seemed, was Campbell, who took great delight in heading home his sixth goal for the All Whites, to match the goalscoring feats of his father, Clive, in the twenty-seven appearances he made for the national team.
After the dismissal, for two yellow card offences, of Paoka, both Jackson - superbly thwarted by Aefi from a seemingly impossible position - and Bouckenooghe came close to extending the All Whites’ tally, before Burton crowned an outstanding personal display with a peach of a strike from twenty yards, to bring about the final 6-1 scoreline a minute from time.
New Zealand: Batty; Perry (booked, 31), Nelsen, Jones, Davis; Burton, Jackson, Vicelich (Collins, 52); Bouckenooghe, Urlovic (de Gregorio, 46) (Oughton, 60), Campbell
Solomon Islands: Aefi; Ruhasia, Suri (Ruakome, 61), Omikirio, Houkarawa; Waita, Wickham (Firisua, 67), B. Suri (Paoka, 36 (booked, 54, 85 - sent-off)), Koto; Faarodo, Menapi (booked, 10)
Referee: Harry Atisson (Vanuatu)
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