Following their successful 2019 season the Tupapa Maraerenga premier men are set to venture off shores again to compete in the OFC Champions league 2020 qualifying stage to be held in Auckland.
The Cook Islands champions will represent the country as they compete against Tonga’s Champions Veitongo FC and Samoan Champions Lupe Ole Soaga FC. The tournament begins on the 25th Jan at the Ngahue Reserve, with Tupapa’s first match being played on the 28th Jan and their final match on the 31st Jan. Both matches will be played at 4pm NZT.
The top-ranked side from the Qualifying Stage will join Group D for the OFC Champions League 2020, while the runners-up will enter Group C. In the competition proper, New Caledonia will host Group C, and Group D will be contested in Tahiti with both groups running between March 1-7.
Tupapa Maraerenga Club President and a key player in the team heading to the tournament says they are taking a younger team this year as some of their senior players are unavailable. “Although this is a young team, we will try our best to qualify for the next stage. Our biggest challenge will be our Samoan competitors Lupe Ole Soaga as our matches have been quite physical in the past, however we also can’t rule out the Tongan side as they also have some strong players. On the day it will come down to how well we have prepared ourselves and how well we play during each match”.
The team departs for New Zealand Tuesday afternoon. Anyone who wishes to view the match from the Cook Islands, can watch the live stream on the OFC website (https://www.oceaniafootball.com).
