CNMI strikers play Macau today

The CNMI National Football Team will kick off the hostilities in the East Asian Football Championship 2010 Preliminary Competition, as it squares off with Macau at the Leo Palace Resort in Guam.

Game time is at 1:30pm after the traditional opening ceremonies, which will have host Guam and Mongolia joining the CNMI and Macau in the parade of teams. Guam will play in the second game at 4pm against Mongolia.

The CNMI strikers left Saipan for Guam Monday morning and started practicing at Leo Palace yesterday afternoon.

“They love the field and they are in high spirits. Coach Sugao Kambe talked to them early this morning (Tuesday) and told them to enjoy the game, play fair, and do their best,” said team manager Kentaro Imaya.

“We may be the underdogs in this tournament, having been the newest EAFF member and the least experienced one, but we will not be pushovers. These guys will go all out in every game,” Imaya added.

The CNMI team is composed of Evan Hunsberger, Yoshi Gabaldon, David Duenas, Nick Swaim, Brad Ruszala, Steve McKagan, Ben Wood, Joe Miller, Gilmark Reusora, Jeffrey Cloud, Peter Houk, Dale Roberts, Jason Schroeder, Lucas Knecht, Bradley Brostrom, Daniel Macario, Jose Duenas, Chris Nelson, and Norman Camacho. Also on the team is equipment manager John Ravell.

The CNMI strikers have been preparing for the preliminary competition for more than five months and over a month under Kambe, who arrived on Saipan early last month.

The CNMI Nationals have probably the oldest lineup (combined age) among the four teams, as most of their players are in the 30s.

The Commonwealth’s first opponent, Macau, is mostly composed of players in their mid 20s.

Kin Seng Chan, the best attacker of Macau, is only 24 years old. At the East Asian Football Championship 2008 Preliminary Competition in Macau in June 2007, he scored against Korea and Chinese Taipei.

Another notable player on Macau’s lineup is team captain Ka Koi Lam. He is a defensive leader and one of the players born in the 1970s, which is called the “Golden Age” in Macau. The 37-year-old player helps Macau as a coach on the pitch and has played for the national team for over 10 years.

Geofredo De Sousa Cheung is also a marked man on Macau’s roster. He is a winger who has good foot techniques. His main role as a set play taker is to create chances from the left side, but he sometimes deceives defenders, as he scores himself.

Masanaga Kageyama coaches Macau. He earned an AFC Professional Diploma Coach License in 2007 and from 2002 to 2005 served as coach of Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

Macau first played in the EAAF preliminary competition in 2003 and won against Mongolia and Guam to finish third among five teams.

The former Portuguese colony also competed in the 2000 Asian Cup qualifier and gave FIFA World Cup finalist Japan a run for its money before bowing, 0-3.

The winner of the EAAF preliminary competition will advance to the semifinal round, which will be played in Tainan, Taiwan in August this year. Japan will host the East Asian Football Championship next year.

This week’s tournament will be a round robin with the team to earn the most points after three games winning the preliminary competition. A victory is equivalent to three points, one for a draw, and none for a loss.