NMIFA holds send-off for 3 AFC tourney-bound teams

Sending off three teams all at the same time is a testament to the significant achievement of CNMI football in the last 10 years.

“Wow. We’ve really come a long way in such a short history,” Northern Mariana Islands Football Association vice president and NMIFA youth committee head Vickie Izuka said during the send-off ceremony for the CNMI U14, U15, and U19 squads last Saturday at the lobby of Kanoa Resort.

The U14 crew, which left Saipan yesterday, is headed to Beijing, China for the AFC U14 Regional Festival of Football that will run from Sept. 7 to 14, while the U16 and U19 teams will travel later this week to Laos and Thailand, respectively. The CNMI’s U16 players will participate in the AFC U16 Championship India 2016 Qualifiers in Vientiane from Sept. 12 to 20, while the oldest squad will join the AFC U19 Championship Bahrain 2016 Qualifiers in Bangkok from Sept. 28 to Oct. 4.

It is the first time in NMIFA’s 10 years of existence that the federation is fielding teams in three successive tournaments in a month and for this year alone, five CNMI squads (including the girls U14 team and the CNMI Women’s All-Stars) have earned the chance to compete off-island. Another team composed of U13 players is heading to another regional tournament later this year.

With these developments, Izuka can’t help but looked back at CNMI football and NMIFA’s humble beginnings.

“We were the newcomers in 2006 with teams curious about our players when we played in an EAFF (East Asian Football Federation) tournament as a guest squad,” said Izuka, adding that back then the CNMI team from the fledgling NMIFA had players with raw talent and as expected lost all its games in China.

From being a guest team, the CNMI went on to regularly compete in EAFF-sanctioned events and in the last three or four years, the Commonwealth has also been invited to join AFC competitions. In these tournaments, CNMI players did not only show significant improvement, but also recorded wins that earned them respect from their counterparts in EAFF and AFC.

“We made significant progress in the last 10 years through many defeats, tribulation, and several victories. Thanks to coaches, parents, NMIFA and its officials, our supporters in the international football community and to our football clubs—the backbone of our youth program,” Izuka said.

With these accomplishments and another opportunity to compete in off-island tournaments, Izuka challenged the three teams to play their best, be good ambassadors of the CNMI, and always work as a team.

“You are very lucky to enjoy this opportunity, “ added Izuka, who noted how NMIFA president Jerry Tan and his team worked hard to give this kind of chance to a small island like the CNMI.

For his part, Tan said having three teams competing in an AFC event is a fitting gift for NMIFA’s 10th anniversary celebration this year.

“It’s not easy to get invitations from these tournaments. This year, we have six teams competing or 100 to 120 players joining tournaments outside Saipan. However, it’s not all about competition. It is also about exposure, exposure for our players, for them to be able to develop their skills more as they get to play in different competitions. The more invitation we get, the more exposure we will have and the more our players will be committed to the program,” the NMIFA head said.

Tan added that in the U19 tournament, some players from teams the CNMI will be facing are future World Cup players or have already been selected to play for their respective national teams.

“That makes us (NMIFA) very happy because our players get to play against people who are in the national team or World Cup level. Our players can learn a lot from watching how their opponents play,” Tan said.