Fijian captain Filipe Baravilala (17) jumps high to head the ball away during the qualifier semifinal clash, at the Sky Stadium in Wellington. Photo: OFC Media via Phototek
The All Whites of New Zealand just had too much experience and skills, beating Fiji 7-0 at the Sky Stadium in Wellington on Friday night.
That gave them the right to meet New Caledonia in Auckland on Monday, in the final of the FIFA OFC World Cup qualifier.
No one had given Fiji any chance pre-semifinal.
Head coach Rob Sherman and captain Filipe Baravilala both conceded before the game that it was a huge challenge and a big mountain to climb.
Sherman said after the game it was a "big learning experience".
"The boys gave their 100 percent, no doubt about that," he said.
"But we got exposed. The boys are professionals, there was a fitness element, an intensity of play element and we just could not quite cope with it," he added, referring to the All Whites superior tactical game and experience.
"We could not really get there and ultimately their midfield rolling out was something we could not really deal with."
Player Semi Nabenu said he was proud of the players and their efforts to keep fighting until the end.
"The boys did amazing out there, regardless of the score, I felt we gave our best out there," he said.
"There's a lot of young boys out there, obviously I think after this we just gonna grow. Some of us will come overseas and do well here.
"Maybe in the next qualifier we will compete with New Zealand, we just need to keep fighting and one day we will get the results."
His teammate Tevita Waranaivalu said it was a tough clash for them in a lot of ways but he was proud of what the team was able to do, despite all the odds stacked against them.
"In this kind of game where you only have limited chances, we could not capitalize on that and that haunted us back," he said.
"We gave them easy goals in the beginning. That's where they kept their momentum and they began to settle in the game."
Waranaivalu said they would grow, with a lot of young players who were set to take the team forward.
"We have a pretty young squad, with players in their 19s and 20s and 23 so maybe in the next qualifier we will be a team to reckon," he stated.
The Wood show
2. All Whites captain Chris Wood is surrounded by the Fijian defense. Photo: OFC Media via Phototek
It did not take the Chris Wood captained side too long after kick off to stamp their mark and signal their intention.
Wood ended the game with a hat-trick, all three goals coming via his head.
In fact, Wood opened the scoring just after nine minutes with a header to the back of the net, after the team had pieced together some sleek movement from their own half.
Even Fijian goalkeeper Jerome Narayan was left flat-footed, maybe even amused by the goal being scored.
Then it was Sarpeet Singh, a Fijian's own goal and Tim Payne who got their names on the scoresheet as well.
New Zealand just had too much control in the first half and toyed with Fiji throughout, leading 4-0.
The Fijians worked hard in defense and thwarted some of their opponent's moves during the half.
They also had some attacking chances but upfront Christopher Wasasala, replacement Etonia Dogalau and Leroy Jennings just could not find a way to get the ball into the net.
They scored three more in the second spell, including two by Wood, who ended the game with three to his name.
Wood said they came to do a job and he was happy with the win.
"We got errors and they were able to counter-attack and we made sure we were able to nullify that," he said, after the Fijians had disrupted a number of their moves.
Fiji finished second in Group A, with a 1-0 win over the Solomon Islands and two draws against New Caledonia (1-1) and Papua New Guinea (3-3).
New Zealand defeated Tahiti 3-0, Vanuatu 8-1 and Samoa 8-0 in their three Group B matches.
New Zealand: 7 (Chris WOOD 6' 56' 60', Sarpreet SINGH 17', Own Goal 23', Tim PAYNE 33', Kosta BARBAROUSES 73')
Fiji: 0
HT: 4-0
