Courtesy: ABC News


Passion for futsal helps reunite Solomon Islands after ethnic tensions

by Catherine Graue

Introducing a new sport to a country on the brink of collapse — in an attempt to provide new hope to an entire generation — was an ambitious project.

But that is what happened in Solomon Islands with futsal, and now 14 years later, it is the country's de facto national sport and producing players that are beating their Australian opponents.

Its under-12s team was welcomed back as heroes in the capital Honiara this week after a recent win in Sydney.

Along with their older teammates in the under-14 boys competition, they made it to their respective grand finals in Australia's National Futsal Championships at the weekend.

The under-12s brought home the trophy after beating their New South Wales rivals 5-2.

"It's a great privilege to see these kids passionate about this game of futsal and it's awesome to compete in this championship," said Mikey Bate'e, a Honiara youth worker who led the delegation in Australia.

"Most of the kids live in [the] outskirts of Honiara. They love to play, and they come together whenever there is a futsal competition."


Sport gives hope to kids exposed to ethnic violence

The ethnic violence in Solomon Islands between 1998 and 2003, which locals call "the tensions", was a violent conflict between militants from Guadalcanal island and settlers from the nearby island of Malaita.

The settlers came to Guadalcanal seeking opportunities in Honiara, but this led to resentment from locals.

The Solomon Islands Truth and Reconciliation Commission estimates around 200 people were killed during the tensions, although the total number of those killed is not known.

These deaths stemmed from fighting between militants, as well as from injuries sustained during torture, beatings and abductions.

Several thousand Malaitans living on Guadalcanal fled their homes during the violence, and many children were caught up in the chaos.

New South Wales-based Pastor Brian Codrington helped introduce futsal to the country back in 2002, before the players that just toured Australia were even born.

He first travelled to the country during the tensions period and had gone to deliver shoeboxes of gifts for Christmas with the aid group Samaritans Purse, but a conversation with the then-mayor of Honiara provided inspiration.

"I said well it's one thing to hand out little aid boxes over Christmas, but what else can we do long-term ... Through the answer to that question really came the need to do something for the pikinini, the young kids of the Solomon Islands," Mr Codrington said.

He said back then, he found kids who had lost all hope in their country -- but there was one thing they had a passion for.

"The Solomon Islanders' passion is outdoor football, and so because of their passion for the outdoor game and the minimal number of fields they have available, small court soccer lent itself so easily to the Solomons way of life," he said.


National side defies odds at World Cup in Colombia

With no organised sport for children, Mr Codrington made it his mission to help where he could, and they have been sending teams to compete in the Australian competition since 2003.

"We would see so many kids in the absence of balls kicking around paper bags, kicking around anything they could find under a coconut tree," he said.

"The nucleus of the current Kurukuru team [the Solomon Islands national team] has come out of those boys and the boys that followed in quick succession after them."

The national team defied the odds at last year's Futsal World Cup in Columbia, and despite finishing at the bottom of their group, they still went home as champions.

For the side's captain Elliot Ragomo, it was an emotional experience.

"I tell you, before we play today, one school in my country is not going to school. The whole school stop, they stop to watch us play," he said in a teary speech after the tournament.

Mr Bate'e said he has seen first hand the change futsal is bringing to the communities he works with.

"In the communities where I was brought up, there's big criminal activities, but now we introduce the game of futsal and it brings the community together and it reduces the crime rate," he said.

Mr Codrington and his team have also developed a program called SALT — Sports and Leadership Training — that is developing new leaders, training coaches, referees and administrators.

There's now a local league that has had a local sponsor come on board, because it's seen the value of the futsal in assisting community development.

"We're seeking to make the difference physically, relationally, emotionally and spiritually, and to have organisations that are standing beside us in that and providing resources is wonderful," he said.


Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com