Northern Mariana Islands national football team

Northern Mariana Islands
Nickname(s) Blue Ayuyus
Association Northern Mariana Islands Football Association
Sub-confederation EAFF (East Asia)
Confederation AFC
Head coach Kiyoshi Sekiguchi
Captain Johann Noetzel
Most caps Joe Wang Miller (10)
Top scorer Joe Wang Miller (4)
Home stadium Oleai Sports Complex
FIFA code NMI
Elo ranking 233
First colours
Second colours
First international
Northern Mariana Islands Northern Mariana Islands 0-7  F.S. Micronesia
(Yap, 12 July 1999)
Biggest win
Northern Mariana Islands Northern Mariana Islands 2–1  Macau
(Guam, 23 July 2014)
Biggest defeat
 Guam 9–0 Northern Mariana Islands Northern Mariana Islands
(Hagåtña, Guam; 1 April 2007)
 Palestine 9–0 Northern Mariana Islands Northern Mariana Islands
(Kathmandu, Nepal; 4 March 2013)

The Northern Mariana Islands national football team is the international football team of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, controlled by the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association.

Overview

The association is a member of the East Asian Football Federation. In the late 1990s a Northern Mariana Islands national side competed in the Micronesian Games (Teams were 9-a-side and the matches were 80 minutes in duration and were played on a pitch which was below regulation size.[1]). In December 2006, the EAFF admitted the Northern Mariana Islands as a provisional member, granting full membership in September 2008.[2]

Lucas Knecht featured for the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association on April 1, 2007 in an East Asian Football Federation Championship Qualifier versus Guam. Knecht was 14 years and 2 days old at the time making him the youngest male player to ever appear in an international match.[3]

In July 2009 The AFC Exco agreed to accept the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association (NMIFA) as an Associate Member of the Asian Football Confederation, after the association resigned from the Oceania Football Confederation in June 2009, paving the way to join AFC.[4] The NMIFA will be a provisional member until the next AFC Congress, when it has the chance to be ratified as a permanent Associate Member.

On June 19, 2010 the NMI earned a 1–1 draw with neighbor Guam in the 2010 Marianas Cup. The match ended in a draw as there was insufficient lighting to continue the match after the end of regulation. Joe Wang Miller scored for the NMI in the 68th minute and Jason Cunliffe answered in the 89th minute to salvage a draw for Guam.

The Northern Mariana Islands scored their first ever international win on July 23, 2014 in the preliminary round of the 2015 EAFF Championships held in Hagatna, Guam. The Blue Ayuyus had goals from Nick Swaim and Kirk Schuler to beat Macau, 2 to 1.

Selected internationals

Date Venue Opponents Score Competition
25 July 2014GFA National Training Center, Guam  Guam0-52015 EAFF East Asian Cup
23 July 2014GFA National Training Center, Guam  Macau2-12015 EAFF East Asian Cup
21 July 2014GFA National Training Center, Guam  Mongolia0-42015 EAFF East Asian Cup
6 March 2013Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu  Bangladesh0-42014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
4 March 2013Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu  Palestine0-92014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
2 March 2013Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Kathmandu    Nepal0-62014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification
24 November 2012 Guam0-8Friendly(NMI U23)
20 July 2012 Macau1-52013 EAFF East Asian Cup
18 July 2012 Guam1-32013 EAFF East Asian Cup
19 June 2010CNMI Guam1–12010 Marianas Cup
15 March 2009 Mongolia1–42010 East Asian Cup
13 March 2009 Guam1–22010 East Asian Cup
11 March 2009 Macau1–62010 East Asian Cup
27 April 2008CNMI Guam2–32008 Marianas Cup
1 April 2007 Guam0–92008 East Asian Football Championship Preliminary qualification and 2007 Marianas Cup
25 March 2007CNMI Guam2–32008 East Asian Football Championship Preliminary qualification
12 July 1999Yap Sports Complex, Yap  F.S. Micronesia0-71999 Micronesia Cup

Coaching History

Name Nat Tenure
Jeff "Ziggy" Korytoski United States 2007
Jason Higgins United States 2007
Nicolas Swaim United States 2008
Sugao Kambe Japan 2009
Kiyoshi Sekiguchi Japan 2010
Mark McAllister England 2011
Johann Noetzel United States 2012
Chikashi Suzuki Japan 2012-2013
Koo Luam Khen Malaysia 2013
Kiyoshi Sekiguchi Japan 2014-

Current Squad

Selected for 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup match versus Macau:[5]

# Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
18 GK Daniel Stafford 2 0
2 DF Eric Cooke 2 0 Northern Mariana Islands Wild Bills
3 DF Daniel Westphal 2 0
13 DF Raphael Zapanta Northern Mariana Islands Paire FC
15 DF Kenneth Domingo
3 MF William Dunn 2 0 Northern Mariana Islands Paire FC
4 MF Kirk Schuler 3 1 Northern Mariana Islands MP United
7 MF Michael Barry 11 October 1995 5 0 United States Fredericksburg Area SA
8 MF Steven McKagen 26 September 1974 6 0 Northern Mariana Islands Paire FC
9 MF Peter Loken 2 September 1980 5 1 Northern Mariana Islands Inter Godfather's
20 MF Enrico del Rosario 21 March 1997 2 0 Philippines Agila F.C.
10 MF Lucas Knecht 30 March 1993 5 0 United States GSW Hurricanes
14 MF Ruselle Zapanta
16 MF Brian Lee
5 FW Nicholas Swaim 8 November 1977 6 1 Northern Mariana Islands MP United
11 FW Joe Wang Miller 3 February 1989 6 3 Northern Mariana Islands MP United


Note: Birth dates, caps and ages taken from the following source:[6]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.rsssf.com/tablesm/micronesia98.html RSSSF - Micronesian Games 1998
  2. ↑ "EAFF grants NMIFA full membership". Saipan Tribune. 2008-10-24.
  3. ↑ Oldest and Youngest Players and Goal-scorers in International Football from RSSSF
  4. ↑ "Northern Mariana Islands join AFC as Associate Member". Asian Football Confederation. 2009-07-15.
  5. ↑ Score sheet for Northern Mariana Islands v Macau, 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup, 20 July 2012
  6. ↑ Northern Mariana Islands at National Football Teams. Retrieved 27 February 2013.

http://www.saipantribune.com/index.php/blue-ayuyus-earn-historic-victory/

External links