The top eight teams from the Digicel Fiji Premier League have secured their places in next month’s Super Premier Division of the FMF Inter-District Championship, which will be held at Churchill Park in Lautoka. The confirmed teams are Rewa, Labasa, Lautoka, Ba, Nadi, Navua, Suva, and Nadroga.
Tailevu/Naitasiri and Nasinu have been relegated and will compete in the Premier Division instead. They will be joined by Bua, Tavua, Lami, and Seaqaqa.
In the Senior Division, teams such as Savusavu, Taveuni, Nadogo, Dreketi, Rakiraki, and Northland Tailevu will compete.
The pool draws for the 2024 FMF IDC are scheduled for Tuesday, October 1, at the FMF Gymnasium in Suva, starting at 11 am. The tournament is set to take place from October 15 to 20.
In other news, three players have been added to the national men’s football squad ahead of the FIFA World Cup Oceania qualifiers. National football head coach Rob Sherman announced the new additions, which include Leroy Jennings, a midfielder from Sydney United FC, Gabrieli Matanisiga, a defender from Wellington Olympic AFC, and Kavaia Rawaqa, a defender from Suva FC.
These players are part of a 27-member squad gearing up for the qualifiers, with the first round beginning on October 10 at the HFC Bank Stadium in Suva. National team manager Kartik Reddy explained that their addition is aimed at strengthening the team for a strong performance in the qualifying rounds.
“We are targeting the 1.5 spots available to the OFC for qualification to the 2026 FIFA World Cup,” Reddy stated. The squad is set to convene for training on September 29 at the Fiji FA Academy in Ba, with the final 23-member team being announced on October 5. Veteran defender Remueru Tekiata and Muni Shivam Naidu will not participate due to work commitments. Reddy confirmed that national team captain Roy Krishna will join the squad on October 5 after fulfilling his obligations with Odisha FC in the Indian Super League.
Fiji will compete in Group A alongside the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, and New Caledonia. The national team will kick off their campaign against the Solomon Islands on October 10 in Suva at 7 pm. Following that, they will face Papua New Guinea on November 14 and New Caledonia on November 17, both matches taking place at the PNG Football Stadium.