NMI U20 team off to Kuwait for AFC qualifier

The NMI U20 Men’s National Soccer Team was sent off with good luck and well wishes last Tuesday at the NMSA conference room in the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium for their trip to Salmiya, Kuwait.

The team will compete in the Asian Football Confederation U20 Asian Cup 2025 Qualifiers from Sept. 21 to Sept. 29, 2024.

There are 10 groups in the tournament, with the NMI in Group C.

The team will have four matches and the first team they will go up against is the host team Kuwait on Saturday, Sept. 22. They will then square off against the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, Sept. 24 before taking on South Korea on Thursday, Sept. 26. The NMI concludes their campaign against Lebanon on Saturday, Sept. 28.

The team consists of 23 players—Leo Takahashi, Markus Toves, Anthony Bergancia, Anthony Austria, Ariel Narvaez Jr., Leland Deleon Guerrero, Cody Shimizu, Jonne Navarro, Daniell Pablo, Edward Arriola III, Nolan Ngewakl, Moshe Sikkel, Paul Lizama, Tyler Omelau, Mark Chavez, Monaco Claridades, Wataru Kadokura, Andrew Sablan, Zhi Xiang Lin, Isaiah Hossain, Casey Chambers, Akoni Matsumoto, and Dev Bachani.

They will be joined by head coach Konomi Suzuki; assistant coach Jershwin Angeles; goalkeeper coach Ronnel Ocanada; team manager Mikky Vargas; team analyst Jireh Yobech; and team doctor/physiotherapist Hazel Mabasa.

In attendance during the send-off were Northern Marianas Islands Football Association president Jerry Tan, NMIFA vice president Vickie Izuka, NMIFA general secretary Ross Zapanta, NMIFA Executive Committee member Catherine Attao-Toves, and family and friends of the team.

Tan gave a speech in the beginning of the ceremony and said among many things, that the NMI has been put in a very difficult group. But even with that, he said, “I think the coaches and hopefully the players are prepared to face very, very tough competition… Some of the other country’s players are already men.”

He then said even with the tough competition ahead, it will be a learning experience and will allow NMI players to grow and develop in the sport.

“I’m sure that you guys have been doing your best to prepare for this important competition—rain or shine. I’m very happy that we’re given this opportunity by AFC to participate in this very high-level competition. But we have to acknowledge that every game is very tough. You’re going to do your best and it’s really about learning,” he said.

For team captain Pablo, he said, “We just want to say thank you to everyone… We spent a lot of hours on the field training and we experienced a lot in the Marianas Cup and in the training camps early this year. We just want to thank everyone for making it happen… we just want to represent our island really well so we’ll work hard and try our very best out there.”