Tofaga FC

Tofaga FC
Tofaga
Full nameTofaga Football Club
GroundTuvalu Sports Ground,
Funafuti, Tuvalu
Capacity1,500
LeagueTuvalu A-Division
20211st[1]

Tofaga FC is a Tuvalu football club from Vaitupu, playing in the Tuvalu A-Division.

The team's home ground is the Tuvalu Sports Ground,[2] on Funafuti, which is the only football field in Tuvalu. Tofaga plays on an amateur level, as do all the teams in Tuvalu. They also have a reserve squad and a women's team.

History

The team was originally name Vatokami and was founded in the 1970s. In the 1990s, Paulson Panapa and Tapugao Falefou were the team’s well-known players. In 1997 the team won its first prize, the Benson and Hedges Cup.[3] The team won the Independence Cup (held to recognise the independence of Tuvalu) in 1998.[3]

In 2005, the team changed its name to Tofaga.[4]

Toakai Puapua was coach from 2006 to 2008. He was also the football coach of Tuvalu during the 2007 South Pacific Games.[5]

Tofaga won the NBT Cup and the Independence Cup in 2006. After that, the club regularly won cups; the NBT Cup in 2007, 2008 and 2011, and three prizes in 2010 (Tuvalu Games, Independence Cup and Christmas Cup). Tofaga won the Independence Cup 5 times, and the team has also won the NBT Cup 9 times, and was the runner-up 4 times.[3]

Tofaga’s only win of the Tuvalu A-Division competition was in 2021,[3] although its players, including Alopua Petoa[6] and James Lepaio,[7] were topscorers in the Tuvalu A-Division competition, in 2011, 2012, 2019 & 2021, and Alopua Petoa is the topscorer with the Tuvalu national football team with 11 goals in his international career.[8][9][10]

Tofaga was the runner-up in the 2023 Tuvalu A-Division competition.[11] Tofaga won the NBT Cup in 2023, beating Vaoloa 2-1.[11] The team included Etimoni Timuani (defender), James Lepaio (midfielder) and Alopua Petoa (striker).[12]

Honours

Tofaga A, winners of the Tuvalu Games competition 2012
The players celebrating being champions of the 2010 Christmas Cup

League

The Tofaga reserve team has been the B-Team Champions 5 times: 2006, 2009, 2011, 2013 & 2021.[1]

Cup

  • Tuvalu Games
    • Winners (3): 2010, 2012, 2013[3]
    • Runners-up (2): 2009, 2011[3]
  • Independence Cup
    • Winners (5): 1998, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2013[3]
    • Runners-up (2): 2008, 2009[3]
  • NBT Cup
    • Winners (9): 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023[3]
    • Runners-up (4): 2009, 2013, 2018, 2020[3]
  • Christmas Cup
    • Winners (2): 2010, 2019[3]
    • Runners-up (2): 2012, 2013[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Tuvalu - List of Champions". Prepared and maintained by Hans Schöggl for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 24 April 2023. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Tuvalu - Stadiums". Prepared and maintained by Carlos Santos for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Tuvalu - List of Cup Winners". Prepared and maintained by Carlos Santos for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 14 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  4. ^ "Alopua Petoa - Oceania NÃO FIFA article".
  5. ^ "Super sub Sekifu leaves Tahiti red-faced". Football Federation of American Samoa. 29 August 2007. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  6. ^ "Alopua Petoa". National Football Teams.
  7. ^ James Lepaio at National-Football-Teams.com
  8. ^ "Alopua PETOA". footballdatabase.eu 2007-2023. 2007. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  9. ^ "Interview with Alopua Petoa". Oceania No FIFA. 25 January 2015. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  10. ^ "Alopua Petoa - Algemeen Dagblad article". DPG Media B.V. 4 October 2012. Retrieved 30 October 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Tuvalu - Tuvalu 2023". Prepared and maintained by Carlos Santos and Hans Schöggl for the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 14 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
  12. ^ "FC Tofaga Tuvalu A-Division (1. League) / 2nd Rank". National Football Teams. 2023. Retrieved 16 March 2024.