New Zealand wear down futsal opponents

Patience was a key virtue for the New Zealand futsal team as they wore down a resilient Tahiti for a 2-1 win in their third game of the Oceania futsal championships in Fiji.

Futsal is the FIFA-approved form of indoor football.

A goalless first half saw New Zealand goalkeeper Clayton Chappell barely required to make a save, while the Futsal Whites dominated but could not break down a determined Tahitian rearguard.

The game exploded into life 32 minutes in when New Zealand's Said Soleimanpour finally broke the deadlock with a header after Lucas Da Silva's shot had bounced off the crossbar and seemingly over the goal line.

Tahiti looked to have sealed a share of the points with three minutes left to play when Teva Durot's long-range shot took enough of a deflection to squeeze past Chappell.

But the cool heads of Miro Major and Micky Malivuk prevailed for New Zealand, as they combined to draw the defence and set up Da Silva for a dramatic winner a minute later.

New Zealand's foul count made the finish even nervier, as another foul, New Zealand's sixth, would have given Tahiti the chance to level with a direct free kick from the 10 metre mark.

New Zealand's next game is 4.30pm tomorrow against Roy Krishna's Fiji.

New Zealand lost to defending champions Solomon Islands on Monday before beating Vanuatu yesterday.

Result: New Zealand 2 (Said Soleimanpour, Lucas Da Silva) Tahiti 1 (Teva Durot). Halftime 0-0.

- NZPA