Tahiti: Lost the game but won many hearts

The former South African President, Mr. Nelson Mandela, once said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear”.

I agree with Mr. Mandela on this. It requires great courage when you have to face the best team of the footballing world for a match. On one hand, the chances of winning are very slim and on the other hand the fear of suffering an insulting defeat is huge. On 20^th June, 2013 Tahiti (a small island nation) did suffer its most humiliating defeat against the World champions Spain in the FIFA Confederations Cup 2013 by a margin of 10-0. As most would say, this was bound to happen, with Tahiti ranked 138 as compared to Spain’s FIFA rank of one. Apart from everything else, there was maybe only one moment in the match which the Tahitian fans would have truly enjoyed and that was the penalty miss by Torres ( forgetting the fact that he scored 4 other goals) and their keeper celebrating that moment as if it was a World Cup victory. Frankly speaking, the keeper had little to do with the penalty being missed. Torres blasted the ball towards the right corner; the ball hit the bar and went out. Still it was a moment to cherish for Tahitians.

It was a true David vs Goliath match with Goliath winning the match quite easily. I personally was happy to see such a goal fest after a long time in such a big international tournament. All in all, it was a remarkable match, seeing the players such as Torres (4), David Villa (3), Silva (2) and also Chelsea’s Player of the Season, Juan Mata (1) scoring. But the other thing which touched my heart was the resilient performance of the Tahitian team. People who saw the match will know that even if the team had decided to go with a defensive mindset, they were constantly trying to score goals. With the rare possession of the ball that they were getting, it was an extremely good effort from the island country. Their next match is against the two-times World Cup winners Uruguay (which will be a must win match for Uruguay) but I am sure Tahiti will try its best to make it difficult for the Uruguayans to win.

Tahiti is one of the smallest footballing nations and also the first amateur footballing nation to qualify for the FIFA Confederations Cup. It is only the third country to win the OFC Nations Cup after Australia and New Zealand. The Tahitian team has as many as 9 players who are unemployed and play in the local football club at home. Seeing that the biggest stadium Tahiti has in its homeland has a total capacity of 10,000 spectators, playing in Rio de Janeiro in front of a crowd of 71,000 fans was itself an achievement. The last year for Tahitian football team has been a dream come true, with the rise in form of Tehau brothers, the semi final upset of New Zealand by New Caledonia in the OFC Nations Cup, winning the OFC Nations Cup for the first time after eight participations and then the most important of all - qualifying for the third biggest international footballing event, the FIFA Confederations cup. Believe it or not, such were the high spirits of the Tahitian football team that they presented each Spanish player with a necklace before the start of the match.

Back home, the national team has a bunch of loyal supporters but here too, in their first match against Nigeria, the entire stadium cheered when they scored their first goal. Also, in the last match against Spain, these mighty Tahitians received a standing ovation for their resilient performance (even though scoresheet may not say this).

The Tahitian football team has shown great courage and determination in reaching this mega event. Let’s also keep in mind that football is not even their national sport but is considered only as a participatory sport. Not forgetting the sparse facilities they have, Tahitians have come a long way. With only 11,000 registered footballers in the nation they have achieved something very special in their own terms. Tahiti, which was earlier known for its black sand beaches and volcanoes, will now be known for its football too.

Football in this nation is going through its best period ever and I hope their performances keep on improving. This tournament will be in the memories of the players forever and also in the memories of the people. They have overcome so many obstacles to reach this tournament. To play against the world champions, who we have seen only on our TV screens, is an amazing feat achieved for anyone. Let’s hope this will be a stepping stone for urther success of the Tahitian team in the international arena.