Assistant Minister for Youth and Sports Iliesa Delana officiated the opening of the 2015 Fijian FACT at Prince Charles Park in Nadi yesterday.

Delana said football in Fiji needed drastic changes to be competitive.

“Over the years our standing has rarely seen improvement and the highest we have achieved was 106th in 2008,”Delana said.

“And seven years down the line, we see ourselves in the bottom tier of the table – 196th out of 209 officially ranked teams to be exact.

“This begs the question of the effectiveness of the work that is being undertaken locally by the sports administrators and how relevant the development programmes have been.

“We need to see the development programmes set up by Fiji’s Football mirrored in our achievements.”

He urged the administrators and stakeholders to re-evaluate their roles and responsibilities based on their obligation in the development of football.

“Do not deny our local fans and supporters the opportunity to witness world class football,” he said.

“Let us work harder together to propel ourselves much further than we have ever been.

Delana also thanked Vodafone Fiji for sponsoring the tournament for the past seven years.

Vodafone Fiji head of corporate/ e-commerce Shailendra Prasad said Vodafone was proud to be associated with the Fiji Football.

“I would like to acknowledge the efforts of the club officials, districts official’s referees and the players who sacrifice their time and effort.

“The Fiji FA with its limited resources can do only so much and I think we all need to applaud the efforts of all the team officials.

“They are the unsung heroes who keep the sport ticking with development at grassroots level.

“Our joint sponsorship of Fiji Football with CJ Patel Group of Companies has marked a new era for football in Fiji.”

Feedback: sheetal.prasad@fijisun.com.fj