The Men´s U19 WFC 2017 AOFC Qualifications are played in Fujiyoshida, Japan, on the 18th – 20th of September 2016.
Four teams, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the first-timer Iran, are playing for a chance to play in the Men´s U19 WFC Final Round in Växjö, Sweden 2017.
Based on the IFF regional quota system, two teams from Asia-Oceania will qualify to B-division. Every team plays each other once and the top two placed teams will qualify to the Final Round.
Australia has the highest ranking (14) and are thus the favourite to qualify to the final round, but Japan (16) is very close in ranking. Last time the two teams met was a year ago and the rosters have changed since. New Zealand is ranked 24th and Iran (-) is playing for the first time.
You can follow the live statistics at the IFF Event page.
Team Presentations:
Australia
Their WFCQ goal is to provide players with an opportunity to develop their skills, teamwork and attitude required to graduate to the senior team. They have a selected a mix of older players with international experience, and younger players who will strengthen their future teams.
Players to watch:
Connor McKeown-Munn: A nimble goalkeeper who is one of the hardest working players in every training. He is calm under pressure and supportive of his team mates.
Steven Lamble: One of the teams youngest players, he has good ball control and an unselfish playing style. He won´t stop working on the court to help his team.
Tom Delaney: A solid defender who is fast and capable of putting the opponents under pressure. He is a play maker who works hard to create opportunities for his team to score.
#56 C. McKeown-Munn |
#23 S.Lamble |
#7 T.Delaney |
New Zealand
The New Zealand team has been playing together for a while and a lot of the players have been part of the U19 team in 2014. Since then, the team has come a long way, trained hard and is now keen to compete again on the international level. We are looking forward to play against new oponents and will take one game at a time. The ultimate goal is to be the first NZ team qualifying for a World Floorball Championships Final round.
Players to watch:
Brendan Patrick: A hard working defender providing a lot of structure from the back, while also having speed and skills to support the attack. He has already played for the New Zealand Men´s team and is one of the more experienced players in the team.
Josh Campbell: One of the team´s younger players with great stick skills and a hunger to score. This is his first international appearance and he will gain a lot of valuable experience from it.
Oli McLaren: Adds some strong drive and speed to the team and has the ability to get the ball out of tight situations to create fast counter attacks. He can also finish chances in front of the other goal and is an excellent all round player.
#10 P. Brendan |
#15 J. Campbell |
#17 O. McLaren |
Japan
The WFCQ AOFC host team consist of young and skilled players. The teams main goal is to get a place into the finals.
Players to watch:
Ryo Kaneshige: He is the captain of the Japanese U19 team. His stature is very short, but his agility and quantity of motion are very attractive.
Kazushi Harada: He was second Goalkeeper of the Japanese U19 team. Now he has become first Goalkeeper of the team. He is good at motivating and making the team put up a good fight.
Kaimu Abe: He is a clever player and he has most fighting spirit in the Japanese U19 team.
#3 R. Kaneshige |
#1 K. Harada |
#2 K. Abe |
Iran
For the first time, Iran is entering a team into the Men´s U19 WFCQ. The team is very young and sees this event as a first step to gain experience on the international stage. The players are very motivated and will do all they can to qualify for the U19 WFC in 2017.
Players to watch:
Mohammad Amin Davalou: Forward, with very good movement.
Mohammad Amin Kermani: An up and coming strong defender with good overview of the game.
Mahdi Alipour: Teams most senior player and has an important role in leading the backline.
#23 M. Davalou |
#5 M. Kermani |
#3 M. Alipour |
Men´s U19 WFC 2017
A total of 26 teams have registered for the 9th Men´s U19 World Floorball Championships, to be held in May 2017 in Växjö, Sweden. In the qualification events, France & Iran will be competing for the first time in this category.
The Final Round is made of up 8 teams in A-division & 8 teams in B-division. All A-division teams, as well as two B-division teams have direclty qualified, based on results from the Men´s U19 WFC 2015.
The remaining 6 spots in the B-division will be determined via regional quota systems and qualification events.
Qualification events will be held in Europe (Italy) and Asia-Oceania (Japan) in September 2016. General information on those events can be found below.
