Cook Islands national football team

Cook Islands
Association	Cook Islands; Football Association
Confederation	OFC (Oceania)
Head coach	Kevin Fallon
Captain	Jake Stuart
Most caps	Tony Jamieson (22)
Top scorer	Taylor Saghabi (6)
Home stadium	National Stadium
FIFA code	COK
First colours	Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	NR (16 September 2021)
Highest	166 (October 2015)
Lowest	207 (April–July 2015)
First international
	Papua New Guinea 16–1 Cook Islands ; (Papeete, Tahiti; 11 September 1971)
Biggest win
	Cook Islands 3–0 American Samoa ; (Papeete, Tahiti; 12 June 2000) ; Cook Islands 4–1 Tuvalu ; (Apia, Samoa; 1 September 2007); Cook Islands 3–0 Kiribati ; (Boulari, New Caledonia; 1 September 2011); Tonga 0–3 Cook Islands ; (Nukuʻalofa, Tonga; 31 August 2015)
Biggest defeat
	Tahiti 30–0 Cook Islands ; (Papeete, Tahiti; 13 September 1971)
OFC Nations Cup
Appearances	2 (first in 1998)
Best result	Group stage, 1998 and 2000

The Cook Islands national football team is the men's football team that represents the Cook Islands in international competition since 1971. It is governed by the Cook Islands Football Association which is part of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) and FIFA.

The nation has participated in six FIFA World Cup qualification attempts since their first attempt back in 1998. They have qualified for the OFC Nations Cup twice in 1998 and 2000 OFC Nations Cup with both appearances seeing no wins from their four games that they have played.

Competition record[]

World Cup record[]

FIFA World Cup record									FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1930 to 1994	Did not enter								Did not enter
1998	Did not qualify								2	0	0	2	1	4
2002									4	0	0	4	2	25
2006									4	0	0	4	1	17
2010									4	1	0	3	4	9
2014									3	0	1	2	4	6
2018									3	2	0	1	4	2
2022	To be determined								To be determined
2026	To be determined								To be determined
Total	–	0/21	–	–	–	–	–	–	20	3	1	16	16	63

Oceania Nations Cup record[]

OFC Nations Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1973 to 1996	Did not enter
1998	Group Stage	6th	2	0	0	2	0	19
2000	Group Stage	6th	2	0	0	2	1	22
2002	Withdrew
2004 to 2016	Did not qualify
2020	Cancelled
Total	Group Stage	2/10	4	0	0	4	1	41

1998 Oceania Nations Cup[]

The Cook Islands qualified for their first Oceania Nations Cup after finishing second in the 1998 Polynesia Cup, which they hosted. They faced Australia and Fiji in Group B, in what proved to be a tough draw. Australia crushed the Cook Islands 16–0 in their first match, scoring eight goals either side of the interval. In their next match against Fiji, however, the Cook Islands acquitted themselves much better, losing only 3–0, but with two defeats from two matches they failed to make the semi-finals.

2000 Oceania Nations Cup[]

In finishing 2nd at the Polynesia Cup for the second tournament running, the Cook Islands also qualified for their second successive OFC Nations Cup. They were drawn in Group A along with the Solomon Islands, and again, Australia. After their heavy defeat at the hands of Australia in the 1998 tournament, the Cook Islands hoped to avoid a repeat performance. However, they were powerless to prevent their opponents from running rampant, this time to the tune of 17–0. The Solomon Islands were up next, and in this game the Cook Islands had the consolation of scoring their first goal at the Oceania Nations Cup–the only bright spot in an otherwise bleak 5–1 defeat. After two defeats, then, the Cooks Islands again went out at the group stage.

South Pacific Games record[]

Pacific Games record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1963 to 1969	Did not enter
1971	Group Stage	6th	3	0	0	3	2	61
1975 to 1991	Did not enter
1995	Group Stage	7th	4	1	0	3	2	37
2003	Did not enter
2007	Group Stage	8th	4	1	0	3	4	9
2011	Group stage	9th	4	1	0	3	4	15
2015	N/A – tournament was U23
2019	Did not enter
Total		0/13	15	3	0	12	12	122

Kit sponsorship[]

Kit supplier	Period
Adidas	2002–2004
Lotto	2007–2012
Onu Football	2015–2020
KPI Sports	2020–

Source:^[3]^[4]

Results and fixtures[]

The following is a list of the Cook Islands' most recent match results, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

2015[]

31 August 2015 2018 World Cup Q	Tonga	0–3	Cook Islands	showNukuʻalofa, Tonga
13:00 UTC+13			Saghabi 38', 53', 60'	Stadium: Loto-Tonga Soka Centre Referee: Ravitesh Behari (Fiji)

2 September 2015 2018 World Cup Q	Cook Islands	1–0	Samoa	showNukuʻalofa, Tonga
13:00 UTC+13	Saghabi 39'			Stadium: Loto-Tonga Soka Centre Referee: (Vanuatu)

4 September 2015 2018 World Cup Q	American Samoa	2–0	Cook Islands	showNukuʻalofa, Tonga
15:00 UTC+13	Mitchell 58' J. Manao 67'			Stadium: Loto-Tonga Soka Centre Referee: (Fiji)

2022[]

Current squad[]

Players selected to compete in the First Round of the 2018 World Cup qualifiers against Samoa, Tonga and American Samoa.
Caps and goals updated as of 5 September 2015.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Iona Lupena	(1984-05-03) 3 May 1984 (age 37)	2	0	Manukau City
20	1GK	Tahiri Elikana	(1988-09-14) 14 September 1988 (age 33)	9	0	Tupapa Maraerenga

3	2DF	Joseph Miitamariki	(1988-08-14) 14 August 1988 (age 33)	11	0	Tupapa Maraerenga
4	2DF	Tyrell Baringer-Tahiri	(1994-04-20) 20 April 1994 (age 27)	3	0	Tupapa Maraerenga
5	2DF	Paavo Mustonen	(1986-01-13) 13 January 1986 (age 35)	10	0	Tupapa Maraerenga
13	2DF	Nathan Tisam	(1988-07-06) 6 July 1988 (age 33)	8	0	Nikao Sokattack
17	2DF	Sunai Joseph	(1998-02-20) 20 February 1998 (age 23)	0	0	Tupapa Maraerenga

2	3MF	Grover Harmon	(1989-08-09) 9 August 1989 (age 32)	10	1	Tupapa Maraerenga
6	3MF	Arus Sem	(1993-03-08) 8 March 1993 (age 28)	1	0	Western Springs
7	3MF	Gichin Fuhiniu	(1988-08-20) 20 August 1988 (age 33)	5	0	Manukau City
8	3MF	Legend Pareta	(1996-09-08) 8 September 1996 (age 25)	3	0	Metro
11	3MF	Taylor Saghabi	(1990-12-25) 25 December 1990 (age 30)	10	6
14	3MF	Josh Karika	(1989-09-15) 15 September 1989 (age 32)	3	0	Manukau City
15	3MF	Jake Stuart (C)	(1991-11-20) 20 November 1991 (age 29)	3	0	Clarence United
16	3MF	Alex McGregor	(1987-08-27) 27 August 1987 (age 34)	2	0	Eastern Suburbs

9	4FW	Campbell Best	(1986-03-12) 12 March 1986 (age 35)	10	3	Puaikura
10	4FW	Harlem Simiona	(1992-09-03) 3 September 1992 (age 29)	3	0	Tupapa Maraerenga
12	4FW	Emiel Burrow	(1992-05-17) 17 May 1992 (age 29)	3	0	Oratia United
18	4FW	Ishak Mohammed	(1991-09-26) 26 September 1991 (age 29)	2	0	Tupapa Maraerenga

Player records[]

As of 4 September 2015^{[citation needed]}

Most capped players[]

Rank	Name	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Tony Jamieson	22	0	2000–2011
2	John Pareanga	20	2	1998–2011
3		14	0	1996–2004
4		13	1	2000–2004
4	Christian Tauira	13	0	1998–2004
6	Miitamariki Joseph	12	0	2007–2011
		12	2	1996–2001
	James Nand	12	0	1996–2001
		12	1	2000–2007
	Nikorima Te Miha	12	2	1998–2011

Top goalscorers[]

Rank	Name	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Taylor Saghabi	6	10	0.6	2011–2015
2		3	8	0.38	2009–2011
2	Campbell Best	3	11	0.27	2009–2015
4	Teariki Mateariki	2	6	0.33	2004–2007
		2	12	0.17	1996–2001
	Nikorima Te Miha	2	12	0.17	1998–2011
	John Pareanga	2	20	0.1	1998–2011

Coaches[]

Alex Napa (1996–1998)
Alan Taylor (2000–2001)
(2001–2004)
Tim Jerks (2004–2010)
Shane Rufer (2011)
Paul Farrell-Turepu (2011–2014)
Drew Sherman (2015–2017)
Kevin Fallon (2018-)

Head-to-head record[]

Up to matches played on 4 September 2015.

Team v t	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	WPCT
American Samoa	4	2	1	1	8	6	+2	50.00
Australia	2	0	0	2	0	33	−33	0.00
Fiji	4	0	0	4	2	26	−24	0.00
Kiribati	1	1	0	0	3	0	+3	100.00
New Caledonia	4	0	0	4	0	32	−32	0.00
New Zealand	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	0.00
Papua New Guinea	2	0	0	2	1	20	−19	0.00
Samoa^[a]	6	3	1	2	9	8	+1	50.00
Solomon Islands	4	0	0	4	2	35	−33	0.00
Tahiti	8	0	0	8	0	64	−64	0.00
Tonga	8	3	2	3	12	11	+1	37.50
Tuvalu	1	1	0	0	4	1	+3	100.00
Vanuatu	1	0	0	1	1	8	−7	0.00
Wallis and Futuna	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Total	47	11	4	32	44	247	−203	23.40

Source: Results
Notes:

^ Includes results as Western Samoa.

References[]

^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 16 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ https://www.oldfootballshirts.com/pt/teams/c/cook-islands/old-cook-islands-football-shirts-t2505.html
^ "KPI Sports". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 1 October 2020.

External links[]

[table_note_SAM0.1230189167536-5] Includes results as Western Samoa.

[FIFA_World_Rankings-1] "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 16 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.

[World_Football_Elo_Ratings-2] Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.

[3] ttps://www.oldfootballshirts.com/pt/teams/c/cook-islands/old-cook-islands-football-shirts-t2505.html

[4] "KPI Sports". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 1 October 2020.

[1]

[3]

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show v Cook Islands national football team
General	Cook Islands Football Association History
Venues	National Stadium
Results	1971–present
Players	List of players
Other FFAS teams	U-20 U-17 Futsal

show v t National football teams of Oceania (OFC)
Active	American Samoa Cook Islands FS Micronesia² Fiji Kiribati¹ New Caledonia New Zealand Niue² Palau² Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tahiti Tonga Tuvalu¹ Vanuatu
Former	Australia (moved to AFC in 2006) Northern Mariana Islands³ (moved to AFC in 2009) Chinese Taipei⁴ (returned to AFC in 1989)
¹ Associate member of OFC - Not a member of FIFA ² Not a member of OFC and consequently not a member of FIFA ³ Northern Mariana Islands was only an associate member of OFC between 1998 and 2009 - Not a member of FIFA ⁴ Although not geographically in Oceania, Chinese Taipei was a member of the OFC between 1976–1978 and 1982–1989 Although not geographically in Oceania Israel entered OFC World Cup qualification in 1986 and 1990 due to political reasons, though it never became a formal OFC member.