Leewai wary of Navua’s unpredictability

The return of striker, Christopher Wasasala and midfielder, Edwin Sahayam against Navua tomorrow will be key to

strengthening the Labasa football side’s chances of qualifying for the Digicel Fiji FACT tournament. Wasasala missed the game against Ba to serve his one-match ban while Sahayam returns from his national duties with the Fiji Futsal team. Only the top 8 teams at the end of the seventh round of the Digicel Fiji Premier League will qualify for the first tournament of the year. The Northerners will travel to Viti Levu in a bid to end their losing

streak against Navua on the artificial turf at Uprising Sports Centre in Pacific Harbour, Deuba. Labasa has failed to beat Navua on the turf since the Southerners’ promotion to the top tier.

Labasa coach, Johan Leewai, believed the duo’s presence would boost their chance against an unpredictable Navua side.

“Navua is a tough team to beat at home and they will also want to get out of the bottom two,” Leewai said.

The Babasiga Lions are riding high with their first consecutive back-to-back wins last weekend after defeating Tailevu Naitasiri 2-1 and Ba 3-0.

He said they won’t let their guards down with Navua always being a threat to them.

“We cannot be complacent after winning just two games and Navua have been a tough team to beat at home,” Leewai said.

A win on Sunday, would guarantee their place in the Fiji FACT tournament with 10 points, enough to outnumber Tavua and Navua on the points standing.

Their attacking prowess is something Leewai continues to work on. “We must maximise our chances in goal scoring opportunities after we missed a lot of chances against Ba,” he said.

There are no injury concerns in the team, however, defender Iliesa Lino would miss tomorrow’s game.