Suva head coach expects uphill battle

SUVA Football Club head coach Nigel Khan is expecting an uphill battle this weekend when they play Rewa at Ratu Cakobau Park in the second round of the Digicel Fiji Premier League competition.

Khan said going up against the OFC Men’s Champion League qualifiers will be no easy task but promises to put up a fight against the competition giants.

“We are expecting a tough battle on Sunday against Rewa because, at the moment, they are the number one ranked team in the country,” he said.

“Playing them at their home ground will be a tougher battle, but the boys are willing to put up a fight and show what they are capable of.”

Suva FC will be fielding a young side to the competition this year, as Khan adds that most of their senior players have migrated overseas to other clubs.

“We have quite a young side with us as most of our senior players have moved on to greener pastures,” Khan said.

“So our plan is to give our best and gauge ourselves from this game.

“Having a tough match as our second match of the tournament is good because we will be able to gauge our performance from playing against a good team.”

Meanwhile, Khan said the side has been facing challenges in training because of the rainy weather in the Capital City for the past few days.

“Finding a ground to train in has been an issue because of the weather but the boys have not let this dampen their spirits as they are all looking forward to our game against Rewa.”

The two sides will go head to head on Sunday in Nausori at 3pm.

Meanwhile in other round two matches, Nadroga plays Labasa at Lawaqa Park, Lautoka hosts Navua at Churchill Park, Nadi hosts Nasinu at Prince Charles Park while Tailevu Naitasiri plays Ba at the Fiji FA Academy Grounds in Ba.