Leon Kofana is a Solomon Islands footballer who currently plays for Telekom S-League club Henderson Eels and the Solomon Islands national team.
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 20 June 2002 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Solomon Islands | |||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defender | |||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||
Current team | Henderson Eels | |||||||||||||
| Number | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| –2019 | Henderson Eels | |||||||||||||
| 2019–2020 | Wellington Phoenix | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 2020– | Henderson Eels | |||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | Solomon Islands U17 | 7 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2022– | Solomon Islands | 8 | (0) | |||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:05, 27 January 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16:05, 27 January 2023 (UTC) | ||||||||||||||
Club career
editAs a youth, Kofana played for his school club at White River Community High School. In 2017 the team advanced to the semi-final of the school league before being eliminated by Numbu Christian High School.[1] The following year the team finished third in the league with Kofana anchoring the defense in the bronze final match.[2]
In 2019 he and compatriot Raphael Lea'i received a scholarship to attend Scots College in New Zealand and be part of Wellington Phoenix FC's youth setup.[3] During their first season with the school team, it won its first-ever Premiership title in school history.[4] During his time with Wellington Phoenix, he was unable to appear in competitive matches because of FIFA's regulations regarding players under age eighteen.[5]
Both players were invited back to New Zealand for another year in 2020.[6] However, they decided to remain with their club team in the Solomon Islands.[7] Shortly thereafter, Kofana became a regular starter for Henderson Eels F.C. of the local Telekom S-League and was expected to play a large role in the team's 2020 OFC Champions League campaign. He went on to lead the team to a second-place finish in the league that season.[8]
In March 2020 at age seventeen Kofana and Lea'i achieved what had been a rare feat for players from the Pacific Islands, a trial with Melbourne Victory FC of Australia's A-League.[9] Despite receiving praise from club staff, neither player was signed to a contract following the two-week stint. Several issues, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, added uncertainty to if the players would return.[10]
International career
editFollowing the Solomon Islands championship at the 2017 OFC Youth Futsal Tournament,[11] Kofana represented the nation in futsal at the youth level at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He scored two goals in the tournament.[12]
Kofana represented the Solomon Islands at the youth level at the 2018 OFC U-16 Championship.[13] He served as captain of the team at the tournament and scored a goal in a 5–0 victory over New Zealand.[14] The victory was the island nation's first over New Zealand at any level in twenty-five years.[15] He went on to represent the nation at the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[16]
In 2019 he was part of the squad that traveled to Europe for that year's UEFA Development Tournament in Belarus.[17] The Solomon Islands went on to be surprised runners-up in the tournament.[18]
Kofana received his first senior international call-up in February 2020 as part of the provisional squad.[19] In March 2022, he was named to the Solomon Islands senior squad again for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.[20] He went on to make his senior debut on 17 March 2022 in the team's opening match victory over the Cook Islands.[21] Following the team's first-place finish in its group, the Solomon Islands were eventually defeated by New Zealand in the final, costing the Solomon Islands a spot in the inter-confederation play-off.[22]
International career statistics
editAs of match played 30 September 2022[21]
| Solomon Islands | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2022 | 8 | 0 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 8 | 0 |
References
edit- ^ Abana, Simon. "Numbu shows dominance in school league". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Honiara Football ends season". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Ragaruma, Milton. "Education First". The Island Sun. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "GOLDEN BOY, Lea'i wins NZ College golden boot". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Rollo, Phillip. "Oceania's brightest prospect, Raphael Le'ai, joins Wellington Phoenix academy". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Iroga, Robert. "Le'ai, Kofana returning to Wellington". Solomon Business Magazine. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Duo to stay with Henderson Eels". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Henderson Eels look to age-grade stars". The Fiji Times. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Ewart, Richard. "Rising Solomon Islands soccer stars making an impact at Melbourne Victory FC". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Bjerkevoll, Ola. "Trial over for Solomons boys: "We are happy with our performances"". Football in Oceania. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "OFC Youth Futsal Tournament wraps up". Oceania Football Confederation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Men's Youth Olympic Football Tournament Buenos Aires 2018". FIFA. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Hosts take on PNG on familiar territory". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Solomon Islands vs. New Zealand". Oceania Football Confederation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Historic win over New Zealand since 1993". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Sport: Solomon Islands name U-17 FIFA World Cup squad". Radio New Zealand. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Young lads bound for Europe". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ "Sport: Solomons U17s finish runners-up at UEFA tournament". Radio New Zealand. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "National team provisional squad released". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Abana, Simon. "Solomon Islands name squad for Word Cup qualifiers". Solomon Islands Football Federation. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ a b "NFT profile". National Football Teams. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ Burgess, Michael. "Football: All Whites reach World Cup playoff with thrashing of Solomon Islands". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
External links
edit- Leon Kofana at National-Football-Teams.com
- Leon Kofana at Soccerway
- Leon Kofana at Global Sports Archive