The Oceania Futsal Championship in July will serve as the build-up to the World Cup playoffs next year.

Fiji is set to host the 2010 OFC at the Vodafone Arena in Suva. National coaching director Saiyad Ali said they would select the best players for the regional meet.

He said Fiji had the chance to qualify for the FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Ali said a training squad had been named with the players to attend trials next week.

“We finished as runner-up to the Solomon Islands last year,” Ali said.

“If we would have beaten the Solomon Islands then we would have been in the Futsal World Cup.

“But we were beaten by 8-1 in the final. Our players had just come out of the Battle of the Giants. They were worn out. Had we prepared well, the result would have been better. The potential is there to win the regional tournament.”

A host of district reps have been named in the training squad. Some of the players include Osea Vakatalesau (Lautoka), Alvin Avinesh (Lautoka), Valerio Nawatu (Lautoka), Marika Madigi (Lautoka), Kamal Hassan (Lautoka), Alifereti Baleiloa (Lautoka), Ratu Josefa Dugucagi (Nadi), Benaminio Mateinaqara (Navua), Simione Tamanisau (Rewa), Joseph Mishra (Suva), Dinesh Mudaliar (Suva) and Henry Dyer (Navua).

Ali said a different skill level was required in futsal. He said there was a plan to separate the code next year.

“There will be a separate trial for the players from the north,” Ali said. The following players have been named in the national futsal training and selection program from February 3-5 at the Vodafone Arena in Suva.

Ravneel Narayan (Rakiraki), Aisea Codro (Ba), Christopher Kumar (Ba), Osea Vakatalesau (Lautoka), Rineshwar Lal (Ba), Laisenia Tuba (Ba), Josaia Bukalidi (Ba), Anishkar Sharma (Ba), Kamal Hassan (Lautoka), Valerio Nawatu (Lautoka), Epeli Kosa (Lautoka), Marika Madigi (Lautoka), Alifereti Baleiloa (Lautoka), Arvindra Naidu (Lautoka), Alvin Avinesh (Lautoka), Mohammed Salmin (Nadi), Ratu Josefata (Nadi), Afroz Ali (Nadi), Uraia Loki (Nadi), Simione Vesa (Nadroga), Levi Tawake (Nadroga), Josaia Saga (Tavua), Josaia Ratu (Tavua), Sanjay Dutt (Tavua), Ernest Petueli (Tavua), Benaminio Mateinaqara (Navua), Simione Tamanisau (Rewa), Siga Ali (Navua), Shonal Sharma (Navua), Jale Vota (Navua), Shivam Nathan (Suva), Michael Kumar (Suva), Monit Chand (Navua), Shahil Dave (Suva), Joseph Mishra (Suva), Dinesh Mudaliar (Suva), Sandeep Nair (Suva), Nathan Kumar (Suva), Henry Dyer (Navua), Sedrick Dutt (Suva), Shashi Mahendra Singh (Suva), Kalivati Covu (Suva), David Wilson (Suva), Atish Veeran (Suva), Rishan Ram (Suva), Ulaiasi Tamanisau (Rewa).