NEXT GOAL WINS

Featuring: Thomas Rongen, Jaiyah Saelua, Nicky Salapu, Liatama Amisone Jr, Ramin Ott, Gene Ne’emia, Larry Mana’o, Rawlston Masanai and Charles Uhrle.
Directors: Mike Brett and Steve Jamison.

SCREENING AT THE 2014 SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL ON SAT JUNE 7 AND WED JUN 11. DETAILS HERE.

Rating: 4/5

One of the smallest triumphs in world sport inspires one of the year’s most moving and entertaining documentaries in Next Goal Wins, a rousing study of dedication, soulful mateship and steely determination set against the high stakes arena of World Cup football.

In 2001, the national soccer team for the island nation of American Samoa lost 31-0 to Australia during a regional qualifying round. It would prove to be the worst loss in the history of official international matches, a record that remains to this day, and began a losing streak that would last a decade. The non-professional squad of players remained bonded by national pride, but American Samoa seemed destined to remain on the very bottom of the FIFA world rankings for many years to come.

British documentarians Mike Brett and Steve Jamison, making their feature debut, begin their chronicle of the team as it prepares for the 2014 event qualifiers. The governing body of American Samoa football reached out to their US head office and are assigned a new coach in the form of Thomas Rongen, an abrasive, occasionally ill-tempered but experienced journeyman from The Netherlands. The introduction of the ruddy-faced firebrand coach into the idyllic world of the tropical enclave fuels key moments of conflict in the film.

As the training sessions unfold and the channelling of the team spirit into a cohesive, competitive unit takes shape, Next Goal Wins succinctly diverges from the path most will assume it takes; the essence of the film emerges as the personalities and motivations of the key players. Most notable amongst them is goalkeeper Nicky Salapu, who comes out of retirement to quell the demons that haunt him from that fateful game against Australia, and Jaiyah Saelua, a roving, statuesque defender who hails from the nation’s acknowledged third gender, the Fa’afafine, and who represents the only transgender player in international soccer. Perhaps most moving will be Coach Rongen’s personal revelations and the impact the island and its people have on his fractured soul.

Having artfully engaged the hearts of their audience with insightful, compassionate storytelling, Brett and Jamison allow the three qualifying games to unfold with a minimum of filmmaking overkill. With the ultimate aim being to just not lose and, God willing, score that elusive goal, the stakes could not be lower by feel-good movie standards. That the outcome should prove to be edge-of-the-seat thrilling and so deeply affecting is a testament to the skill of the first-time filmmakers and the profound humanity of the on-screen subjects.