Cook Islands are in the box seat with one round remaining in the Oceania Under 17 Men's Championship Preliminary.
Richard Anderson's team beat American Samoa 3-1 yesterday in Apia to make it back to back wins.
That gives them a maximum six points from two rounds, two clear of nearest rivals Samoa, who were held to a 1-1 draw by Tonga.
Cook Islands beat American Samoa 3-1 at the OFC Under 17 Men's Championship Preliminary. Photo: Oceania Football
Samoa need to beat Cook Islands in Friday's final round to finish atop the standings while a draw would be enough for the front-runners to seal their spot at next year's OFC Under 17 Championship in Tahiti.
Samoa coach Desmond Faaiuaso said his players need to refocus quickly.
"It's pretty tough for my boys but if we play well and we stick together as a team and play for the structure during the match it's very simple for us," he said.
"We're going to have a video analaysis for the Cooks team: how they're playing and their structure, playing style and all those things. We will work on their weaknesses."
"Our first match was our defensive side, it was ok, but on our strikers and our attacking side we need to improve on that area. Our game against Tonga we lacked in our defensive side. Tonight in training we will work on our defence and our finishing."
Cook Islands have history on their side after making it through qualifying to take part in the 2013 Oceania Championship in Vanuatu.
Samoa and Tonga drew 1-1 at the OFC Under 17 Men's Championship Preliminary. Photo: Oceania Football
