Taking baby steps toward the big leagues

Small Pacific nation kicks off plan to join soccer's international ranks

BRISBANE, Australia — Lloyd Owers recalls with fondness his initial visit from his home in England to the Marshall Islands, a small nation of five islands, 29 atolls and about 60,000 people situated in the western Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and Australia.

"I felt at home," the 33-year-old soccer coach said of his first impressions. "The community welcomed me with open arms."

Owers wasn't there as a widely traveled Brit checking it out as a tourist. He was appointed technical director of the Marshall Islands Soccer Federation in December last year, and was making his first official visit in August in that capacity.