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Round 3: Muruks, Tigers and Mioks take Early Lead

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Its early days for the Digicel ExxonMobil Cup, with the competition set for round four this weekend. After Round 3 of the Digicel ExxonMobil Cup, the Mendi Muruks, Lae Snax Tigers and the Enga Mioks, sit undefeated on the ladder, with the Muruks first, the Tigers second and the Mioks third, with the Port Moresby Vipers rounding off the top four.

Big wins by the top three teams over the weekend with the Muruks beating the Gurias in Lae 18-02. The Tigers at home in Lae beat the Hagen Eagles 32-02 and the Mioks handed the Sepik Pride
their first loss with a 32-06 win over the Pride in Wabag.

In Port Moresby the home side Port Moresby Vipers edged past the Hela Wigmen in a match that was frustrating and unsettling for fans that turned up, both teams with a mountain of errors
and penalties, with stoppages throughout the match, killing the momentum and creating suspense.

Despite the string of errors the Vipers managed to scrape through in the final two minutes to win the match 18-14.

The Wigmen were enjoying a slim two point lead with the scoreline at 14-12 in their favor, with two minutes remaining. The match seemed to be a sure win for the reigning premiers, but in the 78th minute a string of passes led to winger Benson Dabire on the right edge, Dabire passing back inside for Center Gilmore Paul to dive over for the match winner. A conversion by Vipers half back Nicky Hasu extended the lead to 18-14 for the win.

The Hela Wigmen, last years premiers are winless heading into the fourth round. The Wigmen have a draw and two losses in the first three opening rounds, a tough start for the 2022 Digicel Cup Premiers.

In other matches the Central Dabaris beat the Kimbe Cutters 16-10 in Port Moresby, while the Goroka Lahanis and the Gulf Isou drew 14 all in Goroka.

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Rugby League

Hunters Desperate for Win at Home

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It will be the SP PNG Hunters second home game of the season, at the Santos National Football Stadium this Saturday, 29th April when they host the Mackay Cutters in Round 7 of the QRL Hostplus Cup. Kickoff is at 3pm.

The Hunters will have plenty to play for when they run out to a home crowd this weekend, having fallen short to the Burleigh Bears in Round 6 last week. The Bears ran out to a big early lead having played with 90% of possession in the opening stages of the match. Starved of possession and field position, the Hunters had no chance to answer back as Burleigh dominated proceedings.

The Hunters had just three sets in the first quarter of the game, highlighting the lopsided nature of the contest. As the possession stat balanced out, the PNG side showed they can match it with anyone in the Hostplus Cup competition. They made the most of their rare opportunities in attack to score four well-worked tries against a highly experienced and confident Burleigh outfit.

The Hunters will be without suspended five-eighth Sakias Komati this week but will be confident of returning to the winners circle against the 14th placed Cutters. The last time these sides met was in Round 20 last year, when the Hunters produced one of the performances of the season. Down on the scoreboard with just minutes remaining, a length of the field try in the 77th minute clinched the result for the Hunters to ensure they finished the 2022 season on a high.

Current Hunters players Rodrick Tai, Judah Rimbu, Ila Alu and Brandon Nima were instrumental to that result and shape as key players for PNG again, this week.

The Cutters will travel to Port Moresby for Saturday’s match on the back of a 42-16 thumping at the hands of Norths Devils. Two sinbins to Cutters players Kyle Schneider and Sean Mullany made the task all too difficult for Mackay in that game as Norths ran in seven tries against a depleted defensive line.

Mackay have made a host of changes to their Round 6 losing side and will be desperate to get their season back on track with a win this weekend.

Player to Watch

Epel Kapinias might’ve finished on the wrong side of the scoreboard last week but he played out a career game himself to be one of the Hunters best in Round 6.

Starting in the middle at prop, Kapinias played 75 minutes straight for Head Coach Stanley Tepend and refused to take a backwards step in the face of a red-hot Burleigh Bears side.

With an engine that belies his hulking frame, Kapinias was a force on both sides of the ball as the Hunters chased a miracle comeback.

His strength through contact in yardage is evident with Kapinias registering half his total running metres from that game in post-contact. He busted five tackles and broke the line once on his way to his first try of the season and his fifth in his Hostplus Cup career. Kapinias also made 24 tackles with just one miss to show his worth in defence, too.

At just 24 years of age and approaching 50 games in the Queensland Cup, Kapinias’ best football is still ahead of him. The experience he is getting as a leader in the Hunters forward
pack will hold him in good stead as he finds his feet in the Hostplus Cup competition.

Coach’s Comments

Head Coach Stanley Tepend was understandably disappointed with last week’s performance and is looking forward to a response on Saturday.

“It’s obviously been a disappointing last few weeks,” said Tepend.

“Full credit to Burleigh who played a great game, but we just lacked energy and intent right from the kick off. We just weren’t there last week but the boys are learning quickly that in this competition you have to be ready to turn up every week.”

Tepend said his side has focussed on being accountable for individual performances this week.

“We’ve had a look at our individual preparation – what we do throughout the week, on gameday, how we’re preparing ourselves for the game. We need to be accountable for our own actions and make sure we’re all on the same page.”

“We’ve focussed on staying in our systems and being more resilient when things don’t go our way. We know we’ve got points in us but we just need to not panic and trust our defensive systems.”

Team List

  1. Morea Morea
  2. Siki Konden
  3. Brandon Nima
  4. Rodrick Tai
  5. Solo Wane
  6. Joshua MIre
  7. Jamie Mavoko
  8. Junior Rop
  9. Wesser Tenza
  10. Epel Kapinias
  11. Sherwin Tanabi
  12. Julius Yakoba
  13. Ila Alu (captain)
  14. Judah Rimbu
  15. Tom Moide
  16. Henry Noki
  17. Koso Bandi
  18. Benji Kot
  19. Sanny Wabo
  20. Trevor Solu
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Sport

QRL Round 6 Preview: SP PNG Hunters v Burleigh Bears

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The SP PNG Hunters are back in Australia this weekend when they take on the Burleigh
Bears at UAA Park, Gold Coast in Round 6 of the QRL Hostplus Cup. Kick off is at 3pm on
Saturday, 22nd of April.
It’s been a short week for the Hunters who returned to Port Moresby following their
disappointing loss to the Northern Pride last weekend. The travel to and from Papua New
Guinea means the Hunters observed a restricted training schedule this week, but no doubt
they will be eager to take the field on Saturday and respond to their Round 5 loss.
Despite the result, there were plenty of positives for the Hunters to take away from last
week’s match against the Pride. The PNG-based side showed that when they hold the ball
and control their discipline, they can pile on the points quickly.
They also produced some compelling defensive efforts on their own try line to repel an
expansive Pride attack. It often took multiple repeat sets for the Pride to crack PNG’s line,
and if the Hunters can limit their opponents attacking chances, they will be confident in
defending their line.


Player to Watch
PNG Hunters skipper Ila Alu stood tallest last week in a beaten side, playing out an inspired
53 minutes through the middle to be one of the Hunters best.
Alu took 13 carries for 110 metres (35 in post-contact) last week to be the only forward to
notch 100+ running metres against the Pride. His ability to hit a hole in the line and time his
runs smartly with hooker Wesser Tenza makes Alu a difficult task for defending middles. He
is strong through contact and has great late footwork that allows Alu to either break
through the tackle (four tackle busts last week) or find his front to win a quick play-the-ball
for his team. An Alu carry is often the trigger for Tenza to scoot from dummy-half on the
following tackle.
Alu’s point of difference though is the ballplaying option he provides PNG around the ruck.
He is a key member of the spine when the Hunters shift the ball through the backline, and
as he develops combinations with the players around him, Alu’s value will only increase.
Team List

  1. Morea Morea
  2. Brandon Nima
  3. Benji Kot
  4. Rodrick Tai
  5. Solo Wane
  6. Sakias Komati
  7. Jamie Mavoko
  8. Junior Rop
  9. Wesser Tenza
  10. Epel Kapinias
  11. Sherwin Tanabi
  12. Julius Yakoba
  13. Ila Alu (captain)
  14. Trevor Solu
  15. Tom Moide
  16. Koso Bandi
  17. Henry Noki
  18. Sanny Wabo
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Sport

Hunters lose to Tigers in first home game of 2023 season

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The SP PNG Hunters were handed their first loss of the 2023 Hotplus Cup season in front of their home crowd at the Santos National Football Stadium on Saturday.

Hunters took an early lead 20 minutes into the match but were playing catchup towards the back-end of the game.

In a similar fashion to last weekend’s clash against the Souths Logan Magpies, the Hunters fell short in their try conversions.

Despite having scored seven tries on the day, they managed only four out of seven kick conversions.

Their opponents, the Brisbane Tigers, managed six tries and converted five out of six while an additional two penalty conversions helped them to a 38-36 victory against the Hunters.

It was a valiant effort at best.

Despite the high scoring match, Hunters started with 12 men in the opening 12 minutes after a sin bin to Sherwin Tanabi; and towards the end of the first half, Sakias Komati was given 10 minutes in the sin bin.

Both men penalized for a professional foul.

The Hunters scored first in the 5th minute through Solo Wane, but a missed conversion by Sakias Komati held the hunters at 4-0.

The Brisbane Tigers replied through a four pointer from Brayden Torpy, a successful kick conversion got the tigers in front 6-4.

The Hunters snatched back the lead in the 18th minute through fullback Morea Morea his conversion from the kick stretched their lead to 10-6.

Two more tries to Brandon Nima and Julius Yakopa and a failed conversion by Morea Morea left the scores at 18-6 in favor of the Hunters.

Tigers Max Lehmann scored in the 34th minute, a successful conversion bought the score to 18-12 Tigers,.

Tristan Hope’s converted try in the 37th minute tied the score at 18-18 before a Tigers penalty conversion took the lead from the Hunters 20-18 in to the half time break.

Both teams took charge in the second half exchanging tries at each end of the field. George Jennings opened the scoring in the second half for the Tigers with an unconverted try for a 24-18 lead.

Morea Morea scored his second try in the 51st minute this time a successful conversion by Morea leveling the scores at 24 all.

Max Lehmann scored his second converted try and the Tigers again took the lead 30-24 in the 64th minute.

A converted try by Captain Ila Alu in the 68th minute once again levelled the scores 30-30.

Max Lehmann with his hat trick converted try in the 71st minute snatched back the lead for the Tigers 36-30, a penalty conversation by Tristan Hope in the 76th minute extended the teams lead to 38-30.

With just over a minute to go before full time Morea Morea unleashed another individual brilliant effort, breaking through unscathed for the hunters final try; his hat trick met with a standing ovation but despite his kick conversion the team fell short by two points ending the match 38-36.

The Hunters going down 38-36 to the Brisbane Tigers.

In his post match interview, Hunters Coach Stanley Tepend, described the match as high scoring however, admitting that the hunters had a problem one the defense and conversions.

“It was a high scoring match but the Hunters managed to play right through to the end, but we still have a lot of work to do we still need to tighten up in defense and discipline as well.

“We played with 12 men in the first half and towards the second half; we have a bye next week and we can regroup, but I will bring the loss down to discipline, we are playing well, we were looking sharp but we need to tidy up our discipline,” Tepend said.

Depite an early awareness by supporters on the shorfalls in goal kicking, Tepend says his goal kickers need more practice.

“Goal kicking and errors, we need to spend more time on it in training, we have been scoring tries enough for a win but we need to work on our discipline,” Tepend said.

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Motherhood and Rugby League

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After finding out she was going to be a mother last year, Sera Koroi’s hopes of playing for PNG in the Women’s Rugby League World Cup were gone.

However, when the tournament was postponed to 2022, it turned out to be a blessing for the New Irelander as she was selected for the Orchids, and her baby is now a year old.  

“His first birthday was just a week ago. It was pretty hard (being away) but he won’t remember it when he gets older and that puts my mind at ease and it will be a big celebration when I go back,” Koroi said.

The 20-year-old, PNG-Fijian was a standout for the Orchids in their last two matches playing at Five-Eight.

A natural ball runner, whose tackle-busting runs are now highlighted in countless social media posts shared especially by PNG women.

When asked about her thoughts on Women’s Rugby League in PNG, she said it is reflected in the success of the Orchids.

 From losing all their matches in the 2017 World Cup to now being a win away from securing a spot in the 2021 World Cup Grand Final.

She also spoke of how the Orchids’ success can inspire the younger generation in PNG, especially young women who are chasing their dreams of having a professional career as well as starting a family.

“We have so many mums here, daughters, sisters, and wives – and it inspires (us) the younger generation to chase our dreams,” she said.

Meanwhile, PNG will line up against host nation England in their final pool match this Thursday.

The Orchids are outside favorites but Coach Ben Jeffries believes they can be a force if they stick to their brand of footy.

“We are putting our best team forward to face England. We are here to compete,” Jeffries said.

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Rugby League

Orchids Name World-Cup Squad

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PNGRFL has officially announced the 23-Woman Squad of the Santos PNG Orchids for the Women’s Rugby League World Cup.

PNG-Based players and staff will depart for Brisbane tomorrow (Monday 10th) to join the Australian-based players before they travel to England on Wednesday (12th).

Coach Ben Jeffries said the recent Prime Minister’s XIII loss to Australia has provided valuable indicators the team must work on leading into the World Cup.

“The learnings we took out of PM’s XIII were that we need to focus on both attack and defence, and the defensive components will intensify once we get to the UK,” Jeffries said.

The Orchids will play a warm-up match against English Women’s Grand Finalists York City Knights on the 20th before their opening pool match against Canada on the 1st of November.

“Our pre-tournament camp in England will allow us to acclimatize, bond, play a trial game and work hard on the aspects we need to focus on to ensure we’re ready for the tournament,” Jeffries said.

The Orchids will line up against Canada on the 1st of November, Brazil on the 5th, and England on the 9th of November.  

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Tepend Clears Air on Segeyaro

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Kumuls Coach Stanley Tepend has cleared the air on rejected Kumuls Hooker James Segeyaro saying the reason for him missing out on selection was based on the current form of players that can cover the hooker and utility position in the 24-man squad.  

Tepend said it is important for the Kumuls to build a winning combination from the Pacific Test and it was important to pick the best team for the World Cup.

“We can only pick limited players in certain positions,”

“As a team, I think we’ve picked the best that we can considering the factors, injuries and all those sorts of stuff,” Tepend said.

A dejected Segeyaro took to social media last week after Tepend told him he would not be part of the Kumuls World Cup campaign.

“I felt like I had done enough to make the side. Fighting back into an NRL system, being fortunate enough to play for Manly this year alongside some of the best in the game and spend the full season playing my heart out for Blackdown,” Segeyaro said in an Instagram post.

PNG fans also took to social media, calling on the PNGRFL to reconsider the decision on Segeyaro saying his experience is what the Kumuls need for the tournament.

This is not the first controversial selection case for Segeyaro. In 2015, Segeyaro said in a TV interview that he would never play for the Kumuls again after he claimed his father, the late Iffysoe Segeyaro was not given the respect he deserved from PNG Rugby League.

However, he would make amends and won back the support from PNG when he starred in the 2017 World Cup. Since then, off-field incidents have kept him out of the NRL until this year when he was called in to play for Manly in Round 20.

Coach Tepend says there will always be respect for James Segeyaro and what he has done for the Kumuls jersey, adding Segeyaro will be considered for future representative duties.

“We haven’t closed the door on James for future games,”

“We respect him and what he’s done for Kumuls in the past,” Tepend said.

Meanwhile, Betfred Champions Player of the Year, Edwin Ipape, is expected to wear the number 9 jersey when the Kumuls take on 2nd placed Tonga on the 19th.

Ipape finished off a wonderful season, helping his team to a victory in the Betfred Champions Grand-Final and securing a spot in the Super League.

Hunters Hooker Wesser Tenza on the other hand has been consistent in the Hostplus Cup for the PNG Hunters, however, Watson Boas will most likely fill the utility role.

“It sucks, I’m disappointed – gutted actually. But I’m still going to be cheering for the boys from home nonetheless,” Segeyaro said.

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Kumuls World Cup Squad Announced

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Kumuls Coach Stanley Tepend has named his 24-man squad to travel to the United Kingdom this Friday ahead of the 2022 Rugby League World Cup.

The 24-man squad has 7 players from the 2017 World Cup, who will add the needed experience when PNG takes on Tonga, who is currently ranked 2nd in the Rugby League World.

Coach Tepend says confidence is high heading into the World Cup because of the in-form players they have on the roster.

Alex Johnston is a certain start at fullback with high-flying Xavier Coats and speed man Jimmy Ngutlik on the wings. The centre pairing of Justin Olam and Nene McDonald will be a strike weapon for the Kumuls.

Following the success of the Pacific Test, Coach Tepend will likely stick to Lachlan Lam and Kyle Laybutt to steer the attack with Watson Boas as the backup. Edwin Ipape and Wesser Tenza will share the dummy-half duties while Dan Russel, Nixon Putt, McKenzie Yei and Wellington Albert to lead the forward pack.

With the Australian-based players arriving last Saturday in Port Moresby, the team will link up with the UK-based players before their opening pool match on the 19th.

Rhyse Martin is likely to be named Captain.

The 24-Man PNG Kumuls Squad;

Wellington Albert (London Broncos)

Jacob Alick (Gold Coast Titans)

Kevin Appo (PNG Hunters)

Watson Boas (Doncaster)

Xavier Coates (Melbourne Storm)

Edene Gebbie (Townsville Blackhawks)

Edwin Ipape (Leigh Centurions)

Zev John (CQ Capras)

Alex Johnston (South Sydney Rabbitohs)

Lachlan Lam (Leigh Centurions)

Kyle Laybutt (Townsville Blackhawks)

Nene McDonald (Leigh Centurions)

Rhyse Martin (Leeds Rhinos)

Sylvester Namo (PNG Hunters)

Jimmy Ngutlik (Western Suburbs Magpies)

Justin Olam (Melbourne Storm)

Nixon Putt (CQ Capras)

Daniel Russel (Brisbane Tigers)

Jeremiah Simbiken (Redcliffe Dolphins)

Rodrick Tai (PNG Hunters)

Sherwin Tanabi (PNG Hunters)

Wesser Tenza (PNG Hunters)

Emmanuel Waine (PNG Hunters)

McKenzie Yei (CQ Capras)  

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