PNG Pepes

The Pepes started off their campaign on a high, thrashing Canada 73-30 on Monday afternoon.

On day two, the Pepes went down to Zambia 61-45.

But the Pepes bounced back in the last two days of competition with a narrow 51-40 win over Botswana and then belting Singapore 61 – 37 last night.

Pepes coach, Unaisi Soroinikula Rokoura, stressed on the importance of being more consistent after the win against Singapore.

“We had a strong start and full concentration – the second quarter made a difference. We need to be more consistent,” said Rokoura.

The Papua New Guinea girls got off a slow start in the game due to a hasty Zambian team that got of to a flying start in the opening quarter.

However, Papua New Guinea quickly realised the pace and changed their game as they tried to make a comeback but Zambians put themselves on the line to take the lead in the first quarter with 17-9.

 The Pepes started off the 2016 Mission Foods Nations Cup on a positive note, thrashing Canada 73-30 yesterday.

“We need to release the ball and let the ball do the work – when you let the ball go, the ball does everything. Our team may be the highest ranked, but we are not being complacent.

“We won’t take any team lightly. If we become complacent, we tend to lose focus.

“We saw Team Singapore play earlier on today and we never underestimated the team. Our team is on par as Team Singapore – we win some, they win some,” said Mavara.

Netball PNG’s High Performance Coordinator, Mona-Lisa Leka, said the core of the team has been retained with the inclusion of U21 players; Serena Ovia and Jeperth Tulapi.

The team also includes players making a return to the national side in Marie Ottio and Rayleen Andrew.

Tiata Baldwin withdrew from the team due to a knee injury, said the coordinator.

This is the beginning of the Pepes’ preparations for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

The final team is:

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The 40, 00 plus people of Tambul valley are in danger of being cut off from Mount Hagen because a section of the highway leading up to the station was washed away.

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It was a shaky start from both sides in the opening minutes of the game but it was the visitors who found their rhythm first.

At the end of the first quarter, it was still anyone’s game with the score at 15-8 in favour of Victorian Fury.

Changes made by Pepes coach, Unaisi Rokoura in the second quarter bringing Tau Galewa into Wing Defence and Serina Ovia to Goal Keeper did little to stop the onslaught.

Victorian Fury shooters, Danni Phillips and Mikaela Vaughan continued to find the net easily piling on the points.

The three-day tournament is scheduled from March 5-7  at the Sir John Guise Indoor Stadium.

The Singapore National Team and 2015 Victoria State Championship team the Victorian Fury have been invited to take part. 

Pepes boasts youth and experience and consists of majority of regulars that have been participating in recent international events including the 2015 Pacific Games and Nations Cup.

The team has on board youngster Serina Ovia who will be making her debut for the Pepes. She plays a defender and is part of the U21 training squad.

The three day tournament from 5-7 March and will involve Pepes invitational squad, Singapore National Team and 2015 Victoria State Championship team the Victorian Fury. 

The Tri-Series is an initiative of Netball PNG and WaterAid funded by the Australian Government and helps to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD).

Netball PNG president Julienne Leka-Maliaki said they recognise the importance of partnerships with regional countries and thanked WaterAid for being very supportive.

The Pepes finished second at the tournament behind winners Northern Ireland. Six teams took part in the tournament.

“The girls did well despite having only 11 players. The board is very happy with the result which is an improvement from their performance at the last Nations Cup,” said Leka Maliaki.

She added that, going forward the team will continue to train and keep fit for upcoming international events scheduled for March next year.

Our girls took out silver after losing to Northern Ireland 52-41 to finish second in the tournament.

From the beginning, 12th world ranked Northern Ireland paired their top scorers Jenna and Kyla Bowman who proved effective as they raced to take the first quarter 16-4.

Pepes, 16th world ranked, piled on the pressure in the second quarter as goal shooter Tiata Baldwin paired up with captain Lua Rikis to tip the second quarter in PNG’s favour, nicking it 15-14.