SP PNG Hunters

After their arrival yesterday (Aug 13), Coach Michael Marum spoke to the media saying, the team started off weak and finished on the same footing in New South Wales.

Though he was pleased with the team’s performance at the Piggabeen Sports Complex, Coach Marum was not one to mince words, as he said the team will be focusing on these minor hiccups as they prepare to meet the Wynnum Manly Seagulls this weekend.

The Hunters have steadily moved up the rungs after winning their last 5 games.

Their winning streak started in round 18 when they played against the Northern Pride on July 15^th.

After securing a 10-point victory, the Hunters took on the Norths Devils in Lae on July 22^nd during the round 19 country week game.

Playing for the first time in PNG’s second largest city, and in front of over 10,000 people, the Hunters trampled the Devils 32-10.

Back at the National Football Stadium, the Hunters mauled the Burleigh Bears 20-10 in round 20.

The PNG boys beat the Tweed Heads Seagulls 22-18 in New South Wales.

The Seagulls came on strong in the opening minutes of the Intrust Super Cup round 22 match with a try through Alex Grant.

An unsuccessful conversion left the scores at 0-4 until 13 minutes into the game and Kody Parsons put another one past the Hunters’ try line.

Rex Johnson converted the try for a 10-point lead.

5 minutes later, a flying Adex Wera responded and a successful conversion by captain Ase Boas narrowed the score margin.

Head Coach Michael Marum said he will undergo further tests, with hopes he can cleared for this Sunday’s match against the Tweed Heads Seagulls.

The SP PNG Hunters proved a class above the Magpies in Round 21 of the Queensland ISC competition; payback for the loss they suffered 14 matches ago.

Unfortunately, Watson Boas has suffered a right shoulder injury.

While he’s been named in the Round 22 clash against the Seagulls this weekend, Head Coach Michael Marum says the injury was a little more serious than he had initially thought.

Hukula said Coach Michael Marum has been emphasizing on line speed, which the team has been successfully implementing.

Line speed involves players or defenders working together as a straight line.

Discrepancies in speed will create gaps that the attacking team can easily exploit.

The SP PNG Hunters have won their past 4 games because of strong defense. 

Speaking to this newsroom after their round 21 match in Brisbane, SP PNG Hunters Assistant Coach, Nigel Hukula, said: “It was good to see consistency over the last couple of weeks, in particular with defense.

He mentioned this after their arrival at the Jackson’s International Airport this afternoon.

It was a great win yesterday and the SP PNG Hunters have achieved their goal of getting into the top 6.

Coach Michael Marum said though there were a lot of errors during the game, the boys had defended well.

“We’re focusing on our defense all throughout the past 3 or 4 weeks,” he stated.

“In the last 4 games we only allowed our opposition to score not more than 2 tries.”

The Hunters’ defense were too strong for the Magpies as they kept them at bay with a 12-point victory.

The SP PNG Hunters have maintained their winning streak as they thrashed the South Logan Magpies 18-6 this afternoon in Brisbane.

9 minutes into the round 21 game and the Hunters were the first to put a mark on the board through a penalty goal.

3 minutes later, Junior Rau registered the team’s first try of the match.

The Magpies have previously defeated the Hunters during their round 7 challenge at the National Football Stadium in April.

It was the April 22^nd home game that the host team was looking to get the upper hand. Unfortunately for them, the Magpies walked away with an 8-point victory.

13 games later, the SP PNG Hunters will be meeting the Souths Logan Magpies again, but this time at the Magpies’ turf at Davies Park, Brisbane.

“We have a good record at Davies Park. Played all our games there and won it so that’s the advantage there,” says Coach Michael Marum.

Saving the best for last, Adex Wera sprinted towards the Bears’ tryline for a comfortable 20-10 win.

The teams were evenly matched in the first 20 minutes of the game, testing each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

Senior player and hooker, Wartovo Puara Jnr, was the first to break the monotone with his second try for the 2018 Intrust Super Cup season.

Unfortunately, captain Ase Boas was unable to convert the try.

6 minutes later, the Burleigh Bears responded with a runaway try by Troy Leo.

The team is currently ranked third in the Intrust Super Cup competition with 26 points, while the SP PNG Hunters are ninth on the ladder with 20 points.

In last weekend’s round 19 game, the Bears beat the Central Queensland Capras 24-14, while the Hunters beat Norths Devils 32-10.

Sunday’s game is a must-win for the Hunters if they wish to make the top 6.

The team lists for round 20: