PORT MORESBY, 18 JUNE 2018 (POST COURIER) – Lack of performance and hunger for a Kumuls spot has seen two experience PNG Hunters players miss out selection for the Pacific Test.
Wartovo Puara Jr and Ase Boas who have been sharing the captaincy duties for the Hunters this year have been overlooked for this year’s Pacific Test.
Kumuls coach Michael Marum has opted to go for only inform players and a team dominated by forwards with only a utility player to be on the bench.
He said Puara and Boas (Ase) had struggled a bit in the season and against an inform Fiji Bati he had the hard task of dropping the two players,
However he added that they still have a chance to return because this was just a one-off Test match.
He also said that their last chance to make a crack at the Kumuls team was when the Hunters went down to the Ipswich Jets 8-6 l on Friday. Marum said he didn’t see that hunger for the Kumuls spot.
“They (Ase and Wartovo) struggled throughout the year. We can see that, we are up against a big Fiji side … they went as far as the semi final last year and those particular players their last night’s performance (against the Jets) didn’t help as well,” Marum said.
“I thought they were poor in their performance last night (Friday), I thought they would fight for a spot in the team but there was no hunger. There is still opportunity for them to come back into the side. It’s a one-off game and we cannot take in too many halves. We only need a utility player off the bench and Fiji has a big side.
The PNG Kumuls jersey will have the APEC 2018 logo on it to promote this very important event in PNG.
But on a high note, the Kumuls have nine PNG Hunters players named in the 18-man PNG Kumuls team to take on Fiji Batis in the Pacific Test in Sydney on Saturday.
The two Hunters players making their debut for the Kumuls are Rhadley Brawa and Junior Rau.
The duo joins fellow Hunters Adex Wera, Thompson Teteh, Watson Boas, Stanton Albert, Nixon Putt, Willie Minoga and Enoch Maki in the national side.
PNG Rugby Football League chairman Sandis Tsaka announced the team on Saturday at a media conference at the Gateway Hotel in Port Moresby.
Tsaka said apart from Richard Pandia who made his debut in last year’s Pacific Test against Cook Islands, the rest of the players are from the World Cup squad.
