Fiji and Papua New Guinea drew 3-all in their FIFA World Cup 26 Oceania Qualifiers match in Port Moresby last night Fiji time.
PNG scored 1st just two minutes into the match when the home team opened the scoring – Joseph Joe taking advantage of a loose ball to drive home from inside the area.
They held the lead for much of the first period, as Fiji toiled in attack, unable to deal with their opponents’ aggressive press.
Thomas Dunn scored to level 1-1.
Ati Kepo took PNG up to 2-1 soon after.
To their credit, Fiji hit back strongly after the break and were gifted a great chance to equalise from the penalty spot. Roy Krishna – so often Fiji’s hero – made no mistake, smashing past Dave Tomare to make it 2-2.
Raymond Gunemba of PNG delivered a powerful header that found the back of the net, taking PNG to 3-2.
However, just seconds later, Fiji had the final say. Merrill Nand responded with a well-placed header, leaving Papua New Guinea in disbelief and ending the game in a dramatic 3-3 draw.
The result leaves Papua New Guinea still alive in Group A, but they will have to beat Solomon Islands on Sunday and hope for the best.
