Asian flavour to the Games
By PETER PIA
You may only expect our PNG grassroots competing in the third PNG Games but it certainly to have people other than nationals in a side.
For team Enga there is an Asian flavour.
Three Filipinos form the engine room of Enga’s basketball side – and the people of Enga have taken ownership of them.
Led by veterans Gilbert Delatorre, Vincent Tiaman and Edison Balagtas, the three Filipino Engans caused a nail-biting one-point upset to West New Britain winning 54-53 before suffering a 70-60 dunking at the hands of Western.
The Filipinos are all teachers - two are at the Kopen and the other is at Wabag secondary.
They have been representing Enga since working there for the past three years..
“It’s our first time to play in the PNG Games but we have represented Enga side in Coca-Cola Ipatas basketball cup this year in Lae and two other games in the previous years,” Delatorre said.
“We are proud to be in Enga colours because we are here as Engans,” he said.
They said hospitality in Enga was friendly, especially with their team mates and officials.
“Sometimes media publicity has portrayed a bad image of Enga because of tribal fights, but Enga is good. Just see, we are there. We feel good with Engan basketballers, government and everyone.”
“As Engans, let us chat and socialise with the rest of the country, it’s PNG Games anyway,” Tiaman added.
Team captain Kenny Lombe applauded the tree players for their input in the team’s performance.

All for Moses Tau
By PETER PIA
THE race for the spotlight at the netball courts is being won hands down by Moses Tau. That hip-swaying, tamure singing star was at centre court conducting the flow of the game with his whistle.
He was sharp. Many spectators stood in awe of his presence. Tau yesterday said he joined his comrades from the PNG Sports Foundation in Port Moresby to control the games.
“I came here as a technical official to umpire and be part and parcel of the PNG Games by helping officials to develop the code, especially in the Highlands region,” he said. “Though I have been a musician since 1998, I still have my heart in netball. It’s a good game, I love it.”
He said taking part in such a women-dominated game is a way forward to cooperatively take forward the code.

Enga have a lot to offer to basketball
By PETER PIA
NOTHING apart from family and work means more to Enga basketball association president Kisam Tare, than the game.
Mrs Tare is picture here with her granddaughter Hope at Eriku courts yesterday.
She’s played it all her life – from primary school right through to university and now as principal of Wabag Secondary School.
And now, she’s pushing it with gusto, overseeing the building of one of the best courts in the province right in her backyard – the Wabag secondary school.
Her husband, former provincial Enga treasurer Clement Tare, “is the most wonderful man”, she says.
“I couldn’t be doing this without his approval and backing,” she said yesterday
There is a basketball association in Wabag but it is not affiliated to the national body.
She says that will be her goal for next year.
There are so many good players in Enga who miss out on national selection ,” she said pointing to her team beating Madang in yesterday’s game.

Kumho-RH storm to Pennants victory
DEBUTANTS Kumho-RH made it one to remember when they won the 2007 Ela-Avis Pennants at the Port Moresby Golf Club recently.
Despite fielding several new players to the popular annual competition, the team garnered 50.5 points, a comfortable five-point lead over DHL.
DHL might have consoled themselves by the fact that they were only team to beat Kumho-RH early in the season, by 4.5-2.5.
Kumho-RH took fourth position among the nine teams after the first round and never slipped lower.
After the fourth round, they were in third spot and thereafter, went pole position where they remained until the final round on Nov 11.
With a bye in the final round, they almost ensured themselves of the coveted title with an emphatic 7-0 win over Westpac in the eighth round on Oct 21.
The win also doomed Westpac to the bottom spot.
DHL, the only team with any real chance of overtaking Kumho-RH, found an uncooperative opponent in Steamship-JD Hayes and lost 3-4 on a very hot final day.
Last year’s champions, More Than Oil, teed off the season in unconvincing fashion, losing 3-4, and ended the season in third spot, two points behind DHL.
Apart from the title, Kumho-RH also had a couple of notables – 16-handicapper Lawrence Siong achieved a clean slate of seven victories in seven games while new-boy-on-the-block Jim Yap, playing off 25, registered the most convincing win of 8-7 over a hapless Chris Giddings.
Siong’s feat was only equalled by Graham Osbourne of More Than Oil.
Kumho-RH co-sponsor Michael Shim said the competition was tougher than in previous years in view of the smaller number of teams “which makes our victory even more memorable”.
He attributed their success to their never-say-die attitude and great team spirit which was clearly evident by the bar bill.