Barras return home

By PATRICIA KEAMO
THE Kumul Petroleum Papua New Guinea Barramundis arrived yesterday in Port Moresby following their maiden Twenty-20 (T20) Cricket World Cup in Oman.
The 15-man squad, along with assistant coach and former Barramundi John Ovia, left Oman on Saturday and transited through Brisbane before arriving at Jackson International Airport at 3pm yesterday.
Ovia told The National that their T20 participation was an emotional one on which they would build.
“The experience was great, especially the first game where the Barramundis played Oman in their home town,” Ovia said.
“When we drove in, there were people waving and I could feel the pressure.
“But I knew we were representing more than eight million people, so we focused on the game and played.”
When asked about his emotional moment during the national anthem in PNG’s opening match against Oman, Ovia said it reminded him of his days as a player and how far the team had come in reaching the World Cup. “I represented the country in 1993, and thinking of those guys (past players) who worked really hard to play in the World Cup.
“Seeing the Barramundis on the world stage, I felt very emotional looking back to the years before and the former players who had worked so hard with me to reach the World Cup.
“I looked at the Barras standing with me singing the national anthem and I knew we got this far because we were capable of playing in this stage.
“Everybody was there to do their job and we played our best. In terms of bowling, Kabua Vagi and skipper Assad Vala played really well for us.
“For the team’s performance, I think we need to focus on our batting, bowling and fielding.
“If we put more work into those skills, we’ll be better and from that experience we will learn and move.”
Barramundis head coach Carl Sandri, Australian-based Chad Soper and Jack Gardner remained Down Under while the rest of the team had been cleared to reunite with their families after passing all their Coronavirus tests at the airport.