Cats face Koboni test

By ROBSON AKIS
THIRTEEN Plus Cats face another tough challenge when they face Koboni in round three of the Moni Plus-sponsored Port Moresby Australian Football League (POMAFL) competition at the Colts Oval on Sunday.
The Cats are coming off their first tough test last week in their 21-point loss (41-20) to star-studded reigning premiers West Eagles.
Koboni are another star-studded side, comprising national representative Stanis Susuve, John James Lavai, Amua Pirika, Paul Philip, Brendan Beno, Max Lavai, Jason So-on, Hapeo Bobogi, David Topeni and Douglas Lai Jr.
These men are in the frame for the next International Cup tournament which is still on hold due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
New Cats coach Samuel Lailai Ila will again have a tough time matching his players against Koboni’s Papua New Guinea Mosquitoes stars.
But being a prolific ball runner and slippery wingman for Koboni in his playing days in the late 1980s and 1990s, Ila knows where to hit hard to stifle the opposition.
Ila will probably have a psychological advantage over his opposite Blacky Brandan, who is still learning the ropes as new Koboni coach.
The Cats’ main point of attack will be Greg Ekari, a dynamic left-footed Mosquito stalwart with a powerful delivery of balls from midfield and the centre square.
The former two-time West Eagles premiership winner (2019 and 2020) will be a tower of strength for the young Cats outfit, which is made up of former De La Salle Secondary School students.
If the dynamic Kerema native is not contained, he will cause a lot of headaches for Koboni.
But Koboni are a quality team with a wealth of skills and experience, and they rarely lose two games in a row.
Their loss last week was attributed to a lack of fitness. In the earlier match on Sunday, Dockers are expected to have an easy outing against Alavana Swans, of Central’s Hula village.
In tomorrow’s match, Gereka Bombers — who had a morale-boosting win over Alavana Swans last week — face an up-hill battle against the Bismarck Maritime-sponsored Eagles.
Unless the Bombers have some tricks up their sleeves, the Eagles will have no problem in keeping their unbeaten record intact.
The women’s competition also begins tomorrow with Concept-sponsored Koboni facing Eagles in the season-opening match at 2pm.
The other confirmed women’s team, the Dockers, are on a bye this weekend while other sides have yet to confirm their participation.
Meanwhile, POMAFL vice-president Mathew Pulah warned all teams to turn up early for matches to be played as per schedule.
“AFL matches are played over a standard time of 20 minutes per quarter with five-minute intervals which should equate to about one hour, 30 minutes per match,” he said.
“We have been cutting down time to 15 or 12 minutes per quarter because teams have been turning up late for games.”