Coach hopeful of PNG’s chances for under 19 qualifiers

By PATRICIA KEAMO
THE Under-19 national women’s cricket team have an advantage over other countries as Papua New Guinea continue to make the most of their early preparations for the World Cup qualifiers, says an official.
Head coach Kath Hempenstall, who arrived in Port Moresby last week, kicked off preparations for the U19s and the senior women’s team for their respective World Cup qualifiers.
She told The National that preparations would be exciting as this would be the first International Cricket Council U19 Women’s World Cup.
“It’s a great opportunity for our players to go and test themselves against some really strong opposition,” Hempenstall said.
“It will also be great to get some experience on going on tours, and playing cricket in different conditions in another country.”
She said plans were in place for a training camp prior to the tournament in Indonesia in July.
“We have a few months leading up to the tournament, so we’re just trying to work on the basics, it’s probably the main thing we will do with the U19s,” Hempenstall said.
“It’s all about getting our basics up to scratch and make sure that we’re gelling as a squad.
“We’ve got a good amount of time to train together as a squad which is probably an advantage over a lot of other teams.
“In a lot of other countries the players are far spread, so they don’t actually get that opportunity.
“That’s really positive for us.
“My plan is to get the girls to improve on the basics, and learning cricket.
“It’s important to get them to learn as much as they can, which they will just by training together, working with the coaches and getting the experience to play internationally.”