Coach warns Hunters players

WITH a bye this weekend, PNG Hunters players have been told not to play in domestic competitions including the Digicel Cup.
Coach Michael Marum instructed his players after last Sunday’s round 18 Q-Cup win over the Burleigh Bears to take the week off with their families and loved ones before returning to camp tomorrow.
Sitting on top of the Q-Cup ladder on 30 points from 14 wins and three losses, the SP-sponsored franchise are expected to make the 2017 finals but what shape the team makes it into the playoffs is dependent on how they manage themselves throughout the course of the regular season.
“We’ve only got six games remaining and a squad of 23 available players and we don’t want to see our best players getting injured playing in other competitions because it will affect us,” Marum said. “We’ve told all our guys that just because it’s a bye there’s no reason to play in the Digicel Cup or other local competitions. These are unnecessary risks and we want to finish off the end of the Q-Cup season well.”
After Sunday’s 20-12 win over the Bears, Marum confirmed that there were no major injury concerns apart from three-quarter Adex Wera who is still recovering from a sternum injury sustained in round 16 against the Northern Pride.
Prop Enoch Maki has recovered from a bad left ankle sprain in their 14-10 loss to the Tweed Heads Seagulls in round 15.
The burly front-rower was been named in the extended squad for last round’s fixture at the NFS but not required.
Marum said there was no word yet from the QRL judiciary in terms of player citings and he was confident his men were did not have any cases to answer and he would have a full squad to pick from when naming his 17 to play the  Mackay Cutters on July 23 at the National Football Stadium.
Meanwhile, Marum also appealed to Hunters fans in the nation’s capital to join the team on a fan day scheduled for Saturday from 8am-10am at the Jack Pidik Park.