Dogs rule in Popondeta
The National, Tuesday October 8th, 2013
By JACK AMI in Popondetta
THE Bulldogs edged challenger Oro Cross Back Spiders 5-4 for the Gary Juffa Cup in the Popondetta Rugby League grand final on Sunday.
The game proved to be the best grand final played in 13 years.
The teams showed true spirit and discipline.
The Bulldogs took the Gary Juffa Cup and the K2,000 prize after earlier taking out the minor premiership.
The Spiders pocketed K1,500.
Halfback Farapo Makura walked away with the man of the match award and the K100 that goes with it.
It was solid defence that enabled the Dogs to deny the opposition the major honour in front of more than 2,000 people.
Among them was major sponsor Oro Governor Gary Juffa, the provincial police commander and Oro provincial government officers.
Invited referees Guma Opi and Tony Kuni were responsible for controlling the grand final.
Early in the opening minutes, Bulldogs skipper and lock forward Manson Gawor’s individual effort saw him score from a magnificent backline move.
That was the only points of the first half as both sides struggled in the face of silly errors like dropped balls in opposition territory.
It was evident that the Spiders were underdogs as they forced play.
They were rewarded with the equaliser through centre Chris Ijiba and the scores stayed tied at 4-4 with 19 minutes remaining.
In the 70th minute mark Bulldogs replacement fullback John Mabol kicked a field goal to put his team ahead 5-4.
It was anybody’s game at that stage but the solid defence of the Bulldogs made the difference.
Spiders must be congratulated for coming from the tail end of the table to secure a grand final spot.
Bulldogs president Jeffrey Mea was disappointed with the performance of his players, saying they had not stuck to their game plan.
But he congratulated them for winning the final.
The best players for the Bulldogs were Makura, Mabol, Didimus Emboge, skipper Samuel Keko and Manso Gawor, while Sammy Boroba, Morris Kageni and Humphrey Emimie shone for the Spiders.
Association president Anko Vamage and schoolboys chairman Ali Kosky Senior were proud that the finals ended peacefully.
They thanked all the executives and sponsors.
In the reserve grade, the Tigers upset Bulldogs 7-6, while in the Under-19 grade the Bulldogs thrashed Medics 18-0 to take K1,000. The Medics took K800. Junior Ali Kosky was voted man of the match .
In the Kokoda Challenge Popondetta thumped Kokoda 18-0. The challenge was to identify, expose and promote talent in both districts.