Eagles, Tumbe match put off

THE Mt Hagen Eagles trial match against the Waghi Tumbe, which was scheduled for this weekend, has been postponed indefinitely due to travel restrictions imposed by the Government following the Covid-19 surge in the country.
Eagles manager Bob Pakindi told The National yesterday that Government restrictions would not allow either teams to travel between Western Highlands and Jiwaka to play.
Pakindi said the Eagles would write to the Western Highlands health authority to seek approval to host a trial match.
“We were supposed to play the Waghi Tumbe but unfortunately the Covid-19 situation didn’t help and we had to postpone it indefinitely,” he said.
“The restrictions don’t allow either us (Eagles) or the Tumbe to travel between the provinces.
“We had to dismiss the players in camp.
“We sent them home when the trial was postponed. The players will return to camp when we get an approval from the health authorities and the date for the trial is confirmed.
“For now, we will all wait for an approval.”
He said the Eagles had 37 players in the train-on squad who had been in training since January.
Pakindi said the squad would be trimmed down to a final squad of 25-30 players after all the trials were completed.
“We are only looking forward to the trials to finalise our squad,” he said. “Once we get the green light, we will have our trials and announce the final squad.”
The Eagles squad was selected from local competitions within the province and some from the Coca-cola Ipatas Cup.
After missing out on the finals last year, the club is aiming to improve its performance and earn a playoff spot this year.