Fair learning curve for Pepes

COMMENTARY By ROBSON AKIS
LAST week, I had the chance to go and barrack for our PNG Pepes netball team that took part in the Pacific Netball Series at the Vodafone Arena in Suva, Fiji while on transit from Tonga and Samoa.
I was among a few Suva-based Papua New Guineans that turned up at the arena at Laucala to watch the match, including our High Commissioner to Fiji, Peter Eafeare.
The Pepes’ first match against hosts Fiji last Wednesday night was pathetic. Despite their impressive pre-match warm-up exercises that instilled pride and had our small PNG crowd cheering, our girls completely faltered and were blown away at the start at the first whistle.    
The Fijians were just too fast off the mark in the mid court that forced the Pepes into committing defensive errors.
Height advantage and sleek ball passing were other telling factors that had our girls reeling and grasping the empty air for ball possession.
Tremendous patriotic crowd support from the Fijians all around the arena for their team also left our Pepes totally confused and mesmerised without any cause for remedial.
Although the Pepes champion goal getter Lua Rikis matched the Fijian girls in height and stood out in her call of duty with perfectly time accurate shots when opportunities arose, she at most times was starved of the ball to give us any chance of cheering.
The Pepes trailed by huge margins during the four quarters and dearly lost the match 72-29.
The Pepes second match last Thursday night against the Cook Islands was an improved version of their match against the Fijians the previous night.
The match was closely contested and the closest the Pepes got to was in first quarter when they trailed by a point (18-17).
But in the remaining three quarters the Pepes failed to maintain the closeness of the game and eventually lost 64-59.
I never watched the Pepes match against Samoa as I was already in Nadi to get a flight back to Port Moresby.
Perhaps, there is no cause for regret for the Pepes’ poor performance as there was obvious bias in the manner in which the matches were arbitrated by the Australian and New Zealand umpires against our girls.
Our girls were unnecessarily penalised and gave away possessions on numerous occasions for a mere unintentional body contact while in contest for ball possession.  
Fair enough Pepes, keep holding your posture high with pride! It surely was a fair learning curve and a good baptism of fire for the new coach Mona-Lisa Leka.
What the PNG Netball Federation should now do is work towards ironing out some differences and misconceptions both at player and administration levels and at the same time think about recruiting and grooming young tall basketball girls from Gulf, Western and Morobe provinces to give the next generation of Pepes an added height advantage to fare well in future.
l Robin Akis is a former journalist and a teacher