Gurias halt visiting Isou in round 10

By MICHAEL PHILIP
FULLBACK Ilias Stanley bagged three tries to help Rabaul Gurias crush visitors Gulf Isou 34-10 in round 10 of the Digicel Cup competition at the Kalabond Oval in Kokopo on Saturday.
Isou paired Eliakim Lukara with Chris Jerry in the centres against their former employers.
The Agmark-sponsored Gurias opened the scoring with a penalty goal through five-eighth Saki Peter to lead 2-0 four minutes in.
They continued their strong start with an unconverted try through second-rower Edward Goma to lead 6-0.
Isou responded as hooker Woods Kawage set up their first try under the uprights.
Halfback David Joseph added the extras to level the scores.
The Gurias restored their lead with a try each by Stanley and centre Joe Frank, and Peter kicked a conversion to give the hosts a 16-6 halftime advantage.
After the break, the Gurias applied more pressure which saw Stanley completing his hat-trick. Peter made sure of the conversions to extend the Gurias’ lead to 28-6.
Lukara gave Isou some hope when he crossed over for an unconverted try, but Gurias bench rake Nathan Tente ended any hopes of a fightback with a late try.
Gurias coach Francis Ray said the win was a result of the improvements they had made during training following their past two losses.
“Every player needs to improve each week,” he said.
“We’re looking forward to continuing the momentum against Goroka Lahanis this weekend.”
Meanwhile, Isou coach Roger Laka blamed a lack of self-belief for the loss.
But the SP Hunters legend said they would use the 24-point loss as motivation to improve against 2020 champions Hela Wigmen in round 12 at the Santos National Football Stadium in Port Moresby on Sunday.