Hunters move up

By ISAAC LIRI
THE SP PNG Hunters moved up to seventh spot with a gritty 20-10 victory over the Burleigh Bears yesterday.
Coach Michael Marum described the clash as “a tough one” in front of a vocal crowd of 8255 at the National Football Stadium for the round 20 Q-Cup fixture.
It wasn’t plain sailing for the Hunters early on with the visitors taking a 10-6 lead into halftime but captain Ase Boas, pictured, led a side buoyed by a partisan crowd and desperate to stay in in the running for a top six finals berth.
Even though the hosts were the first to score in the 24th minute through a dummy half effort by Wartovo Puara Jr their 4-0 lead was overhauled by a length of the field effort by Bears speedster Troy Leo which saw the winger take a pass a couple of metres off his try line and set out on a weaving run which ended under the Hunters uprights.
Halfback Jamal Fogarty added the extras and the visitors led 6-4.
Leo capitalised on a botched clean-up by opposite Brendon Gotuno to plant the ball in the Hunters’ right corner.
Fogarty missed the sideline conversion and captain Luke Page’s side looked set to head into the break with a 10-4 lead but his Hunters counterpart Boas pegged the lead back to four-points with a penalty goal in the 39th minute.
The arm-wrestle continued in the second half with the Hunters finally able to get ahead when reserve hooker Charlie Simon emulated Puara with a try from a metre out to see the home side take a 12-10 lead after Boas slotted the conversion.
The pressure was on both sides particularly the Hunters with skipper Boas who felt compelled to question several of referee Liam Kennedy’s decisions.
The Hunters were given some more breathing room at 16-10 courtesy of centre Thompson Teteh who ran onto a pass breaking through the tackle of Bears three-quarter Dylan Phythian while carrying over winger Toby McIntosh for the side’s third try.
A desperate Bears, who are third on the ladder, outfit pushed hard to get on the scoreboard again but were held at bay by a determined Hunters who used a mix of grit and guile to hold them off.
Back-rower Nixon Put was put on report for a late hit on five-eighth Dallas Wells in the second half while Bears prop Matt White took exception to some niggle from Adex Wera and gave away a penalty.
Wera had the last laugh capping off the home side’s performance with a 75m run to dot down for the Hunters’ fourth four-pointer of the afternoon.
“It was a tough one for us, the Bears are one of the current top six teams in the competition and to get the result in the end keeps our finals hopes alive,” Marum said.
“They scored a couple tries on us early on after some missed tackles but we hung on and we defended well so credit to the boys.
“Depending on the other results by the other teams that were also on 20 points, the Jets and the Falcons also had wins and we’ve moved up on the ladder but we just have to back up and play well again next weekend,” Marum said of the Hunters, who face the Souths Logan Magpies at Davies Park in Brisbane on Sunday.
PNG Hunters 20 (Wartovo Puara Jr, Charlie Simon, Thompson Teteh, Adex Wera tries; Ase Boas con, pen) Burleigh Bears 10 (Troy Leo 2 tries; Jamal Forgarty con).
Rd 20 Results: Sat, July 28 – Dolphins 14 Jets 15, WM Seagulls 33 Capras 16, Falcons 15 Pride 14; Sun, July 29 – TH Seagulls 24 Cutters 22, Hunters 20 Bears 10, Magpies 6 Blackhawks 16, Devils 12 Tigers 44.