Lahi upbeat against Morobe, Wawens bank on home game

Heading into the second match of round two, supporters in Morobe will experience a feast of football when the Kumul Petroleum National Soccer League (NSL)Northern Conference hosts four matches at the Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium tomorrow.
In the opening match, Morobe Wawens will play host to a vastly improved Laiwaden outfit followed by one of the form teams in the competition, Morobe United, taking on Lahi.
But general secretary Tinge Emuka said they were optimistic about their chances despite the players still grieving over the loss of Lahi Soccer Association president Geob Gariki.
“We will play our style of football and stick to the game plan, as there is nothing new to show,” Emuka said.
Wawens, after a loss against Besta PNG United over the weekend, are looking to tame the visitors and restore some confidence among their fans.
After a draw last weekend, Laiwaden coach Bob Morris will be looking to inspire his troops to take the game to the home team.
Wawens official Kossie Java highlighted the fact that Laiwaden were playing away and “I’m counting on my players to have a strong game against the visitors”.
“We must not let our supporters down,” Java said.
“We lost most of our games in round one, so we must give our best to win our remaining matches.”
The third match will see the youngsters from the Papua New Guinea Football Association Academy taking on Markham.
Coach Hans Gewabing said Markham had identified their weaknesses in the first round and were working on fixing them.
“We had chances to score goals but our strikers could not finish off,” Gewabing said.
“This is an area I’ve identified and we’re working on fixing it, along with our midfield.
“Our backline is another area we are working on.
“We will put up a good game against Besta after we ended our previous meeting with a 3-3 draw.”
The main game (3pm) will see Oceania Football Confederation Champions League hopefuls City facing the Tusbab Stallions.
It will be a different story when the reigning NSL champions take on the Stallions in front of their home crowd.
City coach Peter Gunemba will be counting on his son, Raymond, and Nigel Dabinyaba to lead the charge.
The Stallions chances will depend on how skipper Max Sengum leads his team with the assistance of Ricky Wadunah, Roland Conn, and Barthy Kerobin, who must all chip in if they are to win the match.