Ligo rises to the top

FOURTHEEN-year-old Alexandria Nancy Ligo is turning heads playing for Snax Mermaids in the Port Moresby Netball Association premier grade competition.
Despite giving away years in experience to the majority of her opponents, the lanky Ligo has shown she has what it takes to be a first grader in the country’s leading netball competition.
The Tubusereia lass was promoted to the Mermaids top grade this season and learned and grown with each game. And playing with some of PNG’s best players including Japeth Tulapi, who made her first grade debut as a 14-year-old, Rayleen Andrew and Tau Galewa has allowed Ligo to learn from them.
Ligo’s parents Michael and Linda have been supportive and encouraging to help her balance her time between school and training. Netball is in the family with Ligo’s mother the president of POMNA.
“My mum and dad used to play basketball and volleyball in Port Moresby and at Tubusereia so that’s where I got interested in the game,” Ligo said.
She stands 172cm and has proven that she was not too young to be in first grade.
“I started playing netball in 2011 when I was six-years-old and linked up with Salvation Army Under-13 instead of U10 because of my height,” Ligo explained. “But I actually started in the Tubusereia village competition and then moved to POMNA.”
Ligo was selected last year at the National Champs in Lae and was on the train-on squad but missed out in the final selection for the SP Games in Samoa 2019.
“In my debut season we won the U13 premiership in 2011,” she said. “Actually I was asked by Auna Fonza Raukele (now Raukele Waves) to play in the premier division in 2018.
“This season I decided to join up with Mermaids and play in the U21 and off the bench shooter for the premier division.”
As a young player what is your future ambition in netball is to become a PNG Pepes to represent my country.
Alexandria’s first debut to participate in the National Championship was in 2016 when she represented Pom in the U13 squad.
Her second participation was in 2018 champs in Lae where she highlighted and caught the eyes of the national selectors to be on the Train-on squad.
She was awarded the Best Shooter and the MVP award in the U15.
“I don’t participate in other sports because I love my netball so much.
“Am fortunate that my parents erected a netball court at our house in the village so this gives me time to practise my shooting.”