Marum hails duo for services

The National Sports

By PARKER TAMBUA
KUMULS coach Michael Marum has paid tribute to Papua New Guinea internationals Luke Page and Tommy Butterfield who announced their retirements from representative rugby league this year.
Marum told The National yesterday that one of Burleigh Bears front-rower, Page’s famous highlight in Kumuls colours was in 2019 Test against Great Britain in Port Moresby were he knocked out Lions captain James Graham right from a typically hard kick-off run.
The former SP Hunters coach said East Tigers hooker and one-time Hunter Butterfield also played with pride for PNG in his lone test and four international friendlies.
“I would like to thank both players for their contributions in representing our country,” Marum said.
“Both men had so much pride in the Kumul jersey and they played every game with their heart.
“Luke Page has been with the Kumuls for a very long time and he played 11 tests.
“He was definitely one of the strong runners in our pack.
“He always ran hard and tackled hard regardless of how big his opposition was and he always put his body on the line for PNG.
“One of his memorable Kumul moments was in the test against Great Britain when he knocked out Lions captain James Graham
“Definitely, that was the moment that gave the confidence boost to our team and we went on to win the match (28-10).
“Before that game, we had a plan and James Graham was one of our targets and Luke Page really executed it right from the first hit-up.”
Marum said PNG fans loved Page for his rugged hard running and little regard for personal safety and had endeared him with the nickname ‘White Kumul’.
He said Page was recently married and it was the right time for him to move on. He said Butterfield had also played for a very long time and that he had enjoyed his career.
“It’s unfortunate that we didn’t have any international fixtures this year due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic,” the Kumuls veteran said.
“We would have sent both players off on a high note with one more test match but it wasn’t meant to be.”