Mavoko excited to play in his first grand final

By PARKER TAMBUA
LAE Tigers halfback Jamie Mavoko is excited to play in his maiden Digicel Cup grand final in his debut season at the semi-professional level.
The Digicel Cup rookie, from Lorengau, Manus, is a product of Port Moresby Rugby Football League club Kone Storm.
Mavoko had been on Tigers coach Stanley Tepend’s radar last year.
He was given the opportunity to join the Lae Biscuit Company-sponsored side in the pre-season as a replacement for SP Hunters halfback Charlie Simon.
He was named as man of the match in the Tigers’ major semifinal win over Mendi Muruks at the Oil Search National Football Stadium on Sunday.
“I am excited that I’ll be playing in the Digicel Cup grand final in two weeks’ time,” Mavoko said.
“This is my debut year in this competition and I know that not many young players get an opportunity to play on a big stage like the Digicel Cup grand final.
“So I’m thankful that we’ve come this far.”
The Tigers will have this week off while they await the winner of Sunday’s preliminary final between Mendi Muruks and Waghi Tumbe.
Mavoko thanked his family who cheered him on in the major semifinal.
“It was great to come back to Port Moresby and play in front of my family and friends,” he said.
Meanwhile, coach Tepend said at the start of the season that Mavoko was a great replacement for Simon.
“I was surprised that none of the Port Moresby-based teams had picked him up, we’ve had our eyes on him for the last couple of years now,” Tepend said.
“We were still surprised at the start of the year to see him without a club, so I spoke to him and he left his local club to join us.
“He’s exactly what we need, similar to Simon.”