Mire sinks Dabaris

Sports

By PARKER TAMBUA
A LATE Joshua Mire field goal helped visitors Lae Tigers snatch a 21-20 win over Central Dabaris in round 12 of the Digicel Cup in Port Moresby yesterday.
The Santos National Football Stadium clash looked certain to end in 20-20 draw when Dabaris winger Douglas Pirika scored a try to level the scores one minute from fulltime.
But Dabaris centre Makara Hura failed to field a Mire restart which set the stage for the late field goal.
Dabaris coach Steven Gunbua said after the game that silly mistakes had contributed to the loss.
“They can prove costly in a close game like this and we paid the price,” he said.
“Our defence was good, unlike our attack.
“We had plenty of opportunities close to the Tigers’ tryline but we failed to convert them into points.
“We need to improve on our attack going forward.”
Meanwhile, Tigers coach Oscar Tonga praised Mire for the clutch play.
Morea Morea Jr gave the Dabaris an early lead with a penalty goal before halfback Lote Kuman crossed over for the hosts in the 18th minute which saw them lead 8-0. The Tigers responded five minutes later with a try to forward Micah Tom. Miria failed to convert as they trailed 4-8.
The defending champions hit the lead on the stroke of halftime when winger Joe Honk scored in the corner. Mira’s conversion saw the Tigers lead 10-8 at the break. The Dabaris levelled the scores in the 50th minute through a penalty goal by Morea before Steven Tai extended the home side’s lead to 16-10.
The Lae Biscuit Company-sponsored Tigers regained the lead when Aigaewa Palo and Emil Benjamin scored back-to-back tries before Pirika levelled the scores with an unconverted try.
Results: Sat, July 23 – Gurias 20 Mioks 12, Vipers 18 Eagles 14, Muruks 30 Cutters 26; Sun, July 24 – Tumbe 10 Isou 8, Wigmen 22 Lahanis 12, Tigers 21 Dabaris 20.