PNG Amoa reps assist juniors during school holiday trials

By MICHAEL PHILIP
NOT many will have that interest to give back to young kids what they know about any sport, PNG Amoa men’s squad member and silver medalist Koi Onner Jnr says.
Onner and a few PNG Amoa representatives had accepted the call from the PNG Volleyball Federation to coach juniors during a four-day school holiday trials in Port Moresby last week.
“It’s only fair as a senior player coming back here and share my experience to the young kids,” Onner told The National.
“For me to come back and give back to these juniors, it’s an honour. We have a lot of kids coming in here from different backgrounds just because they love the sport.
“For them to see us here as senior players training them, it will surely boost their interest in learning and playing the sport.
“So we here act as a motivation to them, so they will develop that mentality that they too want to be like us in the future.
“Unfortunately for me, I didn’t have such opportunity during my time to go through such development pathway.
“It is a privilege for these young juniors to train against senior players and best coaches in the country. I am very happy to give back, I am willing and with open arms to give back as much as I can.”
PNG Amoa women’s representative Melissa Pokana said involving senior players in such development pathway programmes for volleyball would help raise the standard of the game.
“It’s really a great opportunity for me to come and give back to the juniors what I learned,” she said.
“I am honoured to give back. It’s good when we give back what we know to the younger ones. It’s a bit challenging but it’s good to take up challenges so that we give the best back to these juniors.
“Most players came from the village, such exposure is new to them but we have to talk and coordinate things on their level, but they’re picking up well and I hope to see them go to the next level.”
Meanwhile, Team PNG women’s beach volleyball representative Lauren Yikolisa said the only way for PNG to be the best side in the sport was to have a development pathway that engages experienced players as coaches and trainers.