PNG edge Tahiti to progress to Under-17 semis

PAPUA New Guinea have qualified for the OFC Under-17 Championship semi-finals for the first time in the nation’s history after a 2-1 victory over hosts Tahiti at Stade Pater in Papeete, on Friday (Saturday — Tahiti time).
Coach Harrison Kamake told The National from Tahiti that the team’s defence and discipline have paid off. Collective and compact defending in the middles and forced the opposition to play back and wide, he said.
“These boys are a brave bunch and with the right approach to the game, I believe we will put up a good fight. The spirit in camp is good so yeah, nothing is impossible,” Kamake said.
The former PNG international was almost completely lost for words following the final whistle.
“This is a dream come true for the boys,” he said of their historic victory.
“It’s their first time in this tournament and I’m really happy for them and I thank them and commend them for the effort today.”
It wasn’t an easy task for Kamake’s side as they took on not only a much-favoured Tahitian side, but also their boisterous home crowd.
This is the first time for PNG to go through the semi-finals in this age group.
“I will still have the same starting line-up because of the momentum and consistency. There is a possibility that our captain Ricky Wadunah won’t be playing in the semis because of two yellow cards but I`ll confirm and let you know,” he told The National.
The victory over Tahiti dashed the hosts’ hopes of a dream qualification on home soil.
The Melanesians join New Caledonia, who progressed to the top spot after beating Vanuatu 3-2 in the day’s earlier match at Stade Pater.
Tahiti seemed to have the match under control from the outset and it took just 10 minutes for them to open the scoring courtesy of an unmarked Eddy Kaspard, who latched onto a long ball and finished with aplomb.
Their opponents had a couple of advances into the Tahitian half during the first period, but little did that trouble goalkeeper Moana Pito.
However, in the second-half the Melanesians seemed more determined in their chase of an historic result.
Tahiti have finished second in four of the last five U17 tournaments so to lose out on home soil was a major disappointment from Patrice Flaccadori’s perspective.
“Every time we’ve competed we’ve made the finals but not this time so it’s a huge disappointment for us,” Flaccadori said.
Scores: PNG 2 (Jonathan Allen 71′, Emmanuel Simongi 87′) Tahiti 1 (Eddie KASPARD 10′) Half-time: 0-1