Tepend congratulates Tigers

Sports

LAE Tigers coach Stanley Tepend has congratulated his players Edwin Ipape, Jokadi Bire and Sylvester Namo for making the SP Hunters’ final squad for the first time.
The trio were named alongside fellow Tigers Joe Joshua, Charlie Simon, Junior Rop and Mark Pitti in Hunters coach Matthew Church’s 29-man squad earlier this month.
Tepend told The National last week that Bire, Namo and Ipape had earned their spots in the Hunters ahead of their relocation to the Gold Coast for the upcoming Queensland Intrust Cup season.
“We take a little bit of credit, but the players themselves deserve 90 per cent of it,” he said.
“We have only guided them in a small way. “Ipape always had the talent when we recruited him from Mt Hagen in the 2017 pre-season.
“He was lucky to play for the Papua New Guinea Kumuls before the Hunters.
“One very important aspect Edwin offers is his versatility in covering multiple positions.
“He is big for a half, strong, fast and has got good skills.
“It’s hard to find all that in one player these days.
“For Bire, he has worked hard to get where he is now.
“I’ve always been impressed with his desire to keep learning and improving.
“In terms of skills, he wasn’t really talented at first.
“But his passion to keep developing his game has paid off with his Hunters selection.
“His hard running is his biggest strength and has really worked hard on his defence.”
Tepend also commended Namo for making the most of his opportunity at the Tigers.
“The young forward only made his Digicel Cup debut last year before joining the Hunters, so he’s got a big future ahead of him too,” he said.
“I’m encouraging him to learn a lot from the experience boys like Enoch Maki.”
Tepend also extended his congratulations to other Tigers players for retaining their spots in the Hunters.