Tigers battle the odds, take on Gurias in Kalabond

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The National, Friday 26th April 2013

 By JOHN PANGKATANA

LAE’S Snax Tigers have a date with destiny in Kokopo as the Digicel Cup rugby league competition enters the third round.

The all-powerful Enga Mioks will claim the Stop N Shop Port Moresby Vipers as their third consecutive victim at the Johnson Siki Oval in Wabag and former Goroka Lahanis stalwarts Anton Kui and Sigfred Gande to add to the engine-room of Prima Gulf Isapea in Port Moresby.

In the Southern Highlands, PRK Mendi Muruks would like nothing better than a win over Wamp Nga Eagles in their return home clash at the Joe Keviame Oval in Mendi.

While it is still early days yet, the new-found form of the Tigers will know if they are premiership material when they tango with champions Agmark Rabaul Gurias at the Kalabond ‘graveyard’ on Sunday.

Winning back-to-back to matches (Wamp Nga Eagles and TNA Lions) is unheard of for the Tigers and to an extent a welcome surprise for the Lae rugby league fraternity.

Tigers team manager Tim Rodgers yesterday would not say too much about the team, only that morale was high and they were only just doing the little things right on top of added discipline that had turned the team around.

“The Tigers are not trying to prove anything as we are treading new water with every game and certainly the Gurias will be a tough hurdle to negotiate,” Rodgers said.

The Gurias, with former Tigers front-man Mark Mexico adding power to the front-row, will be hard to beat at home.

The all-powerful Enga Mioks should have no problem with their rampaging forward pack led by David Loko, Esau Siune, Colin Billy and Andrew Sipil set to give the Vipers a fiery welcome.

While in the backs, rangy Bland Abavu moves to the fullback, with former Kundiawa schoolboy star Moxcii Kee on the wing and Mendi Muruks buy Wer Mark to add power off the bench.

The Vipers, reeling from the Gurias onslaught last week will be in for another long day in the office.    

For the struggling Isapea, the inclusion of Kui and Gande alongside Terry Kaupa and Hohola’s favourite son Johnny Horope will certainly add some bite in their clash against Kemele Hela Wigmen.

Wigmen coach Stanly Hondina believes the best is yet to come from his bunch of unknowns but his charges seem to enjoy the challenge.