Tigers to take on Aviators

By LARRY ANDREW
DIGICEL Cup champions Lae Snax Tigers are looking forward to the Melanesian Cup challenge against Nadi Aviators in February, says coach Stanley Tepend.
The match will be played in Port Moresby and is set to draw large crowds of league followers in the capital.
Interestingly, both clubs are sponsored by Lae Biscuit Company. Snax Tigers, the defending champions of the Melanesian Cup, will begin their training on Jan 5.
Tigers have lost Charlie Simon and John Andy to PNG Hunters. Simon, who kicked the winning field goal in the grand final against Agmark Gurias in the 2017 Digicel Cup, has left a gap in the team.
Tepend said eight other players had also been released. Those, he said were players who were young, not ready for the semi-professional game’s pressure or did not show improvements. “We did lose four to the Hunters but Mark Piti and Junior Rop had personal reasons to pull out.”
“To the Hunters we have only lost two in Simon and Andy and we got Piti and Rop. We got the core of the forward pack but just need to find the key person to play Simon’s position which is halfback,” said Tepend.
He said two halfbacks who participated in the recent Snax Nines tournament had been included in the team and hopefully one of them would fit in the position left by Simon.