Wawens keep second spot

Sports

By LARRY ANDREW
FC MOROBE Wawens maintained their grip on second place in the National Soccer League after beating the Southern Strikers 5-0 at the Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium in Lae on Monday.
The win pushed the Wawens to 24 points ahead of Besta PNG United, who are on 21.
United leaped past Madang FC to secure third spot after beating FC Momase 3-0 at the Papua New Guinea Football Association Academy in Morobe on Saturday.
Morobe Wawens, after losing to the Strikers in the opening round of competition, pressed strongly in the first half to score two goals through Giwi Simon (36th minute) and Michael Saun (42nd minute).
The visitors came back strongly in the second half, pinning down the Wawens but were unable to find the back of the net.
Strikers Richard Alois, Randall Passam and Rodney Mobiha had several opportunities to claw their way back into the game, but poor finishes let them down.
The game was in the balance when Wawens’ Eliot Foni, Jason Farrock, Joshua Gwae, and Saun combined in the 76th minute to set up Moses Kamakeng for their third goal.
Four minutes later, Bernard Purari’s cross found Saun who headed home past Strikers goalkeeper Ila Pene for their fourth goal.
The home side then went on to seal the match with their fifth goal through Simon who deflected the ball in off Pene.
Strikers coach Margaret Aka said her side didn’t stick to the game plan.
But she pointed out that every game was a learning curve and that they would use the experience to come back stronger next season.