WNSL finals cancelled

The National Sports

THE Women’s National Soccer League (WNSL) finals have been cancelled due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation, says Papua New Guinea Football Association (PNGFA) competitions director Paul Isorua.
He said in a statement yesterday that PNGFA and the WNSL interim standing committee had made the decision due to the competition’s lengthy indefinite suspension since Covid-19 measures were imposed by the Office of the National Pandemic Response Controller on March 18. The PNG Sports Foundation’s (PNGSF) pandemic management committee had also issued a notice on April 12, extending the suspension of all sporting competitions nationwide until next Monday.
Isorua said the finals had been suspended since March 19 which will be eight weeks of non-active training and competition for the semifinalists.
Semifinalists Poro, Genesis, Sepik and Hekari United were informed of the decision by PNGFA this week. The factors that were considered by PNGFA and the committee before make the decision include:

  • Loss of momentum to high-intensity player performance;
  • Loss of momentum to high-team performance;
  • Insufficient time for players to train and reach adequate fitness levels;
  • High risk of players sustaining injuries;
  • Avoiding a collision with other PNGFA competition; and,
  • Unpredictable status of the Covid-19 situation nationwide.

“The welfare and well-being of players, coaches and technical officials at this time were highly considered when finalising this decision,” PNGFA said.
“PNGFA shall reward the qualifying clubs accordingly as due process in due course.”
Meanwhile, PNGFA said it was looking forward to working closely with PNGSF to ensure the safe return of sports, including football.