Gamoga Lawyers Spirit of Rigo and Koita Warriors had a Mother’s Day to remember, going unbeaten and automatically qualifying for the semi-finals of the Trukai VPL.
Both teams are now in the box seat for the first prize of PGK 20,000 on Sunday the 15th of May.
Gamoga Lawyers Spirit of Rigo comfortably defeated Panamex PNG and Zara Wanderers. Spirit of Rigo was outstanding in the field, restricting their opposition to lower-than-expected scores.
Robert Naime not only leads Spirit of Rigo, he is also top of the bowling charts for the whole Trukai VPL taking 6 wickets for only 12 runs from his four overs across both matches. Naime is also in the top ten of batters, along with his captain Damien Ravu.
Koita Warriors convincingly defeated Northern Alexanders and Fairprice Furniture Mambas in their pool matches. Koita Warriors dominate batting attack was the foundation of their success. Assadollah Vala, Kumul Petroleum PNG Barramundis captain, leads all batters with 76 runs from his two innings, at a strike rate of 200.
In one particularly devasting over, Assad took to former Barras team mate Mahuru Dai for two towering sixes. Teammate Uditha Sameera strongly supported Vala, also featuring in the top 10 batters for the Trukai VPL at the end of pool play.
All is not lost for Panamex PNG, Zara Wanderers, Northern Alexanders and Fairprice Furniture Mambas, as they move into knockout quarter-finals to start the finals day on May 15. They all now know what to expect and how they have to improve to have a chance at taking out the coveted title of Trukai VPL Champions.
Kumul Petroleum PNG Lewa, Ravini Oa, with her young daughter on had to watch, had a special Mother’s Day playing for Fairprice Furniture Mambas as the only women playing in the Trukai VPL.
Ravini played strongly, bowling strongly in both matches, finishing 30th in the bowling ranks at the end of pool play. Playing with a heaver and bigger ball than international women’s cricket, Ravini was outstanding bowling against some of the best batters in PNG, including Assad Vala.
The finals are on Sunday May 15 and start at 9am with the knockout quarterfinals. Entry for fans will be free and if you are unable to attend in person you will be able to follow the live scoring through CricHQ https://www.crichq.com/competitions/14568/draws/55924/rounds/finals and livestreaming through our match centre powered by Interact Sport https://www.cricketpng.org.pg/