Morobe Kandes head coach Stanley Tepend last weekend attended the Rigo Rice Cup semi-finals to watch emerging players and support the tournament as it heads into its grand final.

Tepend said the Rigo Rice Cup tournament is a valuable opportunity to identify players for the club’s pre-season and build on its first year in the Digicel Exxon-Mobil Cup.

He said the competition’s progress reflected the work of organiser McSteve Polly and his team and praised the standard of the clubs that he had the opportunity to watch their match.

Morobe Pride has qualified for the grand-final, continuing a strong presence in local competitions.

“The Rigo Rice Cup is going into its final stages, and it just shows that it’s been a long competition. McSteve and his team have done a really good job," Tepend said.

The coach said his main reason for attending was to assess players as Morobe Kandes plan and prepare for the 2027 season. The club completed its first year in the Digicel ExxonMobil Cup this year and is looking to strengthen its squad.

“There’s no better way to plan for that than to attend this sort of game,” he said, describing the tournament as professionally run.

Tepend said Morobe Pride had previously supplied several players to the Kandes and remained an important source of recruiting local talent. He praised the team for performing well in community competitions and giving young players opportunities.

He confirmed that he had already identified several players that he may invite to pre-season training, which is scheduled to begin on January 4, 2027. Morobe Pride players would receive priority, he said, while promising players from the other three semi-finalists would also be considered.

“There’s a couple there that we’ll probably bring and invite them for pre-season. But if there’s anyone else that sticks out in the other three teams as well, we’ll obviously give them an invite," Tepend said.

The Kandes coach reiterated that scouting at community tournaments was important for finding the next generation of players, particularly as the club continued to develop its squad and compete at a higher level.

He also acknowledged the Rigo Rice Cup’s sponsors and organisers, including sponsor Rigo Rice, Jeff Kennedy and McSteve Polly, for their contribution to the competition.

“My job is just to come and help support by identifying talents from teams. But if my presence being here helps the teams in one way or the other, then I’m glad to be involved in this tournament," concluded Tepend.