Runner-up of the Dadi Toka Pepsi Cup 9s, Team Waidex say their performance in the tournament is by far one of their best ones as a team despite losing by a 36-25 margin in the Cup finals to TI Vikings in front of a packed crowd at the Sir Hubert Murray Stadium last weekend.
The 3-day tournament which kicked off last Thursday attracted a total of 32 teams from the surrounding Motu-Koita villages and Kairuku-Hiri as well as from the Moresby-South electorate.
Team Waidex from Moresby-South, sponsored by Bixsy Tala of Waidex Limited took part in Pool B winning three of their pool games and their top 16 playoffs to make it into the final rounds where they went head-to-head with Lahi Pawa defeating them 19-4 and Kone Storms 22-12 to secure a Grand Final spot with the reigning champions TI Vikings of Tatana village.
Team captain of Waidex Clancy Kei said although the team lost in the finals, he was impressed with his boys for holding the forte in the first half and then maintaining consistency against a much stronger and experienced Vikings side.
“Although most of our boys lacked experience as well as the strength and stamina in the final minutes, they gave their very best performance by putting up a great fight for the cup.”
“It was also a great experience for the boys playing against a seasoned side and maintaining good sportsmanship right throughout the tournament regardless,” Clancy said.
The team which is mostly made up of boys playing in the Moresby South Rugby League has been taking part in 9s competitions in and around Port Moresby since 2014 where they have been making a number of grand final appearances since the club’s establishment.
Sponsor of the team, Bixsy Tala said that he was more than happy to support the boys and give them an avenue where they can realise their rugby dreams and try to be better citizens of this country.
“I have been sponsoring the team single handedly since 2014 when we first formed the team. Since then, the team has come a long way and their performance in the 9s cup challenges has gotten better and better every year.”
“Although we only had a few experienced boys in the likes of Jason Maima (current Vipers), Orbert Muri (current Isou) together with Yoks Bagave and Junior Oki, the boys still maintained their game and played professional rugby to the end,” Bixsy said.
According to Bixsy, most of the boys who are in the team have been selected from teams such as Vadavada United, Taurama Wolfpacks, Sib-city Raiders, Kaugere Bulldogs and Koki Eels which are all taking part in the Moresby South Rugby League.
With their experience from this year’s Pepsi Cup 9s, the team is looking forward to working on areas they have lacked in to make sure that they come back stronger and better in the next tournament.
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