Too good! Tonga proved far too strong for the home girls, the PNG Orchids, with a massive 42–6 victory today at the Santos National Football Stadium in the final round of the Pacific Bowl Championship.

Due to the Orchids’ lack of discipline, with repeated penalties and ball-handling errors, Tonga XIII didn’t let those opportunities go unanswered by capitalizing and scoring on nearly every chance they got.

The Tongan attack was sharp right from the opening set. From the kick-off, a line drop-out led to the opening try in the 3rd minute, scored by right winger No. 2 Moana Courtenay off a grubber kick.

Following another penalty giveaway from the Orchids, Tonga converted that into a second try in the centre through No. 17 Ruby Fifita, right beside the goal post, in the 8th minute.

PNG finally hit back with a runaway try from No. 5 Naomi Kelly, sprinting from the 30-metre line after a slick setup by the backs in the 16th minute.

But two more penalties given away by the Orchids led to another Tongan try under the posts, this time by No. 10 Kalosipani Hopoate, who dragged four PNG defenders over the line in the 22nd minute.

Moments later, another penalty by the Orchids handed Tonga their fourth try by No. 4 going in untouched on the left side just before halftime in the 32nd minute.

Opening the second half, Tonga continued their dominance, scoring straight away on the right-hand side of the field through Martha Tuifua in the 31st minute, followed by Malia Tuifua’s try in the 37th minute.

Then, another penalty by the Orchids led to an overpowering tackle-break try beside the posts by No. 15 Jade Fonua in the 41st minute.

From there, it was one-way traffic and more penalties and handling errors from PNG gifted Tonga another try, this time from Simina Lokotui in the 47th minute, followed by a well-worked backs combination between No. 7 Emmanita Paki and her backline, extending the lead to 34 points to seven tries to one in the first half alone.

A dropped ball by the Orchids’ No. 11 on their 30-metre line saw Tonga pounce again, with Martha Mataele grabbing her second try in the 61st minute.

And to seal the game right on full-time, Mataele completed her hat-trick, her third try of the match as Tonga closed out a stunning performance over the Orchids 42 – 6.

In the post-match press conference, the Tonga coach was emotional about her team’s performance.

“I am so proud of this team. After last week’s setback, we came back strong and put into practice everything we’ve worked on at training—and we did it out on the footy field. I’m a little lost for words,” said the Tonga XIII coach.

“I am especially proud of Tasha (our captain). She’s an incredible human being and I don’t think she gets the accolades she truly deserves.”