The Australian Schoolboys and Australian Schoolgirls teams both claimed wins in their matches against their junior PNG counterparts in tough games played at Santos National Football Stadium on Sunday.
The Schoolboys were able to steal a late win in a bruising and seesawing encounter which saw the lead change several times before Jaxon Edgar crossed with just over three minutes remaining to put the visiting side in front.
There were strong performers in both teams, with the forwards made to work hard throughout the match. The crowd however were firmly behind the home side with fullback Ragarive Wavik, who recently claimed the Hastings Deering Colts premiership with Townsville Blackhawks and hooker Finlay Glare standouts, drawing big cheers.
The Junior Kumuls skipper Glare was a handful at dummyhalf, sparking much of their attacking play, but the Australian side were able to do just enough to stay in the game and get in front when it mattered most, despite making a few errors in the challenging and windy conditions.
Speaking at the captain's run which was attended by visiting Australian Government representative Pat Conroy MP (Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Minister for Defence Industry); coach Tim White noted that this would be one of the closest matches of the weekend, with many talented players featuring in both teams.
Australian Schoolboys 20 (Lachlan Galvin, Wilson Decourcey, Logan Aoake, Jaxen Edgar tries; Riley Pollard 2 goals) def PNG Junior Kumuls 16 (Finlay Glare, Alton Neiyip, Ragarive Wavik tries; Ragarive Wavik 1 goal, 1 penalty goal) at Santos National Stadium, Port Moresby
Earlier in the day, the Australian Schoolgirls side was too strong for the PNG Junior Orchids, posting a 26-0 win with Mercedez Taulelei-siala, Caley Tallon- Henniker and Ebony Raftstrand-Smith all crossing for doubles.
The match was a close encounter early, with the visitors only ahead 8-0 at the halftime break, before they were able to run away with the match later in the game with most tries coming via their outer edges.
This was the first time the PNG Junior Orchids played and they gave a strong account of themselves, while it was the second time an Australian Schoolgirls side had toured overseas, following a visit to Fiji last year.
Australian Schoolgirls 26 (Mercedez Taulelei-siala 2, Caley Tallon- Henniker 2, Ebony Raftstrand-Smith 2 tries; Caley Tallon- Henniker 1 goal) defeated PNG Junior Orchids 0 at Santos National Stadium, Port Moresby
The Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League tour of PNG is possible thanks to the support of the Australian government through the PacificAus Sports program.
