SAMOA VS PNG KUMULS - PACIFIC TEST 2019

WHY CAN’T MILFORD DO THIS EVERY WEEK? Anthony Milford looked like a man possessed as Samoa took on PNG. The Bronco was uncharacteristically aggressive for Samoa and led their charge against the Kumuls. He put a big shot on winger Eddie Rau, and kept up the intensity going for the whole game. His jinking cross-field runs caused headaches for PNG and nearly sent Samoa in on a few occasion. He scored a brilliant try late on as he mazed his way past seven PNG defenders to only for the referee to chalk it off. Still, it was the best play of the night and one which brought Leichardt Oval to its feet. If he can go back to Brisbane and take that level of performance with him then it bodes well for the second half of the season. Match Report. Samoa recorded their first Test win in three years in a convincing 24-6 defeat of Papua New Guinea at Leichardt Oval. Despite strong performance in the first half, Samoa were held to a 12-6 lead at the break against a Kumuls side which included several debutants, including fullback Edene Gebbie, who had a night to forget under the high ball. The tide swung towards PNG early in the second half, but Michael Marum’s side could not capitalise on the territorial advantage they had. In the end, it was left to a rampaging run from man-of-the-match Junior Paulo, and a bizarre rebound try from Chanel Harris-Tavita to seal the deal Kiwi defector Martin Taupau was a standout in his first appearance with Toa Samoa since his Test debut in 2013 and, along with prop Paulo, did most of the midfield damage. Earlier, forwards Jarome Luai and Josh Aloiai combined to set each other up for Samoa’s first two tries, which laid the platform for a half-time lead. Terry Wapi cut the lead with a solo effort from dummy half, but his score was to be PNG’s only try of the night. This was Samoa’s biggest win since their first meeting with PNG, at the 2013 World Cup.