21 Sep 2010

PNG's Hekari United end NZ tour on positive note

1:35 pm on 21 September 2010

O'League football champions Hekari United have ended their short New Zealand tour on a positive note, beating Waikato FC 4-2 in Hamilton last night.

It was the Papua New Guinea club's first win down under following a 3-all draw with the New Zealand Under 20 side and a 3-nil loss to Auckland City.

Hekari's chairman and team owner, John Kapi Natto, says they found it challenging in the cold and wet conditions and while new players are still gelling into the squad he's happy with the progress being made.

"I think the players are trying to get their flow back into it and the win was ok. They all sort of played more compact in the middle so don't allow Waikato to flow through. There was a loss, there's a draw - it was a good experience and the coach and the management technical guys can sit down and look at where we've gone wrong and what we should do better."

Hekari United begin their O'League title defence next month before December's Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi.