GUNEMBA TO CAPTAIN AND DEFEND “MSG” TITLE ON HOME SOIL
BY LETHISA KOLOKOL
VETERAN Papua New Guinean Forward, Raymond Gunemba will captain the Senior Men’s Team, “PNG Gold’’ for the third time in the upcoming fourth edition of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Prime Minster’s cup that will be hosted in PNG on 10-22, November.
Gunemba, 39, told FM100 sports that he was first appointed skipper of the team in the very first MSG Cup in Vanuatu in 2022, the second in New Caledonia in 2023 and this year is extra special for the PNG striker, hosting it on home soil and being appointed as captain for the third time.
He says he has played for the MSG cup for four years since 2022, winning two (2) and now to defend the title that they won by defeating Vanuatu 2-1 in, Solomon Islands, last year.
“It feels great and honoured to lead the team but it will be a big load of work on my shoulder especially defending the cup on my home soil,” he said
He thanked God for this opportunity, the Papua New Guinea Football Association president and the management and Sports Foundation for their continued support.
He also thanked the coaches for the appointment for the captain.
Gunemba noted that being placed in the same pool with strong teams; New Caledonia and Solomon Islands is tough and the team will need to work extra hard to defend the title.
“Our aim is to defend our title but it takes hard work to make it happen,” he says.
As a proud son of Lae, Morobe Province, he also thanked the Lae MP Hon. John Rosso to bringing one match to Lae City.
“Lae is the heart of football and for almost 2 or 3 decades now there has been no international football match for the PNG men’s team,” he says.
The Papua New Guinea footballer, urges his country men and women to come support all the 4 PNG teams, as they carry the Papua New Guinea in this prestigious Melanesian football tournament.
