By Aiden Newman, Date: 5/6/19
After 2 months of postponements, the second leg of the Estepa Elefante Challenge Cup was played last Sunday the 2nd of June at the Ayala Chelsea Blue pitch in Makati City.
The PNRL would like to extend their condolence to the 11 people and their families who died on the 22nd of April earthquake that hit the province of Zambales that led to the postponement of Rugby League matches in the Philippines.
With the Clark Brothers now committed to playing in the local Union competition and the Manila Storm currently rebuilding their player numbers, only the North Luzon Hunters and Cavite Tigers played in the 2nd leg of the tournament.
The All Filipino Cavite Tigers went up against the North Luzon Hunters that included PNG expat University student players.
The Tigers sprung out of their cages and the Hunters defended aggressively from the start.
With the Tigers going into the half time break leading 12-4 on the scoreboard.
The 2nd half kicked off after a long water break with the heat affecting the energy levels of both teams.
The North Luzon Hunters benefited from this long break with the energised side boosted by their PNG playmakers scoring the next 4 unanswered tries leading 28 – 12 for most of the 2nd half.
The tigers fought back aggressively and manage to claw a try back at the end, making the score a respectable 28-16.
Both teams displayed improved discipline and creativity in their attack and defence.
The 3rd leg on the tournament will be played on the 9th of June.
