A tense, closely fought affair was had in Port Moresby but in the end, it was the Cook Islands Moana who won their first ever trophy with a 42-24 win over the Tongan women’s side.
As both teams went set for set in the hot, windy conditions, the Tongan side would score first as Emmanita Paki sliced and diced her way through untouched to score and convert the try.
All the early momentum was with the Tongans as they produced a spectacular play for the second try; Paki kicked ahead for Simina Lokotui who caught the ball, stepped her opposite number and scored.
It took 22 mins but the Cook Islands would eventually open their account as Deleni Paitai powerfully fended off the Tongan defender and slammed the ball down to score.
The ascendancy was then with the Cook Islands as they gained control of the game and scored a second as Jazmon Tupou-Witchman powered over from close range.
On the cusp of half-time, Paulina Morris-Ponga opened her account for the day as she beat her defender and scored.
The Cook Islands foot stayed on the pedal as Chantay Kiria-Ratu entered the ball game and took control.
Her kick-off found touch and it led to another swashbuckling try, this time from Ngatokotoru Arakua.
Not to be outdone, Tonga would soon hit back as Seli Mailangi capitalised on some poor marker defence to slice her way over from dummy half.
Just three minutes later, Tonga had another try as some quick hands and a handy grubber saw Moana Courtenay quickest to the race to score.
Tongan errors then reared their ugly head and it cost them, as Kerehitina Matua was the next to score for the Cook Islands to extend their lead again.
Though the pendulum was not done swinging as a near carbon copy of their last try saw Tonga score again, this time through Shannon Muru.
Cook Islands then went 100m to to score as several runs from dummy half caught the Tongan defence off guard and it was Kiarah Siauane who had the last run to score.
Matua would score a second bulldozing try for the Cook Islands as they had one hand firmly attached to the trophy.
That win was sealed when Siauane scored her second, bustling past several defenders to cap off a perfect game for the Cook Islands and their inaugural trophy.
The win was a momentous occasion for the Cook Islands Moana as captain Kiana Takairangi commented on what the win and the success means for their small island nation.
“We’re a very small nation in comparison to some of the other teams that we come against, but there’s a lot of heart, there’s a lot of passion, there’s a lot of talent within our islands and within our people, so this means a lot and we’re so happy to be able to get the job done for our little nation,” Takairangi said.
Galvanised by new coach Ron Griffiths, he instilled belief in his team to succeed.
“I think on day one when we walked into camp, or when we started to speak about what this camp would be, we said ‘at the end of it, you could be etched in history’,” Griffiths said.
Cook Islands 42 (Matua 2, Siauane 2, Paitai, Tupou-Witchman, Arakua, Morris-Ponga; Goals: C. Kiria-Ratu: 5) def. Tonga 26 (Paki, Lokotui, Mailangi, Courtenay, Muru; Goals: Paki 2).