Papua New Guinea's women's side opened their campaign with a comfortable 5-1 victory over Solomon Islands in a Friendly International Women fixture on Monday. The hosts dominated proceedings from the first whistle, scoring twice in the opening half before extending their lead in the second period. The result marks a strong start for PNG after their previous results showed mixed fortunes.
Early strikes set the tone
K. Kalapai broke the deadlock at 42 minutes, finishing a move that had PNG pressing forward with purpose. To be fair, the visitors had been defending well enough to resist, but the breakthrough came just two minutes later when C. Maneo doubled the advantage. By then, Solomon Islands were already chasing the game, and the momentum had shifted decisively.
The third goal arrived at 54 minutes, a moment that effectively closed out any hope of a comeback. The hosts dallied on the ball after that, working the game at a tempo that kept Solomon Islands scrambling. A fourth goal at 78 minutes was little more than formality, though it demonstrated PNG's confidence in attack.
Solomon Islands pulled one back in stoppage time at 90+3, a consolation goal that came too late to salvage anything from the afternoon. The visitors had shown resilience in their recent matches, beating New Caledonia and Fiji in consecutive games, but this fixture proved beyond their reach. And here's the thing — they had not lost in their last five outings until this match ended their unbeaten run.
PNG's form has been encouraging lately. They beat Vanuatu 2-0 on Saturday and Fiji 4-0 two weeks ago, though they suffered a narrow defeat to New Zealand in April. The goal difference now stands at four clear goals, and the hosts have opened talks about maintaining this momentum through their upcoming fixtures.