Papua New Guinea kept their hopes of reaching the knockout stages at the Rugby League World Cup alive, thanks to a powerful second half against the Cook Islands to claim a hard-fought 32-16 win.
The Kumuls must now defeat Wales to book a spot in the quarter-finals, which will most likely pit them against England.
While advancement at this year’s tournament is on the cards, the promise of an exciting future for rugby league in Papua New Guinea is also fuelling the team.
Away from the bright lights of a headline-making coup which will shake the foundations of the sport should either Tonga or Samoa claim a maiden title, PNG have been quietly chipping away in the background.
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Sure, they have NRL talent to call upon like the history-chasing, try-scoring freak Alex Johnston and Melbourne unit Justin Olam. But a number of homegrown stars are also busy establishing themselves both in reserve grade in Australia and in England’s second division.
Stanley Tepend's men are defined by their passion for the jersey and willingness to sacrifice their bodies for their nation.
Or, as outside back Nene MacDonald so succinctly put it: “I love getting whacked and I love whacking people- that's what we do.”
PNG have trademarked their game on power running and the type of ferocity in defence which drains the wind out of the lungs and even leaves spectators wincing.
"We went away from our way, the Kumuls way,” Tepend said following his side’s victory over a brave Kukis outfit.
“We tried to go wide too early. So, at half-time I just told them to run straight, run hard and tackle hard.”
It was evident the players took their coach’s advice on board, with Mackenzie Yei producing a barnstorming carry from the restart.
The forward spared himself no self-preservation when he accelerated into the defensive line and emerged out the other side.
With a taste of open field, Yei stuck to his principles by refusing to divert from his chosen path and smashed into his second collision near the halfway line without even the thought of putting on some footwork to get around the fullback.
Mackenzie Yei runs HARD! 😤
— NRL (@NRL) October 26, 2022
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It’s said emotion can only get you so far while out on the field, but the Kumuls continue to harness it in their journey.
"We are rising up and creating our own brand and one thing we are doing is making sure we don’t forget the players who made the path for us, so having Adrian [Lam] and Stanley Gene here has been fantastic," MacDonald said about past legends who have joined them in camp.
"Without them, we are not who we are today, and we want to show them how much they mean to us.”
PNG recovered from their heartbreaking loss to Tonga last weekend to put themselves in a great position to claim a finals spot.
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Yet beyond making the quarter finals, like they did during their last appearance at the tournament in 2017, the Kumuls are eyeing a bright future.
"We have our brand, our own style and we want to have an effect in this Cup, not just be part of it,” MacDonald stated.
“One day we'd like to win it for our people.”