Papua New Guinea coach Stanley Gene has told his players to take the chance of a lifetime against Australia on Sunday.
Papua New Guinea boss wants players to compete with Aussies
Papua New Guinea coach Stanley Gene has told his players to take the chance of a lifetime when they face Australia in the Four Nations on Sunday.
The Kumuls are likely to be big underdogs in all of their contests in the competition, with the Kangaroos, New Zealand and England expected to be far too much for Gene's side.
Skipper Paul Aiton is the only current NRL player in a 24-man squad that contains a total of four players from the second and third tier in the UK.
And Australia, who are odds-on favourites to win the Four Nations, will be looking to take victory with room to spare at Parramatta Stadium in Brisbane.
But Gene says his side will go into the match looking to cause one of the greatest upsets in rugby league history.
Effort
"My realistic expectation is the boys are going to give 200 per cent. I don't want them to throw the towel in and we'll be out there challenging," the former Hull KR favourite said.
"You never know, in the biblical story David put Goliath down because he believed in his mind how to fight, so we're ready for it."
Gene, who enjoyed at 13-year career at international level, thinks the match could be a defining moment in many of his players' careers.
"For my boys I've told them just to compete, it's the only chance you can play on the big stage in a big arena where everybody is watching you," he said.
"If you play well your life could change. It changed my life. I was running around in a ghetto and suddenly in 1995 I took the chance to go and play the World Cup in England and here I am after 14 years."
