The Papua New Guinea Lagatois women’s national football team played out a 2-2 draw against Fiji’s Kulas Friday in the first of two international friendlies staged at the PNG Football Stadium in Port Moresby. The match served as crucial preparation for both teams ahead of the 2025 OFC Women’s Nations Cup, which Fiji will host from 04 – 19 July in Suva. Fiji’s Caroline Qalivere opened the scoring, putting the visitors up 1-0. However, PNG striker Marie Kaipu quickly equalized for the home side, bringing the score to 1-1 at halftime. In the second half, PNG and Lae City Dwellers striker Karen Kelepai energized the home crowd by scoring from a powerful shot past Kulas goalkeeper Emily Esponsiti, giving PNG a temporary lead. However, Fiji’s New Zealand import Cema Nasau found the equalizer just before full time, resulting in the 2-2 stalemate. PNG Lagatois coach Erickson Komeng expressed mixed feelings about the result. “We dominated the game. We kept possession, and the girls kept turning up, and we just need to put the ball into the net. I think we should have scored a lot of goals in the first half. We could have put them away, but we didn’t do that, and I think it cost us the draw,” Komeng stated. He suggested that playing at home with a large crowd might have added pressure on the players, but he remained optimistic for the next match. “Hopefully, we can do much better on Monday. We just have to go back to training and work on things like scoring goals and playing as a team.” Komeng also extended his gratitude to the PNGFA for organizing the friendlies, noting that it had been a while since the PNG women’s team had played such matches at home. He thanked the supporters for their turnout, stating, “The girls did well today. It’s part of the game. One is to win, one is to draw, and one is to lose the game, but the girls did well today, so we’ll look forward to Monday.” Fiji Kulas coach Angeline Chua acknowledged the competitive nature of the match. “First of all, really give thanks to our opposition team for putting up such a nice team for us to go against. You know, when two teams come together and then we put up a nice game, you know, for the fans, for our learning as well. So big thank you to PNG.” Chua recognised areas for improvement for her team. “For us, we know that we have a lot to fix before going into the Nations Cup. And then that will be our aim. And then the job is not done.” She noted the physicality and speed of the PNG team, which will require tactical adjustments. “We have to change up a bit in terms of our player, in terms of playing position. So we can make sure that we are stable at the back. We have a lot of work to do before Monday.” Both teams will face each other again on Monday, 02 July, 2025, in their final friendly before the OFC Women’s Nations Cup.