Nokondi, Kinz triumph in Goroka basketball finals

The Goroka Basketball League ended its grand final on a high note last Sunday at the YC Hall with Hawks Nokondi and Kinz, triumphing as the 2024 champions in the men’s and women’s divisions respectively.

Nokondi took down EK Brothers in a close contest, 20-17 to lift the men’s A-grade trophy whilst Kinz defied all odds, beating All Saints, 39-32 to claim the senior women’s title.

Eight teams consisting of four men's and four women's sides competed in the two divisions with Nokondi and Kinz eventually emerging as the victors of the 2024 GBL season.

League president Michael Muri described 2024 as another successful season since enlivening the competition two years ago.

“Basketball in Goroka started way back in the 1990s and it’s been one of the established sports played here,” Muri told NBC News.

“But due to financial constraints in meeting the increasing cost of the venue (YC Hall), we used to run our competition, basketball sort of slacked off.

“We revived it in 2022 after COVID-19 and this is our third successful grand final. We’ve been actively involved in basketball since 2022, and we are proud to see the game growing in Goroka.”

The Goroka league started in March and has been played for 8 months with the financial backing of MiBank, Goroka DDA, EHP Sports Desk, and 3K Civil Works.

3K Civil Works managing director Emmanuel Kewi commended GBL for completing the 2024 playing roster and pledged to continue supporting and growing the code in the Eastern Highlands.

“It’s good to have the competition up and running again with larger participation from the youths,” Kewi told NBC News.

“We’ve supported and assisted the league starting last in cash and kind, and we hope to have a bigger and better season next year.”