‘Hekari built me’: Rex Naime targets BOG glory with Labasa and sees Pro League as pathway overseas

Papua New Guinea international Rex Naime is preparing for another major challenge in Fiji as he targets the Battle of the Giants title with Labasa, while looking back at a period of his career that has taken him from a standout OFC Champions League campaign with Hekari United to the inaugural OFC Pro League and now to an important role with the Babasiga Lions.

The PNG attacker has quickly made his presence felt in Fijian football. Naime has scored three goals in the 2026 Fiji Premier League for Labasa, including an early goal against eventual champions Ba at Subrail Park, and was also involved in the club’s Fiji FACT campaign after arriving in the country.

Labasa finished the league campaign behind Ba, but Naime believes there is still an opportunity to finish this stage of the season with silverware. The defending Battle of the Giants champions will head to Ba looking to retain the trophy.

“The season was good. Our aim was to win the league, but unfortunately we came second,” Naime told Oceania Football Center. “My preparation is to win the BOG in Ba and prove that I am a champion.”

The Battle of the Giants represents another chapter in what has been an eventful period for the Papua New Guinean. Labasa will face Nasinu, Suva and Navua in the group stage of the tournament, with Naime expected to be one of the attacking options available to coach Alvin Chand.

His move to Fiji followed an important season with PNG Hekari in the inaugural OFC Pro League. For Naime, playing regularly against some of the strongest clubs and players in the Pacific represented a significant step up.

“Firstly, I thank God for His blessing. It was good because it is the highest level in our region. I am so proud and I learned a lot playing against some big players,” he said.

Naime believes the competition demanded more than technical ability. With the quality of opposition increasing, he highlighted concentration and decision-making as areas where mistakes can quickly be punished.

“I experienced many things. You have to be mentally fit, make good decisions in games and stay focused because all the teams are at the top level. If you make one mistake, the team suffers.”

Hekari, however, endured a difficult inaugural Pro League campaign after entering the competition with significant expectations. Naime believes a lack of experience at that level among several members of the squad was one factor, while changes around the team during its preparation also affected the side.

According to the attacker, months of preparation were disrupted following the departure of the Brazilian coaching staff and players who had been working with the squad.

“I think many players were new to playing at that level of football. We also wasted three months of training because our coach from Brazil came and then left with two of his players. That was the main reason,” Naime explained.

The difficult Pro League season contrasted sharply with Hekari’s continental campaign one year earlier.

Naime was one of the outstanding performers of the 2025 OFC Champions League, scoring four goals as the Papua New Guinean giants reached the final of Oceania’s premier club competition for the first time in 15 years.

It remains one of the defining moments of his young career.

“That was the big moment for me and for Hekari, for people to remember my name, because after 15 years I helped take them to the final.”

But when asked about Hekari’s wider importance to his development, Naime went considerably further.

“Hekari is the foundation of my career. It gave me the chance to play at the top level in PNG, Oceania and now in the OFC Pro League. Because of Hekari, I got to play in the OFC Champions League, score four goals and help the team reach a final after 15 years.”

The attacker also credited the club for helping shape him away from the matches themselves.

“Most of all, I believe it is God’s plan. He opened the doors for me through Hekari. The club taught me discipline, hard work and faith. With God’s guidance and Hekari’s support, I am able to chase my dreams and represent my country.”

Naime summed up the relationship in even stronger terms.

“Hekari built me. Without Hekari, there is no Rex Naime at this level.”

He also thanked Hekari owner John Kapi Natto and Vonnie Kapi Natto for the support given to him during his development at the club.

Now, however, Naime is experiencing football outside Papua New Guinea.

He described Fijian football as having similarities to the game in PNG, and his first months with Labasa have already allowed him to experience the particular importance of district football and tournament competitions in Fiji.

There will also soon be another familiar Papua New Guinean face alongside him. Naime confirmed fellow PNG international Joseph Joe is returning to Labasa after previously representing the club during the Fiji FACT.

Beyond club football, Naime also expects to return to international duty.

With the MSG Prime Minister’s Cup approaching, the attacker said he expects to join the Papua New Guinea squad and is optimistic about what the Kapuls can produce, although he believes the changing standard of football across Oceania means results can no longer be taken for granted.

“Yes, I’ll be joining the team. I believe we are going to produce good results again, but we have to take one game at a time because the level of football in Oceania has changed after the Pro League.”

That change is something Naime has experienced personally.

Having faced international opposition with both Hekari and PNG before playing a full regional club competition, he believes the establishment of the OFC Pro League can have consequences extending beyond the tournament itself.

For players from Pacific nations where opportunities to enter professional football abroad remain limited, Naime sees the competition as a potential bridge to a bigger stage.

“It can change the level of football in Oceania, and I think the OFC Pro League is our way out as Oceania players to other countries overseas.”

That ambition gives additional context to Naime’s current spell in Fiji.

At Hekari, he developed into a player capable of deciding matches on the continental stage. The Pro League then exposed him to regular competition against some of the region’s strongest teams. With Labasa, he is now adapting to another football environment and contributing goals in one of the Pacific’s most competitive domestic leagues.

Naime identified game control, reading situations and finishing among the areas he continues to work on.

For now, however, the immediate objective is much simpler.

The next opportunity is the Battle of the Giants in Ba, where Naime will attempt to help Labasa defend one of Fiji football’s major trophies.

After helping Hekari return to an OFC Champions League final, testing himself in the new Pro League and establishing himself in Fiji, the PNG international has another chance to demonstrate why his name has increasingly become one to follow in Pacific football.