PNG launches bid to become 18th NRL team

[The Future is League]

27 minutes ago, The Rocket said:

True to a point certainly, but if the the Kiwi Rugby League team can start to win consistent games against the Kangaroos it won`t be long before an annual three Test series between the Kangaroos and the Kiwis dwarfs not only the Bledisloe and SOO but also most in-bound union tours and becomes the highlight of the annual sporting calendar down here.

I look forward to the day that SOO not only becomes a battle for state supremacy but also has the added spice of being a contest that determines the make-up of the Australian team, like it use to.

The SOO was originally a trial for the Kangaroos with a bit of spice,  just like City v Country was a trial for the NSW SOO team

[Man of Kent]

31 minutes ago, The Rocket said:

True to a point certainly, but if the the Kiwi Rugby League team can start to win consistent games against the Kangaroos it won`t be long before an annual three Test series between the Kangaroos and the Kiwis dwarfs not only the Bledisloe and SOO but also most in-bound union tours and becomes the highlight of the annual sporting calendar down here.

I look forward to the day that SOO not only becomes a battle for state supremacy but also has the added spice of being a contest that determines the make-up of the Australian team, like it use to.

It's not all that hard to imagine anymore either. New Zealand were outstanding against Tonga.

The Kiwi talent pool is superb and - going back to the NRL's growing sphere of influence point - will only strengthen going forward.

[Dallas Mead]

50 minutes ago, The Rocket said:

True to a point certainly, but if the the Kiwi Rugby League team can start to win consistent games against the Kangaroos it won`t be long before an annual three Test series between the Kangaroos and the Kiwis dwarfs not only the Bledisloe and SOO but also most in-bound union tours and becomes the highlight of the annual sporting calendar down here.

I look forward to the day that SOO not only becomes a battle for state supremacy but also has the added spice of being a contest that determines the make-up of the Australian team, like it use to.

That would be absolute perfection, let’s hope it comes to fruition.

[The Rocket]

1 hour ago, gingerjon said:

When's the next NZ v Australia international scheduled for?

If the Kiwi`s knocked us out of the World Cup at the end of the year and then backed that up by beating us again next year, even if it was only in a one-off Test, I think the ruckus generated by those defeats would see demand for a three Test series arise pretty quickly.

 

1 hour ago, Sports Prophet said:

IRL Calendar is due imminently. You will see fixtures set after that

And now the bad news for our Northern friends. I think once again the IRL calendar would pretty quickly be reshaped to fit in around Australia`s Test calendar versus the Kiwis.

[dealwithit]

On 19/07/2022 at 20:06, Man of Kent said:

Which bit?

The NRL are going after RU in New Zealand. Remember this: https://businessdesk.co.nz/article/opinion/inside-the-nrls-battle-plan-to-take-on-the-all-blacks ?

The claim that there’s no players in perth. From memory there’s more playing in WA than VIC. 

[Man of Kent]

39 minutes ago, The Rocket said:

And now the bad news for our Northern friends. I think once again the IRL calendar would pretty quickly be reshaped to fit in around Australia`s Test calendar versus the Kiwis.

That is the downside of the rise of the Pacific. The RFL/Super League will need to be nice to the NRL - not wasting energy by being some sort of counterproductive enemy.

Edited July 20, 2022 by Man of Kent

[gingerjon]

3 minutes ago, Man of Kent said:

That is the downside of the rise of the Pacific. The RFL/Super League will need to be nice to the NRL - not wasting energy by being some sort of counterproductive enemy.

They just need to guarantee a profit and the NRL will come over.

As the All Blacks know all too well, NZ ain't a big market.

[stookie]

2 hours ago, The Rocket said:

If the Kiwi`s knocked us out of the World Cup at the end of the year and then backed that up by beating us again next year, even if it was only in a one-off Test, I think the ruckus generated by those defeats would see demand for a three Test series arise pretty quickly.

 

We had this in the 2010s, even including the World Cup scenario. I don't remember much clamouring for a test series. I do remember excitement increasing for the 3/4 nations though. Miss those days...

[jim_57]

3 hours ago, The Rocket said:

If the Kiwi`s knocked us out of the World Cup at the end of the year and then backed that up by beating us again next year, even if it was only in a one-off Test, I think the ruckus generated by those defeats would see demand for a three Test series arise pretty quickly.

 

And now the bad news for our Northern friends. I think once again the IRL calendar would pretty quickly be reshaped to fit in around Australia`s Test calendar versus the Kiwis.

That’s the catch 22, if an Australia V NZ 3 game series became regular it wouldn’t leave much room for anything else involving those 2 in the small international window.

A 2 game/“leg” home/away series could work some years instead maybe. Likewise one game could be tied in to other tournaments like Oceania Cup/4 Nations etc. to save a week.

I think a tri-series between NZ, Tonga & Samoa has a lot of potential as well. Also PNG V Fiji game(s) annually with the winner hosting Australia. For this kind of stuff a mid-season window would really help.

[Keith989]

18 hours ago, gingerjon said:

They just need to guarantee a profit and the NRL will come over.

As the All Blacks know all too well, NZ ain't a big market.

This. NZ is a tiny market that struggles to get people through the gates, just look at the crowds the Maori Abs got on the tour just gone. There is also the constant threat of soccer taking over. 

Edited July 21, 2022 by Keith989

[The Rocket]

17 hours ago, jim_57 said:

A 2 game/“leg” home/away series could work some years instead maybe. Likewise one game could be tied in to other tournaments like Oceania Cup/4 Nations etc. to save a week.

 I like that and it would leave plenty of scope for taking it around the country.

Only problem I see is that a lot of people don`t like two-match series, see Women`s SOO, they like to have a 2-1 winner every year, personally I wouldn`t have an issue especially if we knew we were going to get a hum-dinger of a series every year. It could be huge.

[The Rocket]

1 hour ago, Keith989 said:

This. NZ is a tiny market that struggles to get people through the gates, just look at the crowds the Maori Abs got on the tour just gone. There is also the constant threat of soccer taking over. 

Not sure about that. NZ has over 5 million people and a GDP/capita similar to England. So not a lot of difference to the size of NSW`s economy really.

As long as we don`t over saturate the market I don`t think Rugby League would have too much problem selling out 2 or 3 internationals every year.

[The Rocket]

22 hours ago, Man of Kent said:

It's not all that hard to imagine anymore either. New Zealand were outstanding against Tonga.

The Kiwi talent pool is superb and - going back to the NRL's growing sphere of influence point - will only strengthen going forward.

Yes it isn`t hard to imagine. One thing the recent rep weekend showed is that like it or not there is still a gulf between the tier two nations and OZ and NZ, with NZ increasingly looking on par with the Australians.

[Keith989]

1 hour ago, The Rocket said:

Not sure about that. NZ has over 5 million people and a GDP/capita similar to England. So not a lot of difference to the size of NSW`s economy really.

As long as we don`t over saturate the market I don`t think Rugby League would have too much problem selling out 2 or 3 internationals every year.

But NZ already does have problems selling tickets for internationals. It's only that the mate ma Tonga fans turn out in such force that they've been able to sell out games in a modest sized stadium. There were barely any actual NZ fans there. 

Edited July 21, 2022 by Keith989

[M j M]

More detail on the geopolitical aspects of the PNG NRL bid here -

How Anthony Albanese came to back PNG's bold bid to become the NRL's 18th team

 

Quote

Newly appointed Minister for the Pacific, Pat Conroy, told the ABC he's well aware of the significance of soft power in the Pacific, "and that's why I'm so keen on rugby league in PNG".

Labor's deputy leader Richard Marles — a Victorian — wrote last year in his book 'Ties that Bind: Australia in the Pacific', that a team from PNG in the NRL would put the relationship between the two countries "on a different plane" and it "must be viewed in terms of an Australian national imperative".

"The costs associated with such a plan would represent the best value spend Australia could ever make in building that relationship."

 

[nadera78]

I get the geo-politics of it, but I can't help thinking that the Aussies would be better off putting a comprehensive junior development programme in PNG - building on the bones of what is already in place, utilising the 4 PNGRFL confederations, with a scheme that allows kids to play only if they continue to attend school and that builds like a pyramid to a PNG Academy that plays U18s and U20s in Queensland. Within 10 years you'd have two dozen PNGers in the NRL, similar in SL, and the remittances they'd be sending home would be considerable. Plus, those who don't make it that far would have benefitted from the enforced education programme. And, of course, the Kumuls would be a match for anyone.

Besides which, in practical terms the NRL has Perth, Christchurch (even Adelaide) that need teams. The rah rahs have Pacific teams because they literally have nowhere else interested in hosting a team.