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PNG's back.

S

Steel Saints

Juniors
Messages
913
docbrown said:
I don't see why you can't have a 21 team competition.
Click to expand...
Or a 22 team competition. Prematurely there were 22 teams across two competitions back in '97. So the next five teams:

*PNG
*Perth
*NZ 2
*Brisbane 3
* Adelaide

In a 24 round league, you only play against three teams on two occasions.
 
MugaB

MugaB

Coach
Messages
13,014
Steel Saints said:
Or a 22 team competition. Prematurely there were 22 teams across two competitions back in '97. So the next five teams:

*PNG
*Perth
*NZ 2
*Brisbane 3
* Adelaide

In a 24 round league, you only play against three teams on two occasions.
Click to expand...
Add Melbourne2 and Fiji and take it to a 24 club comp, play everyone once, then a rival during magic round (wherever that might be, ie Brisbane now)
24 rounds, 10 team finals, season wouldnt be too long, with origin added midway as it is now, then reverse the home & away schedule the following season
Or
Setup conferences, pool/split those teams via distance/geography (ie all QLD)
And have them double up against their conference clubs, then play the rest of the comp once

West = Perth, Adelaide, Penrith, Parra,Tigers, Dogs
North = Titans, Bris3, Bronx, Phins, Cowboys, PNG
East = Nz2, Warriors, Fiji, Knights, Manly, Roosters
South =Souths,Dragons,Sharks,Raiders,Storm,Vic2

28 round season,
play 10 games within conference, 18 game outside of conference
 
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M

Maximus

Coach
Messages
12,329
2023 Loan Agreement between the Australian Government and the Government of Papua New Guinea
On 8 December 2023, the Australian Government entered into a loan agreement for A$600 million in 2023–24 to the Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The loan was provided in response to a request from the PNG Prime Minister, to support PNG to meet its estimated 2023 budget financing shortfall. The loan will also assist PNG in delivering economic reforms under the International Monetary Fund Extended Credit Facility and Extended Fund Facility Program.

budget.gov.au

Budget 2024-25

Australian Federal Budget, 2024-25
budget.gov.au

The Government has provided a loan of $600 million to the Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) to address the PNG Government’s estimated 2023 budget shortfall. The loan was provided in response to a request from the PNG Prime Minister and will also assist PNG to deliver economic reforms under the International Monetary Fund Extended Credit Facility and Extended Fund Facility Program.

The Government will also take up its quota increase at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), largely offset by reductions in Australia’s other IMF commitments. The timing of this is subject to agreement of other participating countries.

The Government has already provided partial funding for this measure.

budget.gov.au

Budget 2024-25

Australian Federal Budget, 2024-25
budget.gov.au

So this is where the $600m bullshit came from. It was a loan we had promised them to help cover their budget shortfall.

The foreign affairs section goes from pages 102-108, nothing at all in there.
 
MugaB

MugaB

Coach
Messages
13,014
Maximus said:
2023 Loan Agreement between the Australian Government and the Government of Papua New Guinea
On 8 December 2023, the Australian Government entered into a loan agreement for A$600 million in 2023–24 to the Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The loan was provided in response to a request from the PNG Prime Minister, to support PNG to meet its estimated 2023 budget financing shortfall. The loan will also assist PNG in delivering economic reforms under the International Monetary Fund Extended Credit Facility and Extended Fund Facility Program.

budget.gov.au

Budget 2024-25

Australian Federal Budget, 2024-25
budget.gov.au

The Government has provided a loan of $600 million to the Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG) to address the PNG Government’s estimated 2023 budget shortfall. The loan was provided in response to a request from the PNG Prime Minister and will also assist PNG to deliver economic reforms under the International Monetary Fund Extended Credit Facility and Extended Fund Facility Program.

The Government will also take up its quota increase at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), largely offset by reductions in Australia’s other IMF commitments. The timing of this is subject to agreement of other participating countries.

The Government has already provided partial funding for this measure.

budget.gov.au

Budget 2024-25

Australian Federal Budget, 2024-25
budget.gov.au

So this is where the $600m bullshit came from. It was a loan we had promised them to help cover their budget shortfall.

The foreign affairs section goes from pages 102-108, nothing at all in there.
Click to expand...
Not sure you read it all, but they've done this for the past 4 years too

Screenshot_20240514_204214_Drive.jpg
You could be right and that's where that figure has been touted by journos, or that they have no issue sending what looks like billions their way for loan purposes, maybe to keep the powers that be happy, probably even throw in a nrl licence in the glove box of the mazzaratti..
Without a breakdown of what the loan is to be used for we'll never really know
 
Last edited:
M

Maximus

Coach
Messages
12,329
MugaB said:
Not sure you read it all, but they've done this for the past 4 years too

View attachment 87986
You could be right and that's where that figure has been touted by journos, or that they have no issue sending what looks like billions their way for loan purposes, maybe to keep the powers that be happy, probably even throw in a nrl licence in the glove box of the mazzaratti..
Without a breakdown of what the loan is to be used for we'll never really know
Click to expand...

I did read those, and it's further proof that the money isn't for an NRL team or NRL pathways.

The request for the loan and the $600m articles came out at very similar times, so either it's a massive coincidence that the PNG govt asked for 2 lots of $600m at the same time, or some journo has seen the news about PNG wanting a team, seen the request for the loan, and then assumed they were the same thing.
 
Perth Red

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
66,744
Maximus said:
I did read those, and it's further proof that the money isn't for an NRL team or NRL pathways.

The request for the loan and the $600m articles came out at very similar times, so either it's a massive coincidence that the PNG govt asked for 2 lots of $600m at the same time, or some journo has seen the news about PNG wanting a team, seen the request for the loan, and then assumed they were the same thing.
Click to expand...
The nrl, the png bid and the govt has said it isnt $600mill. Only journos and Wb persist with that nonsense.
 
W

Wb1234

Referee
Messages
25,174
Dopes don’t realise if any money is going to png it will be announced in the federal budget

which is why I said expansion would be announced mid year after the budget is determined
 
Perth Red

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
66,744
Nothing in the budget for png nrl team. Not surprising really given the nrl hasn’t made its mind up yet. I guess there will be an in principal agreement with it being in next years budget for funding 26-27 onwards.
 
Get Rid of The Donkeys

Get Rid of The Donkeys

Coach
Messages
13,738
Six years in the making.

Bold bid for Labor to back PNG's entry into the NRL
By Adrian Proszenko
June 30, 2018 — 1.35pm

A motion tabled at the NSW Labor Party annual conference on Sunday could be the key to the introduction of a Papua New Guinean team entering the NRL in the future.

The motion, proposed by Inner West Council Mayor Darcy Byrne and seconded by Member for Kingsford Smith, Matt Thistlethwaite, calls for a future Federal Labor Government to support PNG’s NRL bid as a foreign policy initiative.

PNG is the only country in the world that can claim rugby league as its national sport and recent results have proven the nation has considerable talent in its ranks. The Kumuls, fresh from their quarter-final appearance in last year’s World Cup, upset Fiji in last weekend’s Pacific Test.

The PNG Hunters are also the defending champions in Queensland’s Intrust Super Premiership competition after beating the Sunshine Coast Falcon’s in last year’s grand final.

The biggest obstacle in the way of NRL inclusion would be raising the funds required to bankroll the project. However, Sunday’s proposal could see an elected Labor Government support a PNG NRL bid to build economic, cultural and social ties between the nations.

"Papua New Guinea is our closest neighbour and the only nation on earth to have rugby league as their national sport. In fact, rugby league is like a religion for New Guineans," Byrne said.

"Establishing a PNG team in the NRL would transform the relationship between our two nations and create permanent cultural and social connections between our peoples.

"PNG is a former Australian colony, with almost double the population of New Zealand, but sadly we haven't developed the same familial relationship with New Guineans that we have with our cousins across the ditch.

“Rugby league can be the tool we use to build those bonds of affection. There is a huge opportunity to use rugby league to build a much closer and meaningful relationship between the people of PNG and Australia.”

Byrne has liaised with the NRL about the motion, while ARLC chairman Peter Beattie is on record as saying the game “must expand or die”.

The motion reads, in part: “Collaborate with the Government of Papua New Guinea (PNG), the Australian Rugby League Commission and Papua New Guinea Rugby League (PNGRL) to investigate the establishment a PNG team in the National Rugby League (NRL) competition. This should be undertaken as a foreign policy initiative as well as a sports initiative aimed at building cultural and economic links between the two nations.”

The motion also calls for initiatives to continue to strengthen the financial sustainability of the PNGRL, as well as a continuation of programs that address social challenges such as domestic violence.

“With the PNG Hunters having won the premiership in the Queensland Cup last year, stepping up to first grade is a natural progression,” Byrne said. “In order to make this leap the PNG rugby League will need administrative and financial assistance and the Australian Government should help them to stand on their own two feet. No single measure would do more for Papua New Guinean national identity than bringing the Hunter's into the NRL.”

Bold bid for Labor to back PNG's entry into the NRL

amp.smh.com.au amp.smh.com.au
 
Get Rid of The Donkeys

Get Rid of The Donkeys

Coach
Messages
13,738
Beyond the try
line: What PNG’s NRL team means
for development
KINGTAU MAMBON DAVID POKA MAHOLOPA LAVEIL
The plan is to spend big –
but is this the right field?

Excitement is building around Papua New Guinea’s bid to have its own team in the Australian National Rugby League (NRL). Australia is providing big bucks – $600 million over 10 years – to PNG, in addition to technical support, to put together a strong bid. But it is not a done deal. PNG Prime Minister James Marape said at a Lowy Institute address last month that PNG’s bid will ultimately be assessed by the NRL on merit, with a decision to be made in 2027.

There is a strong case for PNG to join the NRL. Marape sees rugby league as part of a broader national unification policy, with the sport being used to promote peace and ethics in a country racked with tribal fighting and high crime rates. His backing is reminiscent of Nelson Mandela’s support for rugby union, which helped unite South Africa as it emerged from the apartheid era.

Over the years, PNG has slowly entered Australian rugby league with limited success. Work on an NRL bid began more than a decade ago, with the PNG government initially setting up an office to formulate a bid, though it suffered political infighting and misuse of funds. While the NRL bid stalled, PNG was successful in having the SP Hunters team enter the state-based Queensland Cup in 2014. Australia and PNG have also held an annual test called the Prime Minister’s 13 (PM13) match since 2005.

For Australia, sports diplomacy is not new. Australia has engaged with PNG before under its PacificAus Sports program, supporting PNG’s national rugby league and netball teams compete at major international events. PNG athletes have also been assisted in their preparations to compete in the Olympics and Commonwealth games. Australia has also used its Team Up program to deliver development outcomes, provide awareness and assistance in health, and forge links between institutions as well as people.

Australia’s financial commitment to PNG’s NRL bid isn’t small. Although separate from Australia’s grant program, the A$5.5 million committed last year, and the A$60 million promised annually, amount to a tenth of the grants Australia provides to PNG each year.

Despite the use of sports in building relationships and delivering development, it is difficult to justify the large financial contribution to facilitate a rugby team when grant levels in two important development sectors have fallen. Real (adjusted for inflation) health grants provided to PNG pre-Covid fell to be a quarter lower than 2011 levels. The fall in real education grants has been far worse, 44 per cent lower in 2021 than they were in 2010.

The violence and unrest in Port Moresby on 10 January also points to persistent issues with law and order that PNG is ill-equipped to address.

PNG’s development needs cannot be overstated. Extreme poverty defines the lives of 40 per cent of its population and the country has the lowest Human Development Index rating in the Asia-Pacific region. Further, PNG has the highest infant mortality rate, at 34 per 1,000 births, and the lowest pre-primary net enrolment rate in the region.

The violence and unrest in Port Moresby on 10 January also points to persistent issues with law and order that PNG is ill-equipped to address.

Care is also needed as rugby league can be leveraged for political gain, which would be hard for Australia to justify. This was evident in 2022 when a PM13 match held in Brisbane saw a PNG contingent comprising 72 members of parliament travel to attend the game. This trip, paid for by the PNG government, was seen to reward MPs for voting in Marape to the top job shortly following the country’s elections. Against more pressing development needs, the trip cost more than K3 million (A$1.2 million).

It is not difficult to see Australia’s support for PNG’s NRL bid scoring diplomatic points given many PNG MPs follow the sport passionately. But PNG’s development needs must remain the top priority in all of Australia’s bilateral programs with the country. This is important given PNG recently signed a security agreement with Australia, has increased labour mobility by establishing the Pacific Engagement Visa, and is currently pursuing a free trade agreement. In addition, the nature of official development finance provided to PNG is changing, with the majority shifting from grants to loans.

While many Papua New Guineans are avid rugby league fans, support (particularly financial) for an NRL bid by both the PNG and Australian governments may end up becoming a case of misplaced priorities. A recent survey of everyday Papua New Guineans found a desire for self-reliance and economic independence. Investment in human capital and opportunities for education and training for young people was cited as central to building PNG’s ability to be self-reliant in the future.

Partnerships such as the PNG NRL bid program, pushed at government-to-government level between political leaders, are not always what is needed elsewhere in PNG society. It is hard to put a price tag on the potential benefits that rugby brings in drawing Australia and PNG together, but clearly the social benefits of sports need to be captured at an affordable price.

www.lowyinstitute.org

Beyond the try line: What PNG’s NRL team means for development | Lowy Institute

The plan is to spend big – but is this the right field?
www.lowyinstitute.org www.lowyinstitute.org
 
M

Maximus

Coach
Messages
12,329
Wb1234 said:
Dopes don’t realise if any money is going to png it will be announced in the federal budget

which is why I said expansion would be announced mid year after the budget is determined
Click to expand...

The only dope is the one that doesn't realise the budget was announced yesterday, and that's what we were already talking about.
 
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