PNG bid for NRL

[Perth Red]

If I was an NRL CEo I'd have scouts looking at PNG kids each year. I'm sure there is some decent talent there and could you imagine your merchandise sales potential if you had 3 or 4 Kumuls in your side! You'd become the PNG adopted club for sure!!

 

[hutch]

If I was an NRL CEo I'd have scouts looking at PNG kids each year. I'm sure there is some decent talent there and could you imagine your merchandise sales potential if you had 3 or 4 Kumuls in your side! You'd become the PNG adopted club for sure!!

thing is though, it is extremely hard for them to get visas here, the hassle almost isnt worth it. the dragons would have signed jessie joe parker for this year, he trained with them during the off season but couldnt get a visa. until it is sorted out, we wont see a heap of kumuls out here, which is a shame because there would be so much untapped talent there.

 

[Lockyer4President!]

iirc the Cairns QC team tried to bring over a couple of PNG players last season but the plan fell through due to visa problems.

 

[Perth Red]

Maybe some Canberra lobbying is in order! The Oz Govt seem very supportive of PNG (we should be given the way Aussie companies are pillaging their resources!) so maybe they would look favourably at this as it is good PR for Australia at virtually no cost to the Govt.

 

[Big Time]

Sorry, there's a big difference between a mining company investing in a football team in Australia and investing in a team in PNG. The risks are huge! And I'm not sure if you have noticed, but things aren't all that crash hot in the mining sector right now.

Will BHP et al or the PNG government pick up the tab for providing security for visiting teams? Where will they play? What happens if there's a bit of civil unrest?

What are the benefits of an NRL team in PNG? Do they outweigh the many risks? I don't think they do...

Didn't this discussion move to Searles suggestion of basing this side in NT and playing a couple of games a year in PNG!!!!

 

[Canard]

I doubt Visa's is a major stumbling block though, if NRL clubs though there was talent there they would be moving heaven and earth to get at it.

I mean the fact that Brits and South African have and are contracted to NRL teams would suggest that getting a visa can be done. And I don't know this for a fact but I would suggest that a PNG national wouldn't have any more trouble getting a visa than a Brit or Saffa.

The Cowboys had a least one (maybe two) Kumuls contracted in our first seasons (95 and 96) (proving the Visa thing isnt a big issue, unless its recently changed) neither played grade as far as I remember.

 

[El Diablo]

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/kumuls-make-a-play-for-nrl/story-e6frfgbo-1225805507098

Kumuls' make a play for NRL

* By Dean Ritchie
* From: The Daily Telegraph
* November 30, 2009 11:47PM

FORGET Central Coast, Brisbane and outback Queensland - the next franchise to enter the NRL competition should be based in Papua New Guinea.

That is the passionate plea from the PNG Government, which has written a detailed letter to NRL chief executive David Gallop explaining why Port Moresby would be the perfect setting for a new rugby league team.

PNG Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare has also pledged $10 million to help build a new stadium in Port Moresby and a further $250,000 to assist the PNG bid team, headed by Gold Coast chairman and veteran league official Paul Broughton.

Already the bid team has secured long-term sponsorship as it battles against Central Coast, Central Queensland and a second Brisbane side to be the NRL's newest clubs, possibly in 2013.

"I appreciate there will be many challenging and difficult tasks ahead, however, I want to assure you and members of the bid team that I and my Government are firmly behind this private sector initiative" Sir Michael wrote in a letter to Broughton.

"My Government has already committed K500,000 [PNG currency kina, about $250,000] to assist the bid team including a further K20 million [$10 million] in 2009 for funding development of an appropriate stadium and other rugby league programs and activities.

"No sport except the South Pacific Games in the past has been the recipient of such magnitude of support from PNG Governments. I know the whole nation will be behind the PNG Bid Team's endeavours and I am confident the bid team will succeed."

The PM then added: "I feel I am setting PNG on a major historical path, paving the way for rugby league having a significant input into the social and economic lives of our people and nation in the future."

Broughton, a former ARL official and ex-Balmain coach, has been named the bid team's strategic adviser and has spent countless hours improving and assisting the bid over the past nine months.

PNG Minister for Sport Philemon Embel wrote to Gallop saying: "The passion of six million PNG people for rugby league is undisputed. Unlike the Australian-based possible expansion teams, a PNG team will increase revenue to the clubs.

"The New Zealand Warriors increase revenue to the NRL by at least $10 million a year. PNG would do the same."

The NRL continues to seeking expansion but PNG may be forced to wait several more years before being considered for inclusion. "I admire their enthusiasm," Gallop said. "The interest in the game is almost unprecedented in PNG.

"We have no short-term plan to expand the competition and clearly they have a fair bit of work to do before they would be considered. But with the level of Government support they have, we will continue to monitor their position closely."

The PNG bid claims rugby league is a truly national sport with 150,000 registered players.

 

[1 Eyed TEZZA]

"The New Zealand Warriors increase revenue to the NRL by at least $10 million a year. PNG would do the same."

Id like to know how? If they mean through PNG TV stations and television rights, I hardly see how. Plus I cant see Aus TV channels wanting to send crew to PNG every 2nd week. There are just too many reasons to say no to PNG.

 

[Perth Red]

Should be a long term strategic goal. But we know the NRL doesn't look past next year so no fricking hope of that.

 

[Hindyscrack]

thing is though, it is extremely hard for them to get visas here, the hassle almost isnt worth it. the dragons would have signed jessie joe parker for this year, he trained with them during the off season but couldnt get a visa. until it is sorted out, we wont see a heap of kumuls out here, which is a shame because there would be so much untapped talent there.

I cant understand that the australian government wouldn't see this as a boost to the nation of PNG and offer them a visa dispensation if offered an NRL contract.

 

[Big Time]

Thanks for posting that. I tend to agree with the point about basing the team out of Australia - but believe that the Northern Territory has more to offer than another team based out of the Gold Coast. This option was touched on in Michael Searle's report last year (although the split of games could be a bit more equitable):

http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,24036728-23214,00.html

Searles proposal makes sense. I have no doubt a side would be successful in Darwin and combining that with PNG, I can't see too many negatives.

 

[Goddo]

NO PNG! Stupid backwards move. We need to make money, and a country with a GDP like PNG is not a smart move for a team. Yes, they love footy, but they wouldn't bring anything else to the table.

The NRL know this, which is why they are saying no politely. Perth, Central Queensland, Brisbane 2, Wellington and Central Coast are all ahead of PNG in terms of priority for a club and as such they will not be getting a side, no matter how much their government backs it.

PNG have far more pressing concerns domestically. Give them a QLD Cup side as its cheaper to run and also so their players can then move into the NRL and let that be the end of it.

 

[Babyface O'reilly]

NO PNG! Stupid backwards move. We need to make money, and a country with a GDP like PNG is not a smart move for a team. Yes, they love footy, but they wouldn't bring anything else to the table.

The NRL know this, which is why they are saying no politely. Perth, Central Queensland, Brisbane 2, Wellington and Central Coast are all ahead of PNG in terms of priority for a club and as such they will not be getting a side, no matter how much their government backs it.

PNG have far more pressing concerns domestically. Give them a QLD Cup side as its cheaper to run and also so their players can then move into the NRL and let that be the end of it.

Completely agree. Also, a new team would need some established stars to get them going and I don't see too many willing to pack their families off to PNG.

 

[Jankuloski]

What does a GDP of a nation have to do with contributing to the pot? It's potentialy a very exciting team to watch - a lot of enthusiasm and not as much technique - I personally love to see such teams create upsets. If I lived in Aus I'd pay to see it.

If we are talking about government grants they already demonstrated that whatever they do have they'll give to the franchise.

Maybe now might not be the best of times for such a move,as the game needs to consolidate and strengthen the existing teams, but the only way we're to know that is propper market research - I find it hard to believe that the inclusion of Perth wouldn't add to TV crowds.

 

[bender]

Id like to know how? If they mean through PNG TV stations and television rights, I hardly see how. Plus I cant see Aus TV channels wanting to send crew to PNG every 2nd week. There are just too many reasons to say no to PNG.

I am no expert but it does not seem unrealistic to me.

An NRL team will need to raise a good 10 million dollars just to survive. PNG residents are third world, but they do still have some major industry.

Firstly, the indications are that the PNG and Aust govts would be supporting that side let us guess taht this say 1 million dollars each per year, that gets us to 2 millions dollars added to the competition.

An NRL major sponser is probably 1 million per year. I would have thought, at the very least that you would see a coke/pepsi war over sponsoring the team and 1 million would be quite reasonable to expect. Then i would say 1 million from lesser sponsors. Just a thought, but would the cigarette companies in PNG shelve out for advertising at the local home ground.

Anyway, i think that this takes us to about 4 million (although dont forget that there is no reason why an Australian company would not sponsor a PNG side, since the games will be largely televised in Australia, so i would have thought another million or so might be a chance) on a conservative guess. Then dont forget gate receipts if we average say 10 games at 15000 a game and 10 a ticket we get about 1.5 million. I am not sure what sort of money TV companies in PNG currently pay (if anything) but i would have thought theyd get on board for at least an extra 500,000. This takes us to about $6million (alhtough it is not allowing for the $10 million government pledge for the stadium).

Merchandising is another issue. PNG would be a trendy side and while their jerseys would need to be cheap, they would still sell like hotcakes in PNG and be decent sellers as collectors items, even in Australia. Let us guess at 1 million per year which i think may be even quite conservative. This takes us to $7 million dollars and is probalby about the limit of the revenue value.

But, the thing which is forgotten is the goodwill stories in the press and the massive marketing value of such stories. This would be big news, not only here, but also right throughout the Pacific Islands. It would be front page news and positive front page news, again both here and in the pacific. As an advertising tool, to purchase the space that this would buy would be in the millions and millions of dollars to the game, probably more. To say that this advertising would be worth three million would be a fairly conservative estimation, but this is the way you can get to 10 million with some coservative figures.

Dont get me wrong, more than any other bid, this one needs to be scrutinised, worked out and carefully implemented, but the benefits are clear to be seen, and there are advantages that this bid brings that that the others dont. Ofcourse there are also pitfalls and difficulties that the others dont have.

As for your point of Channel 9 not sending cameras to PNG, well they would be stupid if they did. Anyone with any common sense would employ and train a local camera crew in png, much like seems to be usually done with the Warriors. While a not a big deal, this is just a further carrot for the PNG govt to support rugby league and the bid.

 

[Brutus]

I'm actually quite sick of hearing about the PNG bid.

It won't happen in the next 25 years at least so why bother talking about it.

We need a Perth consortium to start making some noises.

 

[myanonymoususername]

I am no expert but it does not seem unrealistic to me.

An NRL team will need to raise a good 10 million dollars just to survive. PNG residents are third world, but they do still have some major industry.

Firstly, the indications are that the PNG and Aust govts would be supporting that side let us guess taht this say 1 million dollars each per year, that gets us to 2 millions dollars added to the competition.

Why would the Australian government do this? Wha possible benefit does it provide to Australia? Should the PNG government be doing this given they have much higher priority things to fix in their country - like law and order, health, education etc etc

An NRL major sponser is probably 1 million per year. I would have thought, at the very least that you would see a coke/pepsi war over sponsoring the team and 1 million would be quite reasonable to expect. Then i would say 1 million from lesser sponsors. Just a thought, but would the cigarette companies in PNG shelve out for advertising at the local home ground.

I very much doubt the market in PNG is considered strategic by any corporates, so I think your sponsorship estimates are fanciful. If they had cigarette advertising at their ground, that would most likely prevent them ever being shown on Australian TV.

Anyway, i think that this takes us to about 4 million (although dont forget that there is no reason why an Australian company would not sponsor a PNG side, since the games will be largely televised in Australia, so i would have thought another million or so might be a chance) on a conservative guess. Then dont forget gate receipts if we average say 10 games at 15000 a game and 10 a ticket we get about 1.5 million.

Given that per capita income in PNG is only $1300 a year, I'd think $10 a ticket is a big ask.

I am not sure what sort of money TV companies in PNG currently pay (if anything) but i would have thought theyd get on board for at least an extra 500,000. This takes us to about $6million (alhtough it is not allowing for the $10 million government pledge for the stadium).

Given that the total revenue of PNG's only TV station is about $4.5m and profit about $1.4m I think $0.5m is probably a stretch.

Merchandising is another issue. PNG would be a trendy side and while their jerseys would need to be cheap, they would still sell like hotcakes in PNG and be decent sellers as collectors items, even in Australia. Let us guess at 1 million per year which i think may be even quite conservative. This takes us to $7 million dollars and is probalby about the limit of the revenue value.

The small per capita income in PNG would affect potential merchandise sales. Also, while they might sell like hotcakes in year one, will they do that year in year out? I doubt it.

But, the thing which is forgotten is the goodwill stories in the press and the massive marketing value of such stories. This would be big news, not only here, but also right throughout the Pacific Islands. It would be front page news and positive front page news, again both here and in the pacific. As an advertising tool, to purchase the space that this would buy would be in the millions and millions of dollars to the game, probably more. To say that this advertising would be worth three million would be a fairly conservative estimation, but this is the way you can get to 10 million with some coservative figures.

Unfortunately goodwill and free advertising won't pay the team's bills. Also, while they might get a lot of goodwill, positive news etc in the first year, I doubt this would be maintained over time.

Dont get me wrong, more than any other bid, this one needs to be scrutinised, worked out and carefully implemented, but the benefits are clear to be seen, and there are advantages that this bid brings that that the others dont. Ofcourse there are also pitfalls and difficulties that the others dont have.

Many many pitfalls for little benefit in my opinion. Why would anyone go to the trouble?

As for your point of Channel 9 not sending cameras to PNG, well they would be stupid if they did. Anyone with any common sense would employ and train a local camera crew in png, much like seems to be usually done with the Warriors. While a not a big deal, this is just a further carrot for the PNG govt to support rugby league and the bid.

I think in NZ they just take the local Sky coverage. I would expect the standard of coverage that would be able to be provided locally out of PNG would be considered unacceptable on Australian TV.

 

[myanonymoususername]

Didn't this discussion move to Searles suggestion of basing this side in NT and playing a couple of games a year in PNG!!!!

I really don't see the connection between Darwin and PNG. Distance wise its about as sensible as having a Hobart team based in Brisbane. If you were going to base it anywhere outside PNG, Cairns would make most sense.

 

[bender]

Why would the Australian government do this? Wha possible benefit does it provide to Australia? Should the PNG government be doing this given they have much higher priority things to fix in their country - like law and order, health, education etc etc

I dont know why. But then again i dont know why they decided to give everyone in the country $900. Apparently if this eventuates, it is quite likely that both govts are prepared to put in.

I very much doubt the market in PNG is considered strategic by any corporates, so I think your sponsorship estimates are fanciful. If they had cigarette advertising at their ground, that would most likely prevent them ever being shown on Australian TV.

I am sorry, but i think that the PNG market is considered strategic to PNG companies. They already get decent sponsors for their RL competition and for their Pacific cup campain. The will get some sponsorship for this, i dont think the figures i quoted are too unlikely. this is the year 2009, if cigarette ads are at the ground, they can be easily blacked out with todays technology.

Given that per capita income in PNG is only $1300 a year, I'd think $10 a ticket is a big ask.

Well, maybe you are correct here, although i wouldnt be too sure. It is up to the bid to make things financial. As a side issue, if they played (for example) 8 or so games at PNG, the Warriors at Christchurch, Brisbane at Suncorp, Cowboys in Cairns or Central Queensland and maybe one or two other games on the road, i think they would easily raise the money considered.

Given that the total revenue of PNG's only TV station is about $4.5m and profit about $1.4m I think $0.5m is probably a stretch.

Maybe or maybe not, given that it would be probably their biggest show, i dont think it sounds too far out of the ordinary, but you could be correct. Still, (and i could be wrong here) but i think a PNG side would also get some TV interest form elsewhere in the pacific also.

The small per capita income in PNG would affect potential merchandise sales. Also, while they might sell like hotcakes in year one, will they do that year in year out? I doubt it.

I admit the merchandising was a bit of guesswork. Probably a little overstated, but maybe not.

Unfortunately goodwill and free advertising won't pay the team's bills. Also, while they might get a lot of goodwill, positive news etc in the first year, I doubt this would be maintained over time.

The point of this post wasnt to argue the viability of PNG, it was just pointing out that the team could bring in 10 million to the NRL. Whehter it costs more than that or the team succeeds is another question.

Many many pitfalls for little benefit in my opinion. Why would anyone go to the trouble?

Well if the team takes off, succeeds, helps improve the countries GDP etc, then i think that is more than a little benefit. If the PNG and Australian govt ends up rasing more than the 2 million (plus a 10 million stadium upgrade) say 5 million or simply just make up the short fall of a team, and if the PNG locals make up the bulk of the playing talent and become one of the big 3 (4) countries, then i think that this shows why. As i said though, it takes much more planning and work and quite possibly the figures may never stack up.

I think in NZ they just take the local Sky coverage. I would expect the standard of coverage that would be able to be provided locally out of PNG would be considered unacceptable on Australian TV.

Well it wasnt unacceptable when they televised the pacific cup earlier this year on channel nine, was it? Nine may need to shell out for a few extra cameras and in a worst case, some training courses, but PNG could handle it. If need be, there is no reason why a nine crew couldnt do the commentary from their tv monitors. This really is the least of their troubles.

 

[beave]

I've been there countless times with my work right through the bigger places like Moresby, Mt Hagen, Madang, and smaller villages based on the side of aircraft strips and the majority of the country is extremely poverty ridden and highly isolated.

There may be 6 million people living in PNG, half to 3/4 of those couldn't afford one game ticket and the majority of people are stuck in the middle of woop woop with no access other than by foot or aircraft to Moresby.

Whilst the romance of having a team based there is all well and good, I really think some of you people need to get your head out of the clouds and be realistic. It is a 3rd world nation FFS.